The Rangers have announced that they’ve placed righty Andrew Cashner on the 10-day DL with a left oblique strain. They’ve also purchased the contract of veteran righty reliever Ernesto Frieri to take his place on the 25-man roster. To clear 40-man space for Frieri, they’ve designated 1B/OF Peter O’Brien for assignment.
[Related: Updated Texas Rangers Depth Chart]
Cashner’s injury is the latest for a Rangers rotation that has also recently endured injuries to Cole Hamels and A.J. Griffin, although MLB.com’s TR Sullivan tweets that the Rangers hope Cashner will only need to miss a start or two. Cashner has posted a 3.50 ERA and 49.8 GB% in 69 1/3 innings with Texas, albeit with 4.3 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9.
Frieri is set to return to the big leagues after last appearing in the bigs with the Rays in 2015. He sat out the 2016 season to work on his mechanics, signed a minor-league deal with the Yankees, then latched on with the Rangers after opting out. For the season, he’s posted a 2.86 ERA, 10.6 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 22 Triple-A innings, perhaps indicating he’s recovered some portion of what made him successful as a closer for the Angels in 2012 and 2013 before he struggled with the Angels and Pirates in 2014.
The well-traveled O’Brien has already been a member of four organizations in 2017, heading from the Diamondbacks to the Royals to the Reds to the Rangers in a series of minor transactions. The 26-year-old has demonstrated impressive power, with 122 career minor-league home runs, but has always had trouble with strikeouts and this year has struggled to the tune of a .167/.254/.301 line in four minor-league stops. He briefly played in the big leagues with Arizona in 2015 and 2016.
What’s up with all the oblique strains? Too much training or not enough?
However, Peter O’Brien is drawing rave reviews on being designated for assignment.
Whenever I see Peter O’Brien’s name in a headline, I click on the article to see if this comment was made. Thank you.
IT’S PRELLER’S FAULT!!!!!
you’re correct. Preller told them to dfa Petey
Cashner needs to make up his mind now about turning himself into a reliever and going with just a FB/SL combo. making a commitment over a year or 2 with the same organization to get it done, whether it be Pittsburgh, Cardinals, Boston.. Someone who has had success turning former flamethrower starters into shut down relievers..
Think Cashner might be a year or 2 past making this decision, but he really needs to make this choice soon.
Why would he do that? He has been a perfectly capable starter this year (3.50 ERA and was 2.92 coming into the month) and has been even better at times in the past.
Is ERA how we’re evaluating pitchers now?
+1
The only way to evaluate them in the long run
… except for the other ways to evaluate them in the long run. I won’t completely dismiss ERA as “a” way to evaluate pitchers, but you can’t seriously think that it’s the “only” way.
You’ve heard of FIP and xFIP, right? Or just K rate and walk rate. Anything except ERA.
Why would he do that when he is getting team(s) to give him 10m/yr as a starter?
I think long term he is probably better served as a pen arm, but if teams are gonna give him $$$ to try as a starter, then go for it.
Who has St. Louis or Pittsburgh turned into shut down relievers…? The Pirates had success doing this like once and now everyone thinks they can fix anyone. Both bullpens have been incompetent this year.
They’ve had tons of success with rebuilding starters, but I don’t know what relievers they’ve helped other than melancon.
In the short term, the Bucs have gotten some pretty good years out of veteran relievers who hadn’t done anything right in recent previous years. Jose Veras, Joel Harnrahan and Arquimedes Caminero come to mind… but like I said, short term only. They haven’t “turned around” relievers so much as sometimes been good at finding good ones on the cheap.
Cashner on the D.L. … again … what a shock
Not going to bother going deep here.. Rosenthal.. MiLB starter and now one of the best closers in the game. Pittsburgh who has been consistently turning failed starters/relievers into solid BP pieces for years. Boston, turned failed starter Andrew Miller into one of the best relievers in the game now the last 5y. Matt Barnes and Joe Kelly this year in Boston’s pen. Kelly hits 100-102mph nearly every game multiple times.
Cashner has lost 2-4mph off his FB the last few years and think could possibly get back to the mid-upper 90’s only going 1IP, last longer also, neutralizing that 10m brought up by a poster, which will go away when he continues failing as a starter.
His change never was very good and his slider was pretty decent when had command, comboing that with his FB might make him an effective late inning weapon for a lot more years than another failed Edwin Jackson type.
For real. Why do people keep pushing Cashner to the bullpen? Dude is SPENT as a reliever. Has only succeeded as a starter.
His best pitch is easily his sinker. He got crazy good results with it in 2013 and 2014. If he’s just trying to strike everyone out he has a tendency to lapse into overthrowing and struggles with command.
Based on the results, Cashner as a starter is working this year and has worked in the past. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Well its broke. He cant be a starter as he always breaks down
Rosenthal was my first thought too. Cashner is a good starter when he’s healthy but he never is. If the velocity is there then why not try to convert him?
Oh, and “rave review” jokes are coming, I know, but Peter O’Brien is a prime example of why you don’t draft college first basemen in the upper rounds. They have, by far, the highest bust rates of anyone.
He was drafted as a catcher….
Interesting. Looking at his minor league numbers now, and it’s amazing they let him catch for as long as they did. But I stand corrected. Except for the part about college first basemen.
He didn’t get rave reviews though
“why not try to convert him” In large part, I think the answer to this is, he doesn’t want to, yet.
If teams are gonna give him a shot to start (and pay him like one) he has no reason to go to the pen yet.
Cashner….potential…that’s his broken promise. Big hat…no cattle! Glad he’s gone back to Texas. He should be in Miami….but he has to have a beard. Knucklehead!
I love Anthony Rizzo!
Ernesto Frieri is back in the majors? In Texas? All I can say is, if you have seats in the outfield in Arlington, definitely bring a glove and hope that Frieri pitches.
I kinda feel bad for O’Brien. Like yeah he’s been hiring terrible but I wonder if he can’t get comfortable at the plate with all the DFA limbo going around
Damnit man! Tyson Ross finally is ready to pitch and Cashner has to go on the DL! Its amazing this team is a game above .500 considering the offense has been putrid for stretches ( and i mean week to week stretches, not just a couple of days ) and how injury riddled the starters have been. Oh and lets not forget the bullpen, starting with Dyson.. Geez
How much would the Rangers like to have Maddox back? The wheels have fallen off since he left. Coupled with Daniels decisions to keep trying to catch lighting in a bottle with pitchers with checkered pasts or history of injuries and this team is operating as it should.