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Minor MLB Transactions: 8/1/20

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It’s been a busy sports day with the NBA and NHL back in action, not to mention the many MLB games still underway. As the action rolls along, we’ll use this post to review some minor moves you may have missed…

  • Catcher Jonathan Lucroy has been assigned to the Red Sox alternate training site in Pawtucket after clearing waivers, per Alex Speier of the Boston Globe (via Twitter). He’ll stay in their 60-player pool after catching a total of two innings behind the plate for the big-league team. Lucroy, 34, has enjoyed a long and productive career, but a steep dropoff in production following his second All-Star appearance in 2016 has led to a meandering period for the veteran receiver. In addition to the Red Sox, Lucroy has dressed for the Cubs, Angels, Athletics, Rockies, and Rangers since coming to semi-stardom with the Brewers.
  • The Cubs signed pitcher Matt Dermody out of the Independent League, per USA Today’s Bob Nightengale (via Twitter). Everyone is in need of extra pitching depth these days it seems, though the Cubs have a particularly unsettled situation in their bullpen. Dermody is a 30-year-old southpaw who last appeared in the majors in 2017 for the Blue Jays. He made 23 appearances that season, going 2-0 with a 4.43 ERA/6.25 FIP across 22 1/3 innings. Cubs relievers have been the worst such group in the game so far this season. Prior to Saturday’s action, they pitched to a combined 9.55 ERA/9.51 FIP across 21 2/3 innings.
  • The Giants assigned catcher Rob Brantly to their alternate training site, per The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly (via Twitter). The 31-year-old catcher cleared waivers after appearing in one game for the Giants, going hitless in three at-bats. Tyler Heineman and Chadwick Tromp are the catchers that remain on San Francisco’s active roster.

Giants Outright Kean Wong, Jose Siri

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The Giants announced Thursday that infielder Kean Wong and outfielder Jose Siri have cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Sacramento.

Wong was not in the Giants’ 60-man player pool, which means he’s technically still eligible to be added to the pool and selected to the big league roster this season. Siri, who was in the player pool, remains in the organization but cannot be added back to the pool — at least not with the Giants. Siri is still eligible to be traded elsewhere by virtue of beginning the season on a 40-man roster/Major League contract; that’s the same rule that allowed the Orioles to trade Hector Velazquez to the Astros yesterday even though he’d previously been removed from Baltimore’s player pool (also via outright).

Wong, the younger brother of Cardinals second baseman Kolten Wong, was the Rays’ fourth-round pick back in the 2013 draft and made his MLB debut as a September call-up with Tampa Bay last year. He barely saw any big league time (seven games) but enjoyed a second consecutive quality season at the plate, hitting .307/.375/.464 slash with 10 homers, 29 doubles, six triples and six steals. Offense was elevated throughout the league in Triple-A, but Wong’s output checked in at 16 percent better than league average, as measured by wRC+. Primarily been a second baseman in his minor league career, Wong has also seen time at third base and in the outfield.

Siri, 24, spent the 2013-19 seasons in the Reds organization after signing as an amateur out of the Dominican Republic. At one point he was considered one of the Reds’ best prospects, but the shine has worn off him in recent years. Siri raked at a .293/.340/.531 clip with 24 homers and 46 stolen bases as a 21-year-old in Class-A back in 2017, but in the two seasons since that time he’s posted a disappointing .238/.297/.397 slash between Double-A and Triple-A.

Giants Designate Dany Jimenez, Option Jaylin Davis

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The Giants announced a series of roster moves Thursday, as they optioned outfielders Jaylin Davis and Joe McCarthy to their alternate training site, designated Rule 5 right-hander Dany Jimenez for assignment and recalled Steven Duggar. Meanwhile, corner infielders Brandon Belt and Evan Longoria were activated from the injured list.

Jimenez, 26, was selected out of the Blue Jays organization in December’s Rule 5 Draft, but his brief time with the Giants didn’t go particularly well. He allowed a run in 1 1/3 innings of work and walked three of the eight batters he faced. Jimenez threw only 37 pitches with the Giants, and fewer than half of those offerings were strikes. The righty was certainly impressive in the minors last year — albeit against younger competition. In 59 2/3 innings between Class-A Advanced and Double-A, Jimenez notched a 2.59 ERA with 14.2 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9.

Jimenez will be put through waivers now, and if he’s claimed by another club, he’d retain his Rule 5 status with the new team. If Jimenez goes unclaimed, he’ll be offered back to the Blue Jays. The two clubs could also work out a trade that’d allow the Giants to retain Jimenez’s rights as a non-roster player who’d no longer be tied to Rule 5 roster limitations.

