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Mariners Outright Mike Morin

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The Mariners announced today that they have outrighted reliever Mike Morin. That move helped clear the way for two promotions, with first baseman Dan Vogelbach and outfielder John Andreoli joining the active roster.

This is the second time Morin has been bumped from the Seattle 40-man roster this season. The 27-year-old righty has recorded six strikeouts against one walk in his four MLB innings this year but has also allowed three earned runs on six hits.

Morin turned in a strong rookie showing back in 2014 with the Angels. (The Halos organization drafted him and promoted him to the majors while their front office was run by current Seattle GM Jerry Dipoto.) Since then, however, Morin has struggled to find success despite generally sporting promising peripherals. Over his career, Morin carries a 4.66 ERA but a 3.32 FIP, 3.89 xFIP, and 3.42 SIERA.

Tigers Place Michael Fulmer On 10-Day DL

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The Tigers announced this afternoon that they have placed starter Michael Fulmer on the 10-day disabled list. He’s said to be dealing with a left oblique strain.

It’s a surprising placement, as Fulmer had seemingly been on track to remain in the rotation heading out of the All-Star break. Details on the injury are not yet available. Outfielder Victor Alcantara will take the open roster spot.

Of particular note, it’s now quite difficult to imagine Fulmer as a summer trade candidate. That may not have been in the cards regardless, but the possibility had at least been intriguing to consider. Fulmer was one of several quality, controllable starters who we rated among the 75 top trade deadline candidates.

Fulmer, 25, has continued to see his results deteriorate after a sterling rookie campaign. Through 112 frames in 2018, he carries a 4.50 ERA with 7.5 K/9 against 3.1 BB/9 along with a 45.6% groundball rate. Still, Fulmer is throwing the same upper-nineties heat and getting the same range of swinging strikes (10.5%) as before. Though he has allowed more hard contact in prior seasons, Fulmer mostly seems like the same pitcher and would be of obvious interest to other organizations.

If there was any plausibility to a trade scenario, it came largely from the fact that this year’s starter rental market is not exactly loaded. Teams seeking quality starters, then, will surely at least inquire on pitchers of Fulmer’s ilk.

Affordability and future control make Fulmer an easy asset for the Tigers to hang onto, though perhaps he could appear in trade rumors again in the winter if he returns and throws well down the stretch. Fulmer is headed for arbitration at season’s end as a Super Two player. The absence will cost him in that process, though not significantly — if, at least, he’s able to return in reasonably short order.

Tigers Activate Leonys Martin

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The Tigers have activated outfielder Leonys Martin from the 10-day disabled list, per a club announcement. Fellow outfielder Mikie Mahtook has been optioned to open a roster spot.

Martin hit the shelf earlier this month with a hamstring strain. That was especially worrying given that the 30-year-old had already required one prior DL stint this year for a similar injury. Ultimately, though, he made it back in just over two weeks after receiving a bit of extra rest over the All-Star break.

That leaves some time left for Martin to show he’s at full health in advance of the trade deadline. Dealing Martin and other pending free agents sits atop the organization’s to-do list over the next ten days. As I explored earlier this summer, Martin has played his way into an interesting potential trade chip, though contenders will certainly want to be able to anticipate that he’ll be on the field.

To this point of the season, Martin carries a .257/.327/.431 batting line with nine home runs. That’s just over league-average production, which is rather appealing given that he’s also a quality up-the-middle defender and baserunner. With only $1.75MM in guaranteed salary this year and another season of arbitration control still remaining, Martin is affordable as well and even comes with some potential future value.

Rangers Promote Willie Calhoun, Place Nomar Mazara On DL

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The Rangers announced today that top prospect Willie Calhoun is headed up to the active MLB roster. He’ll take the spot of outfielder Nomar Mazara, who’ll hit the DL with a thumb sprain.

Calhoun, who came to the Texas organization in last summer’s Yu Darvish swap, earned a brief taste of the big leagues late last year. While he was widely considered ready to hit at the game’s highest level, though, the Rangers kept him down to begin the present campaign — due in no small part to a need to refine his glovework.

While he had played quite a bit of second base in the past, Calhoun has focused on left field this year at Triple-A. The results will be on display when he suits up at the MLB level, though it’s not yet clear whether he’ll receive an extended opportunity this time around. It’ll certainly also be interesting to see Calhoun try to improve upon a tepid first effort (in a very small sample) against major-league pitching. Through 408 plate appearances this year for Round Rock, he carries a .306/.360/.444 slash with eight home runs and 27 walks to go with forty strikeouts — not nearly the output he managed in 2017, but still promising.

Calhoun’s play will obviously help dictate how much of a run he gets down the stretch. But the Rangers’ trade deadline outcomes and the health of Mazara will surely also be considered. There’s no reason at present to believe that Mazara will miss significant time, though the injury may well foreclose any possibility (however meager) that he could be traded in the next ten days.

