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Twins Designate Tim Melville, Will Select Contract Of John Curtiss

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10:48pm: Minnesota will select the contract of right-hander John Curtiss tomorrow as a corresponding roster move, reports Bollinger (on Twitter).

The 24-year-old Curtiss currently ranks as Minnesota’s No. 19 prospect, per Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis of MLB.com. Curtiss has laid waste to minor league opponents this season, posting a sparkling 1.28 ERA with 12.4 K/9 with a 48 percent ground-ball rate in 49 1/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A. Control is a bit of an issue, though, as he’s averaged 4.0 walks per nine innings and snapped off six wild pitches on the year.

Callis and Mayo praise his 94-98 mph fastball, his “considerably” improved slider and his “intense and serious personality” on the mound in suggesting that Curtiss could eventually close games at the big league level.

10:25pm: The Twins have designated right-hander Tim Melville for assignment, manager Paul Molitor told reporters after the game Tuesday night (Twitter link via MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger). He’d been an option to start on Saturday, but that outing will go to fellow righty Dillon Gee, who shined in Game 2 of yesterday’s doubleheader. A corresponding roster move for Melville will be announced tomorrow.

Melville, who signed a minors pact with the Twins earlier this summer after a solid season with the independent Long Island Ducks, earned a spot start with Minnesota on the heels of a terrific 2.70 ERA with 8.6 K/9, 3.1 BB/9 and a 33.7 percent ground-ball rate in 66 2/3 innings with the Twins’ Triple-A affiliate in Rochester. That spot start didn’t go well, however, as Melville was tagged for five runs on four hits and three walks with three strikeouts in 3 1/3 frames against the White Sox in Game 1 of yesterday’s doubleheader.

Unfortunately for Melville, the Twins need roster flexibility at the moment, so he’ll lose his 40-man roster spot and a potential September call-up. If he clears waivers, he’ll likely head back to Triple-A, though, and could reemerge to provide some depth for a fairly thin Twins pitching staff next month after rosters expand.

Rays Designate Trevor Plouffe For Assignment

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The Rays have designated corner infielder Trevor Plouffe for assignment, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link). Plouffe’s roster spot will go to righty Andrew Kittredge tomorrow, though that’ll be just a one-day placeholder move until Alex Cobb is activated to start Thursday’s game.

The longtime Twins infielder was picked up by the Rays after a disappointing start to his lone season with the Athletics, but Plouffe’s struggles in St. Petersburg proved to be greater than in the Bay Area. Through 82 plate appearances as a member of the Rays, he’s batted .178/.268/.247 with a homer and a pair of doubles. All told, Plouffe has posted a .204/.274/.325 batting line and eight homers through 281 PAs.

Disappointing as those numbers may be, Plouffe was a solid source of modest pop and, eventually, respectable fielding for the Twins as their primary third baseman from 2012-16. Though a series of oblique injuries limited him to 90 games in his final season with Minnesota, the former first-round pick batted a combined .250/.311/.425 and averaged 17 homer per season (23 per 162 games played) in 2545 PAs over that stretch. He’s been an especially productive bat against left-handed pitching in his career, batting .268/.344/.450 through 887 career PAs when holding the platoon advantage.

Brewers Claim Aaron Brooks From Cubs

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The Brewers have claimed right-hander Aaron Brooks off outright waivers from the Cubs, MLBTR has learned (Twitter links). He’ll join Milwaukee’s Triple-A affiliate for the time being. Brooks was designated for assignment over the weekend when the Cubs picked up Rene Rivera from the Mets.

A hip injury cost Brooks the majority of the 2016 season, and he’s struggled with Triple-A Iowa thus far in 2017. Through 138 innings there, Brooks has posted a 6.20 earned run average, though his 6.9 K/9, 1.8 BB/9, 48.7 percent ground-ball rate and 4.29 xFIP all offer a bit more cause for optimism than his bottom-line run prevention numbers. Brooks had a solid year in 2015 with the Triple-A affiliates of the Royals and Athletics, pitching to a 3.56 ERA with 7.8 K/9 against 1.6 BB/9. With rosters set to expand in September, it’s possible that Brooks’ residence on the 40-man roster could lead to a September look audition with the Brewers.

Cardinals Notes: Rosenthal, Rule 5 Draft, Pitching Staff

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On the disabled list due to a reported ligament issue in his right elbow, Trevor Rosenthal has consulted with Dr. Neal ElAttrache for a second opinion on the best course of action, tweets Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com. The Cardinals are expected to make an official announcement on his status tomorrow after going through the results of both tests, though it’s already been reported that a surgical option is at least a possibility for Rosenthal.