It’s a bit of a surprise to see Davis sent down, as the Giants appear high on the 26-year-old slugger. Acquired from the Twins a year ago in the Sam Dyson swap that proved quite regrettable for Minnesota — Dyson had a shoulder injury he’d not disclosed to the Giants or Twins that required surgery — Davis has gotten out to a slow start. He’s appeared in four games and gone just 2-for-12 with a solo home run and six strikeouts. Today’s move notwithstanding, the Giants will surely want to take a longer look at Davis after he decimated minor league pitching to the tune of a .306/.397/.590 slash last year. It seems likely that he’ll be up again in the not-too-distant future, but for now he’ll work at the team’s alternate site while Duggar gets another go-around at the MLB level.

Predict The NL West Division Winner

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With final roster decisions in the books and the 2020 season underway, it’s time to make some predictions. We’re polling the MLBTR readership on each of the game’s six divisions — though plenty more teams will crack the postseason under the rather inclusive new playoff qualification system. We’ve already surveyed the AL East, AL Central, AL West, NL Central, and NL East landscapes, so it’s time to wrap things up with the National League West.

The Dodgers have owned this division for some time now and are perhaps more laden with star-level talent than ever with Mookie Betts on board. Then again, they may be more vulnerable than ever in a short-season format. There’s a nice assembly of talent on the Diamondbacks roster, which includes an elite young player in Ketel Marte and a sturdy slate of veterans now highlighted by intra-division transferee Madison Bumgarner. Then again, you could argue that the Padres have the greatest capacity to surprise with their own budding legend in Fernando Tatis Jr., still-youthful star Manny Machado, and a potential-laden rotation. The Rockies have an excellent core unit in their own right and perhaps have more upside than is generally recognized. And while the Giants don’t really appear primed to compete, they managed to do so last year and still have a lot of players with lofty established performance ceilings at the game’s highest level — even if it has been a few years.

Which team do you think is going to take the division title? (Poll link for app users.)

Giants Expect To Activate Brandon Belt, Evan Longoria

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The Giants expect to welcome back their missing corner infield duo, manager Gabe Kapler told reporters including Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area (via Twitter). Barring a surprise, Brandon Belt and Evan Longoria will be back in action tomorrow.

It’s generally promising not only that both players are now ready to roll but also that they only required the minimum necessary stay on the injured list. Belt has been working through a heel issue while Longoria is nursing a mild oblique problem. It seems in both cases the team has nipped things in the bud.

While the Giants aren’t expected to make much noise in 2020, it’s easy to overlook how important the season is with respect to these players in particular. Both have been highly productive players in the past, which is why they’re earning so much now.

Belt is under contract for $16MM annually in 2020 and 2021. Longoria is earning at a $15MM rate this year before successive $18.5MM and $19.5MM salaries (as well as a 2023 club option that can be bought out for $5MM, which the Rays will pay down by $3MM).

The Giants will obviously be in much better shape to the extent that these two one-time sluggers can regain some of their former glory. That said, it may be be tough to move a significant portion of these contracts even in the best-case scenario.

Giants Designate Rob Brantly For Assignment

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The Giants announced this afternoon that they’ve designated catcher Rob Brantly for assignment. His spot on the roster goes to fellow backstop Chadwick Tromp, whose contract has been selected.

Brantly, 31, appeared in just one game with the Giants and went 0-for-3 before today’s DFA. He’d been thrust into an unexpectedly prominent role, teaming with Tyler Heineman to shoulder the bulk of the catching load for the Giants after Buster Posey opted out of the 2020 season. The well-traveled veteran has seen action in parts of six MLB seasons, hitting at a combined .228/.292/.330 clip in 432 plate appearances. He has a solid 28 percent caught-stealing rate from behind the dish but much less favorable number in terms of pitch framing.

In moving from Brantly to Tromp, the Giants will take a look at a younger option who has a career .275/.353/.439 slash in part of the three Triple-A seasons. The 25-year-old, Aruban-born Tromp spent his entire pro career with the Reds organization prior to 2020, but he became a minor league free agent last winter and latched on with the Giants. He’ll now get his first look at the MLB level. Joey Bart is considered to be the Giants’ future everyday catcher, but a strong showing from Tromp could put him in line to serve as a backup or part-time option down the road.

Giants Sign Chris Herrmann

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The Giants have signed catcher Chris Herrmann to a minor-league contract, according to Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group. He’ll be added to the Giants’ 60-man player pool and will join the three-player taxi squad.

Herrmann spent Spring Training with the Rays, signing on with Tampa in January on a minor-league deal. But with a flurry of other catchers included in the Rays’ 60-player pool, Herrmann seemed unlikely to climb the depth chart for playing time, and requested his release a week ago. He played with the Athletics last year, appearing in 30 games.