Rays Designate Johnny Field

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The Rays have designated outfielder Johnny Field for assignment, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports (Twitter links). That opens 40-man space for the team to select the contract of catcher Adam Moore.

Field, 26, debuted this year and posted a .213/.253/.373 slash line with six home runs in 179 MLB plate appearances. Clearly, that’s not going to get it done, though it was only a first attempt at the game’s highest level. Field, who is capable of playing in the corners or up the middle defensively, has a .270/.320/.436 batting line in his 805 career plate appearances at Triple-A.

As for the 34-year-old Moore, this represents a return to the majors after a one-season absence. He had appeared in every one of the prior eight MLB campaigns, yet saw action in less than one hundred total games. Outside of a lengthy run in 2010, in fact, Moore has taken just 74 total plate appearances. H carries a .215/.259/.309 slash in 158 plate appearances this year at Triple-A.

Nationals Reinstate Stephen Strasburg, Ryan Zimmerman

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The Nationals have reinstated right-hander Stephen Strasburg from the 10-day disabled list and brought back first baseman Ryan Zimmerman from the 60-day DL, the team announced. To make room for those two, Washington optioned righties Wander Suero and Trevor Gott to Triple-A.

Strasburg’s back after missing upward of a month with shoulder inflammation, and his return will be a much-needed one for a Washington club with ground to make up in the NL East. The Nationals went just 48-48 before the All-Star break and currently sit five games out of a wild-card spot and 5.5 behind the division-leading Phillies. Part of the problem has been a lack of high-end starters behind ace Max Scherzer. Gio Gonzalez and Jeremy Hellickson have both pitched well, though they haven’t turned in front-line performances. Strasburg, 30, has done that throughout his career, and he managed a 3.46 ERA/3.58 FIP with 10.6 K/9 and 2.12 BB/9 in 80 2/3 innings before going on the DL.

Zimmerman has been out since May 12 because of a back injury, and he struggled prior to landing on the shelf. After reviving his career in 2017, the 33-year-old opened this season with a .217/.280/.409 line in 125 plate appearances. His DL placement opened the door for the addition of fellow veteran first baseman Mark Reynolds, whom the Nats selected from Triple-A Syracuse when they lost Zimmerman. The minor league signing of Reynolds has paid dividends for Washington, as he has slashed a splendid .291/.361/.573 with 10 home runs (and a 10-RBI game) over 133 PAs. It’s now unclear how the Nationals will divvy up playing time between Zimmerman and Reynolds, two righty-swingers.

Orioles Designate Chris Tillman

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2:49pm: Baltimore has given Tillman an opportunity to continue pitching in its minor league system, but he’s undecided as of now, general manager Dan Duquette told Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun and other reporters.

2:24pm: The Orioles announced that they’ve designated right-hander Chris Tillman for assignment. His roster spot will go to infielder/outfielder Renato Nunez, whom they’ve selected from Triple-A Norfolk.

Chris Tillman | Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Tillman’s designation continues an abrupt fall from grace for a pitcher who was a solid mid-rotation starter earlier in his career. Acquired from the Mariners in a 2008 heist, Tillman broke out in 2012 with 86 innings of 2.93 ERA ball and then threw between 172 and 206 1/3 frames in each of the ensuing four seasons. During that 844 2/3-inning span, Tillman logged a 3.81 ERA with 6.98 K/9 and 3.07 BB/9.

Unfortunately for Tillman and the Orioles, his career took a major turn for the worse in 2017. Tillman missed the first month-plus of the season with a shoulder injury and then struggled mightily across 93 innings, recording a 7.84 ERA with 6.1 K/9 and 4.94 BB/9. In the process, he dealt with a decline in velocity and even lost his place in Baltimore’s rotation.

Despite Tillman’s nightmarish 2017, the starter-needy Orioles brought him back in the offseason on a one-year, $3MM guarantee with the hope he’d revive his career. The Orioles also hoped at the time that they’d push for a playoff berth, but they’re now among the worst teams in the league, and Tillman hasn’t helped matters. The 30-year-old made seven starts prior to his designation and combined for just 26 2/3 innings of 10.46 ERA ball, also issuing more walks (17) than strikeouts (13).

Tillman hasn’t pitched in the majors since May 10, after which he went on the disabled list with a lower back strain, and his velocity once again tumbled when he did take the hill. Further, Tillman has been ineffective across multiple minor league levels, including Triple-A Norfolk, where he has registered a 6.60 ERA with 3.0 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 in 15 innings.

With Baltimore now beginning a full rebuild, there are multiple eras coming to an end on its roster. Not only is Tillman on his way out, but the team just traded its best player, shortstop Manny Machado, to the Dodgers this week. There will be more longtime franchise staples headed out via trade in the next week-plus, too, with center fielder Adam Jones (who came over from Seattle with Tillman) and closer Zach Britton perhaps among them.