More on the Cards…

  • President of baseball operations John Mozeliak tells Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that the Cardinals are rethinking their protection process when it comes to the Rule 5 Draft. St. Louis lost right-hander Luis Perdomo and shortstop Allen Cordoba to the Padres in each of the past two Rule 5 Drafts because the Cardinals’ front office assumed that no team would be comfortable carrying a Class-A player for the entire season in the Majors. (Cordoba, for reference, has just three at-bats all month with the Padres.) However, Mozeliak acknowledges that with more teams opting for complete rebuilds, those clubs can afford to prioritize sheer upside over proximity to the Majors. Goold’s column is well worth a full read-through, as he runs down several players that are locks to be added to the 40-man roster this winter and others that the Cards will have to consider with their new-look approach to this process.
  • Both Bernie Miklasz of 101 ESPN and Jeff Gordon of the Post-Dispatch have penned columns imploring the Cardinal front office to shake up the team’s pitching staff. Injuries to Rosenthal, Adam Wainwright, Kevin Siegrist and the recent struggles of both Mike Leake and Michael Wacha have left the team’s pitching staff looking depleted and vulnerable. As Miklasz points out, every other National League contender has made at least one addition via trade since the season started, but the Cardinals have stood pat. Gordon notes that the pitching problems are hardly a short-term cause for concern. Lance Lynn is a free agent this winter, and each of Wainwright, Leake and Wacha carries his own brand of uncertainty. Miklasz and Gordon call for quick looks at young arms like Luke Weaver, Jack Flaherty, Sandy Alcantara and others, both as a means of remaining competitive in 2017 and evaluating for the future.
  • One of those moves could come in the near future, as Langosch writes. The Cardinals are considering skipping Leake’s slot in the rotation this weekend, per Langosch, and his scheduled start aligns with that of Flaherty in Triple-A. Leake has previously conceded that he’s experiencing some fatigue, and the stats bear that out; Leake logged a 2.24 ERA through his first 10 starts but has an unsightly 5.83 earned run average since June 1. General manager Mike Girsch tells Langosch that “all options are on the table” as the team evaluates its best course of action.

Injury Notes: Wood, Bellinger, Price, Gallo, Correa, DeSclafani

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The Dodgers have placed both Alex Wood and Cody Bellinger on the DL, the team announced Tuesday. Wood is once again dealing with inflammation in his SC (sternoclavicular) joint, though the breakout southpaw is targeting a return for the first weekend of September against the Padres. As for Bellinger, he’s been slowed recently by a right ankle sprain that has been called mild in nature, but he’s already been out of the lineup for two games, allowing the Dodgers to backdate the move by two days. That’d put Bellinger on track to be eligible to return from the DL as soon as next Wednesday. Manager Dave Roberts told reporters today that top prospect Walker Buehler and rehabbing ace Clayton Kershaw are not candidates to start for the Dodgers in place of Wood this weekend (all Twitter links via Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register). Rather, a bullpen game started by Ross Stripling seems the likeliest course. In corresponding roster moves for Wood and Bellinger, the Dodgers have recalled righties Brock Stewart and Josh Ravin.

More injury news from around the game…

  • The Red Sox are no closer to determining a return date for left-hander David Price, manager John Farrell said in an appearance on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM today (Twitter link that includes audio). Farrell said it’s still too early to consider bringing Price back in a bullpen capacity, as he’s yet to progress to throwing off a mound. Once he’s able to do that, the Red Sox will be able to gauge a conceivable timeline and weigh their options. Evan Drellich of CSN New England tweets that Price has thrown from 90 feet on flat ground and is slated to throw again tomorrow. It’s now been exactly one month since Price’s last start, as the former Cy Young winner has been battling inflammation in his left elbow.
  • Joey Gallo has been placed on the 7-day concussion disabled list, the Rangers announced today. Gallo suffered a nondisplaced nasal fracture in a recent collision with teammate Matt Bush (who landed on the 10-day DL as a result) and has also been dealing with concussion-like symptoms. Texas had hoped that he could avoid the DL, but he’ll now be sidelined until at least next Tuesday as a result of today’s move. Gallo was on an otherworldly power binge at the time of his injury, having launched 10 homers in his past 18 games (73 plate appearances) in the month of August. Infielder Phil Gosselin is up from Triple-A Round Rock to take Gallo’s roster spot.
  • Carlos Correa told reporters today that while he’s not yet certain exactly when he’ll embark on a minor league rehab assignment, he thinks he’ll need about a week’s worth of at-bats in the minors before he’s ready to return (Twitter link via Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle). Correa cited a target of 20 to 30 at-bats before he’d be back up to speed. It’s been just under five weeks since the Astros announced that Correa would miss six to eight weeks with a torn thumb ligament.
  • Reds right-hander Anthony DeSclafani received a second opinion on his injured right elbow, per Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer. After an initial MRI revealed that there was no ligament damage in his ailing right elbow, DeSclafani sent his scans to Dr. Keith Meister for a second look, and Meister confirmed as much. DeSclafani is on a throwing program and hopes to ramp up quicker than usual to “really be able to test the ligament and get back on the mound,” but Buchanan notes that time could be starting to run out for DeSclafani to take the mound in a Reds uniform this season. DeSclafani has not pitched for the Reds this season due to a sprained UCL in his right elbow and this latest bout of inflammation.