The 32-year-old brings some versatility to the table and has demonstrated offensive capability in the past, though the last couple of seasons haven’t been so kind to Herrmann at the dish. In addition to suiting up behind the plate, Herrmann has played first base and both corner outfield positions, which fits in well with the Giants’ mix-and-match lineup formation.

For his career, he’s the owner of a .205/.282/.344 batting line, though he’s had success in stints with the Diamondbacks and Mariners. He managed an .845 OPS in 56 games with the D-Backs in 2016 and looked pretty good in 30 games with the Mariners in 2018.

Giants Select Rico Garcia, Darin Ruf, Rob Brantly, Tyler Heineman

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The Giants have announced their Opening Day roster, which includes several players who’ll need to be added to the 40-man. Reliever Rico Garcia and first baseman Darin Ruf will join catchers Rob Brantly and Tyler Heineman on the 30-man active unit.

Those moves necessitated some departures. Outfielder Jose Siri and infielder Kean Wong were each designated for assignment, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets.

Garcia will enter his first season with the Giants, who claimed him off waivers from the division-rival Rockies last November. He entered the pro ranks as a 30th-round pick of the Rockies in 2016 and has generally posted good results in the minors, though he struggled during his Triple-A and major league debuts last season. The 26-year-old put up a woeful 6.90 ERA/6.47 FIP with 7.48 K/9 and 4.11 BB/9 in 61 1/3 innings at the minors’ top level. In six frames with the Rockies, he allowed seven earned runs on nine hits and five walks (with two strikeouts).

Ruf, meanwhile, joined the Giants in July on a minors pact after thriving in the Korea Baseball Organization from 2017-19. Ruf does have previous MLB experience as a member of the Phillies, with whom he batted .240/.314/.433 in 833 plate appearances from 2012-16. The 33-year-old will now get a chance to pick up at-bats in San Francisco, whose starting first baseman, Brandon Belt, will open the season on the injured list because of a heel issue.

The 31-year-old Brantly, another minor league pickup, has never hit much in MLB stints with the Marlins, White Sox and Phillies, but he’ll could get quite a bit of playing time at catcher for the Buster Posey-less Giants. The same goes for Heineman, whose first 12 major league PA came last season as a member of the Marlins. The former eighth-rounder (Astros, 2012) was excellent in Triple-A last year, when he slashed .341/.397/.622 with 10 homers in 182 PA.

Siri and Wong were both waiver claims in recent months, and they’re now in limbo once again. Siri’s a former Reds farmhand who owns a .264/.313/.447 line with 68 homers and 155 steals in 2,438 minor league PA. Wong combined for 18 trips to the plate with the Angels and Rays last year, but the vast majority of the 2013 fourth-rounder’s experience has come in the minors. He has amassed 1,425 PA in Triple-A and batted .286/.350/.413.

Brandon Belt, Evan Longoria To Open Season On Injured List

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Giants corner infielders Brandon Belt and Evan Longoria will open the season on the injured list, manager Gabe Kapler told reporters including John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link). They’ll both be eligible for activation after ten days on ice.

Belt, who has dealt with numerous maladies in recent seasons, is still nursing a heel problem. Longoria has an oblique issue. In both cases, the timelines for a full return aren’t yet evident.

With this news, the Giants will be looking to alternatives at both first and third base for a decent chunk of the regular season. Fellow veterans Wilmer Flores, Pablo Sandoval, and Donovan Solano represent the most obvious fill-in candidates. Darin Ruf and Zach Green are other 60-man player pool members with MLB experience in the corner infield.

George Kontos Retires

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Longtime major league reliever George Kontos has hung up his cleats, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports. The 35-year-old Kontos hasn’t pitched since the Nationals’ Triple-A affiliate released him last August, but he will stay in baseball as an analyst with NBC Sports Bay Area.

“I did have some inclinations from early on when I was a player in San Francisco that one day this might be the route that I would take,” Kontos told Pavlovic on the Giants Insider Podcast. “It’s definitely nice to be coming back to the black and orange and being around San Francisco again.”

The right-handed Kontos was a fifth-round pick of the Yankees in 2006, but the majority of his work as a big leaguer came as a member of the Giants. He notched quality results with the club from 2012-17 – a 309 2/3-inning span in which he logged a 3.05 ERA with 7.3 K/9 and 2.06 BB/9. Kontos was also part of a pair of World Series-winning Giants teams.

Along with the Yankees (with whom he debuted in 2011 and spent time with again in 2018) and Giants, Kontos saw major league action with the Pirates and Indians. All told, he amassed 357 innings of 3.10 ERA ball in the bigs over parts of eight seasons. MLBTR congratulates Kontos on a successful career and wishes him the best in his new role.

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