Given that the Orioles are turning over their roster, they’re in position to evaluate young players, including Nunez. The 24-year-old joined the Orioles off waivers from the Rangers in mid-May and has since batted .289/.361/.443 with five home runs in 228 plate appearances at Norfolk. Nunez is a lifetime .249/.311/.457 hitter in 1,341 Triple-A PAs and has seen a bit of big league action in each season since 2016, having combined for 72 PAs and a .167/.222/.273 line with the A’s and Rangers.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Mets Activate Yoenis Cespedes

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1:09pm: The Mets have activated Cespedes, Tim Britton of The Athletic was among those to tweet. In other moves, the Mets recalled reliever Drew Smith and optioned both first baseman Dominic Smith and right-hander Corey Oswalt to Triple-A.

8:25am: After a two-month layoff, Mets left fielder Yoenis Cespedes is poised to return from the disabled list Friday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports. With the Mets set to play a three-game series at Yankee Stadium, Cespedes will likely slot in at DH over the weekend, per DiComo.

Cespedes landed on the DL in mid-May with a hip flexor, an injury that didn’t look as if it would keep him out for significant time. However, the 32-year-old suffered multiple setbacks during his rehab and will end up missing nine weeks as a result. When Cespedes went down, the Mets were a game over .500 (19-18) and no doubt expecting to compete for a playoff spot, but their season has gone in the tank in his absence. New York, which began its slide with Cespedes in the lineup, is now 39-55 and sitting in last place in the NL East.

With the Mets’ postseason hopes dead, Cespedes won’t serve as a second-half reinforcement who helps the team charge to a playoff spot. Nevertheless, he’ll attempt to rebound from a first half in which he batted a somewhat disappointing .255/.316/.474 in 152 plate appearances before succumbing to injury.

A lack of availability has been a major problem for Cespedes since last season – the first of a four-year, $110MM contract – as lower body injuries limited him to 81 games then and 37 thus far in 2018. To this point, then, the deal hasn’t worked out for the Mets, who kept Cespedes from leaving in free agency after he helped them to playoff berths (including an NL pennant) in 2015-16.

Rays To Select Adam Moore

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The Rays are set to select catcher Adam Moore’s contract from Triple-A Durham, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The club will have to make a corresponding 40-man move to create a spot for Moore, as Topkin notes.

The 34-year-old Moore signed a minor league contract with the Rays in February and has since batted just .215/.259/.309 in 158 plate appearances with Durham, though he has thrown out 33 percent of would-be base stealers. Moore has caught runners at a similar clip (31 percent) throughout his minor league career and, despite this year’s struggles, carries a .733 OPS in 2,352 Triple-A plate appearances with multiple teams. He also comes with some major league experience, having combined for 292 PAs and a .197/.237/.303 line with the Mariners, Royals, Padres and Indians between 2009-16.

During his first action in Tampa Bay, Moore will back up Jesus Sucre in Wilson Ramos’ absence. Ramos was a key contributor to the Rays’ 49-47 start and looked like a prime trade chip as a result. Unfortunately for the Rays, though, he suffered a hamstring injury last weekend and is likely to be on the shelf beyond the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.

Mariners Extend Scott Servais

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The Mariners announced that they’ve agreed to a multiyear contract extension with manager Scott Servais. The length of the deal isn’t yet known.

“Scott has created a culture here in Seattle that allows players to be successful,” general manager Jerry Dipoto said of Servais. “They are encouraged to be themselves, which has resulted in a loose environment, while still maintaining the focus on team above self. His leadership has also been evident through the ongoing growth and impact of one of the best coaching staffs in Major League Baseball. He has been the right leader at the right time for the right team and I look forward to many more years together.”

The extension for Servais comes two weeks after the Mariners locked up Dipoto, who, like Seattle’s manager, had been in the final year of his contract. The Dipoto-Servais duo has been together since 2015, and the Mariners have posted a solid 222-199 record with them at the helm.

While the Mariners have also extended their major league-worst playoff drought to 16 years under their current leadership, the team may finally break that ignominious streak this season. The M’s will begin the second half of the campaign on Friday with a 58-39 record, which gives them a three-game edge over the American League West rival Athletics for the AL’s last wild-card spot.

Given how difficult it is to quantify the performance of a manager, it’s debatable whether Servais – an ex-major league catcher – has had a significant impact on the Mariners. Thanks in some part to Servais, though, the Mariners have exceeded preseason expectations in 2018 and have done so without one of their best players, second baseman Robinson Cano, who’s simultaneously recovering from a fractured right hand and serving an 80-game suspension. Cano has appeared in just 39 games this year, making Seattle’s success all the more impressive.

With Cano slated to return in mid-August, Servais & Co. will work in the meantime to stay in playoff position. The club entered the All-Star break in an awful skid, as it followed an eight-game winning streak by losing eight of 11. But regardless of whether Seattle recovers and finally returns to the postseason this year, it appears Servais will be atop its dugout for the foreseeable future.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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