Angels Sign Fernando Salas To Minors Deal

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The Angels have brought right-hander Fernando Salas back into the fold on a minor league pact, the team’s Triple-A affiliate announced this weekend (Twitter link). The 32-year-old Salas, who was recently released by the Mets after a down season, has already tossed a scoreless frame for the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate in Salt Lake City. He’s represented by Paragon Sports.

Salas is a known commodity for much of the Angels organization, having spent the better part of three seasons there from 2014-16. In 178 1/3 innings as a member of the Angels, Salas pitched to a 4.03 ERA with 9.1 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9. His first tenure with the club ultimately ended when he was flipped to the Mets in an August swap 53 weeks ago. That trade was initially a boon for the Mets’ relief corps, as Salas hurled 17 1/3 innings with just four runs allowed on 11 hits and no walks with 19 strikeouts.

That run of dominance prompted a return to Queens on a one-year, $3MM contract this offseason, but Salas’ second year with the Mets didn’t match the first. In 45 innings this season, he logged an even 6.00 ERA. Much of those struggles were due to a .379 BABIP that looks rather fluky, but Salas also averaged 4.0 walks per nine innings pitched — his worst mark since 2012 — and allowed hard contact at a 37.4 percent clip (the second-worst mark of his career). Conversely, Salas’ 9.4 K/9 rate was the second-highest mark in any of his eight MLB seasons, and his 45.1 percent ground-ball rate was easily a career-high.

The Angels will only owe Salas the pro-rated portion of the league minimum for any time he spends in the Majors, as the Mets will be on the hook for the remainder of his contract. With a solid showing in Triple-A, Salas could very well emerge as an option for the Angels in the season’s final month, perhaps helping to pick up some of the slack following Anaheim’s trade of fellow righty David Hernandez to the Diamondbacks.

Jeff Mathis Suffers Fractured Hand

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Diamondbacks catcher Jeff Mathis has been diagnosed with a fractured right hand, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports on Twitter. He suffered the injury in last night’s game; initially it was believed he had escaped any broken bones.

It’s not yet known how long Mathis is expected to miss, but this seems like a fairly significant injury. It’s an avulsion fracture, per Piecoro, meaning that the ligament pulled away some amount of bone. (That seemingly makes it all the more impressive that Mathis initially stayed in the game.)

Whether or not surgery is required, the veteran receiver figures to miss a decent stretch. With Arizona fighting to keep a hold on a Wild Card, while also looking ahead to a hoped-for postseason berth, the club will need to figure out how to fill in for Mathis.

It’s possible that the D-Backs will simply utilize the open roster spot to address some other area of need, as the club does carry three players capable of lining up behind the dish. Chris Herrmann has seen plenty of action at catcher while also playing first base and the corner outfield. Then again, he hasn’t hit nearly as much as he did last year, with a .158/.250/.321 batting line that falls shy of the work of even the light-hitting Mathis. Arizona also recently acquired John Ryan Murphy, though he has struggled to get his bat going at Triple-A this year.

Scott Feldman Undergoes Knee Surgery

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Reds righty Scott Feldman will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing knee surgery today, per a club announcement (h/t MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon, on Twitter). His right knee was cleaned up in the arthroscopic procedure.

With that news, the 34-year-old will almost certainly return to the open market before throwing another pitch for Cincinnati. The 13-year MLB veteran had joined the club on a one-year, $2.3MM pact over the winter.

It seemed at one point that Feldman would make for an interesting summer trade chip for the Reds, given his cheap salary and solid performance through the end of June. Since then, however, he has made only four starts, over which he has surrendered 18 earned runs in just 13 2/3 innings.

David Wright Begins Rehab Assignment

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Mets third baseman David Wright will begin a rehab assignment this evening, per a club announcement. He is in the lineup as the DH for the organization’s High-A affiliate.

A succession of shoulder, neck, and back injuries have conspired to limit the 34-year-old in recent years. Wright has yet to play this year and has appeared in only 75 games since the start of the 2015 campaign.

While it’s promising to see the initiation of a rehab assignment, there’s still vast uncertainty surrounding the former All-Star. For one thing, the bigger hurdle will come when Wright attempts to play the field; after all, throwing issues thwarted his progress this spring. For another, Wright will need to show that he can not only get healthy but stay that way, as each of his prior attempts at returning have ended with yet more maladies.

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