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Archives for November 2020

Diamondbacks Designate Junior Guerra

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The Diamondbacks have designated right-handers Junior Guerra and Joel Payamps for assignment. They added righty J.B. Bukauskas, Luis Frias and Matt Peacock, outfielder Stuart Fairchild and infielder Geraldo Perdomo to their 40-man roster.

The 35-year-old Guerra joined the Diamondbacks on a one-year guarantee worth $2.65MM last offseason. He wound up posting 23 2/3 innings of 3.04 ERA/4.12 FIP ball with a 50.8 percent groundball rate, but with just 7.99 K/9 against 5.7 BB/9, the Diamondbacks decided to move on from Guerra.

Reds Acquire Brandon Bailey From Astros

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The Reds announced Friday that they’ve acquired righty Brandon Bailey from the Astros in exchange for cash. In a separate move, Cincinnati also acquired minor league right-hander Fredy Medina from Houston. Medina will serve as the player to be named later from the earlier trade that sent southpaw Brooks Raley to the Astros.

In addition to that pair of trades with Houston, the Reds announced that they’ve selected the contracts of right-hander Vladimir Gutierrez, Riley O’Brien and Jared Solomon. All are now on the 40-man roster and protected from selection in next month’s Rule 5 Draft. Cincinnati’s 40-man roster is now up to 36 players.

It’s been three years to the day since the 26-year-old Bailey was last traded, going from the Athletics to the Astros. Unfortunately for the ’Stros, that trade sent a minor league outfielder by the name of Ramon Laureano to Oakland. Houston apparently didn’t care to protect Laureano in advance of the Rule 5 Draft — a clear misstep that proved to be a godsend for one of their chief division rivals.

Bailey has clearly intrigued other clubs, however. The Orioles selected him in last year’s Rule 5 Draft, and the Astros gave him a look in the Majors this past year. Now, the Reds are keen on giving him a 40-man roster spot of their own. He’s allowed a pair of runs in 7 1/3 MLB innings and carries a 3.45 ERA with a 126-to-50 K/BB ratio in 117 1/3 innings at the Double-A level.

Medina, who turned 23 in April, is something of a long shot for the Reds, it would seem. He’s yet to play above the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League and has walked 51 hitters in 74 professional innings. Considering the fact that Raley turned out to be a nice 2020 piece to the Houston ’pen and is controlled through 2021, the ’Stros have to feel good about how that deal turned out.

Orioles Designate Renato Nunez For Assignment

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The Orioles are designating infielder Renato Núñez for assignment, per various reporters (including Joe Trezza of MLB.com). Baltimore is also adding six players to the 40-man roster in advance of tonight’s deadline to protect players from the Rule 5 draft: infielder Rylan Bannon, outfielder Yusniel Diaz, right-handers Michael Baumann and Isaac Mattson and left-handers Zac Lowther and Alexander Wells.

Some may be surprised to see the Orioles letting go of Núñez. The 26-year-old has been an everyday player for Baltimore over the past two seasons, slugging .469 and hitting 43 home runs in 815 plate appearances. However, as MLBTR’s Steve Adams explored at length in previewing the Orioles’ offseason, Núñez indeed looked like a potential non-tender candidate. Núnez’s relatively low walk rates have led to a lackluster .314 on-base percentage over the past two years. He’s not well-regarded as a defender at third base, either. Overall, he’s only been worth around one win above replacement the past two seasons combined in the estimation of both FanGraphs and Baseball Reference.

Evidently, Baltimore decided Núñez’s on-base and defensive deficiencies outweighed the power potential he brings, particularly as he enters arbitration for the first time. Núñez is projected for a salary in the $2.1MM – $3.9MM range this offseason, and the Orioles were clearly prepared to non-tender him prior to the December 2 deadline. With that settled, there’s little reason to keep Núñez on the 40-man roster beyond today’s Rule 5 protection deadline.

It’s still possible the O’s find a trade partner involving Núñez in the coming days. He does have some appeal as a potential 1B/DH option and hit better in 2020 than he had in 2019. If another team were to acquire Núñez, they could control him through arbitration for the next four seasons.

Rays Designate Hunter Renfroe For Assignment

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The Rays have designated outfielders Hunter Renfroe and Brian O’Grady for assignment, per a club announcement. The moves help to clear a path for the addition of infielder Taylor Walls, outfielder Josh Lowe and righty Drew Strotman to be selected to the 40-man roster.

Renfroe, 28, was Tampa Bay’s primary right fielder this season and a relatively high-profile addition via trade last winter. However, the former Padres slugger hit just .156/.252/.393 this season and was projected to earn more than $3.5MM in arbitration, making him an obvious non-tender candidate for the low-payroll Rays. There’s little reason not to free up a 40-man spot early if Tampa Bay were planning to let Renfroe go in a few weeks anyhow.

Miserable 2020 season aside, Renfroe’s not far removed from being a solid performer with the Padres. He has long run high strikeout rates and hasn’t drawn many walks, contributing to generally low on-base percentages. But Renfroe slugged 85 homers between 2017-19 and has typically rated as a strong defender in the corner outfield. That may not be enough for another team to acquire Renfroe via trade or waivers, but some teams figure to look into bringing him in despite his difficult most recent season. Renfroe is controllable through 2023 via arbitration, so any acquiring club would have the luxury of keeping him around for a while should he figure things out offensively.

O’Grady, also 28, was acquired in a trade with the Reds last offseason. The first baseman/corner outfielder only picked up five plate appearances in 2020 but has a robust track record at the plate in the minors.

Twins Select Three Players To 40-Man Roster

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The Twins are adding three players- right-handers Jordan Balazovic and Bailey Ober and catcher Ben Rortvedt– to the 40-man roster, per a team announcement.

Balazovic, 22, is one of the more well-regarded pitching prospects in the sport, generally finding himself on the back half of top 100 lists. He was a slam dunk to be protected on the heels of a great 2019 season in High-A. Ober draws plaudits for his plus command; the former twelfth-rounder has excellent numbers up through Double-A. Rortvedt is a former second-round pick out of a Wisconsin high school who has seemingly turned a corner the past couple seasons in the minors.

Rockies Make Several Moves

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The Rockies announced that they have designated right-handers Jesus Tinoco and Ashton Goudeau for assignment. They selected the contracts of infielder-outfilder Bret Boswell, left-hander Lucas Gilbreath and Helcris Olivarez, and infielder Colton Welker in corresponding moves.

The 25-year-old Tinoco was part of the return the Rockies received from the Blue Jays for shortstop Troy Tulowitzki in 2015. Tinoco debuted in the majors in 2019 and has since pitched to a respectable 4.03 ERA, though that has come with a woeful 7.19 FIP and 6.85 K/9 against 5.84 BB/9 over 44 2/3 innings.

Of the players the Rockies selected, Welker (No. 7) and Olivarez (No. 15) rank among their top prospects at MLB.com.

Blue Jays Add 5 Players To 40-Man Roster

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The Blue Jays announced Friday that they’ve selected the contracts of catchers Riley Adams and Gabriel Moreno, right-hander Ty Tice, outfielder Josh Palacios and infielder Otto Lopez. All five are now protected from being selected in next month’s Rule 5 Draft. Toronto’s 40-man roster is now full.

Adams, 23, adds another catching option to a roster already well stocked at that position. He topped out with a solid Double-A showing in 2019 and ostensibly isn’t too far from MLB readiness. The 20-year-old Moreno, on the other hand, hasn’t played above A-ball, although he hit quite well there in ’19.

Tice, 25, logged a 2.34 ERA between Double-A and Triple-A in ’19 and racked up better than 11 K/9 but did so while walking nearly six per nine frames. Palacios plays all three outfield spots and is an OBP-over-power option who has seen some time in Double-A. Lopez, 22, hasn’t advanced beyond A-ball. He hit well there in 2019 and has experience at both middle infield spots and both corner outfield positions.

Rangers Select Three Players To 40-Man Roster

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The Rangers are adding three players to their 40-man roster in advance of tonight’s deadline to protect players from the Rule 5 draft. Right-handers Yerry Rodriguez and A.J. Alexy and catcher David Garcia are being selected, per the team’s executive vice president of communications John Blake (Twitter link). Texas’ 40-man roster now sits at 38 players.

It’s not particularly surprising any of the trio wound up being protected. Rodriguez rates as the Rangers’ second-best farmhand (96th overall) in the estimation of FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen, who writes that the 23-year-old has three above-average to plus pitches and advanced command. Rodriguez has topped out at Low-A ball in 2019, where he tossed 73.2 innings of 2.08 ERA ball with a stellar combination of 10.38 K/9 and 2.57 BB/9.

Alexy was acquired from the Dodgers as part of the 2017 Yu Darvish trade. The 22-year-old has racked up massive strikeout numbers in the low minors, although he’s also been plagued by lofty walk rates. Garcia, meanwhile, was a well-regarded amateur signee out of Venezuela. The 20-year-old backstop put up a .277/.351/.435 line in short-season ball in 2019.

Padres Designate Luis Perdomo, Select 3 Players

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The Padres announced that they have designated right-hander Luis Perdomo for assignment and selected three players – righties Reggie Lawson and Mason Thompson, and infielder Tucupita Marcano.

Perdomo is off the Padres’ roster as they prepare for this winter’s Rule 5 Draft, but he actually first joined the team as a Rule 5 selection from the Rockies before the 2015 campaign. Perdomo has since given the 444 1/3 innings of 5.19 ERA/4.44 FIP ball with 6.74 K/9, 3.26 BB/9 and an excellent 57.3 percent groundball rate. Now, if any team takes on the 27-year-old, it could get him for two seasons of arbitration control.

Lawson was the 71st pick in the 2016 draft who ranked as a top 100 prospect that year. He made his Double-A debut in 2019 and pitched to a 5.20 ERA/4.14 FIP with 11.71 K/9 and 4.23 BB/9 in 27 2/3 frames. MLB.com ranks him as the Padres’ 10th-best prospect and gives him a chance to at least turn into a stellar major league reliever.

Thompson is not among the Padres’ top 30 prospects at MLB.com, but the site is high on Marcano, whom it places at No. 8 in the team’s system. The 21-year-old middle infielder “could develop into a serious on-base threat as a bat-first middle infielder,” per MLB.com.

Cubs Select 3 Players To 40-Man Roster

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The Cubs have added a pair of right-handers, Cory Abbott and Keegan Thompson, as well as infielder Christopher Morel to their 40-man roster, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune was among those to report. Their roster now includes 37 players.

Abbott, 25, was a second-round pick of the Cubs in 2017 who rose to the Double-A level in 2019 during the most recent minor league season. He impressed there with a 3.01 ERA/3.51 FIP and 10.19 K/9 against 3.19 BB/9 over 146 2/3 innings. Abbott now ranks as the Cubs’ 12th-best prospect at MLB.com, which writes that he could develop into a useful back-end starter in the majors.

Thompson, the Cubs’ 26th overall prospect at MLB.com, first joined the organization as a third-round pick in the same class as Abbott. The 25-year-old only threw 10 innings in the minors in 2019, but Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs wrote over the summer that Thompson’s “a very stable fifth starter/swingman piece” who’s almost ready for the majors.

Morel, whom the Cubs signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2015, grades as their 11th overall prospect at MLB.com. The 21-year-old made his Single-A debut in 2019 with a .284/.320/.467 line, eight home runs and nine stolen bases in 278 plate appearances. Although Morel has been a third baseman/shortstop in the pros so far, he could wind up as an outfielder if he makes it to the majors.

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