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Rays Reinstate Randy Arozarena; Place Ryan Yarbrough On COVID-IL, DJ Johnson On 10-Day IL

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5:21 pm: Cash didn’t sound particularly optimistic regarding Johnson’s prognosis, noting that the righty’s shoulder injury is “pretty severe” and will require him to miss “substantial time” (via Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times).

1:37 pm: The Rays announced a series of roster moves, including the reinstatement of outfielder Randy Arozarena from the COVID-related injury list and the placement of right-hander DJ Johnson on the 10-day injured list due to a right shoulder sprain.  While these transactions were expected, the club also announced that southpaw Ryan Yarbrough has been placed on the COVID-19 list.  Righty Louis Head has been recalled from Triple-A to take Yarbrough’s roster spot.

League rules don’t require Yarbrough’s exact situation to be made public, so it isn’t known whether or not the lefty has tested positive for the coronavirus himself, or if he is being held out as a precautionary measure due to contact tracing or symptoms.  (Yarbrough had another brief one-day stint on the COVID-IL earlier this season due to vaccine side effects.)  Whatever the reason, it would now seem unlikely that Yarbrough will make his next scheduled start on Wednesday against the Red Sox, so the Rays may need to go with a bullpen game in this key AL East matchup.

Yarbrough has a 4.76 ERA/4.26 SIERA over 119 innings, usually working as a traditional starting pitcher but also making a few appearances as a bulk pitcher behind an opener.  The southpaw is among the league’s best pitchers at limiting hard contact and avoiding walks, though his 19.6% strikeout rate is far below average.

Arozarena returns after just a few days on the COVID-IL for being a close contact to a positive case.  Head is also back in the big leagues in short order after being optioned to Triple-A over the weekend, as teams are able to make quick recalls of players in the event of injury.

Johnson’s shoulder problem arose during Sunday’s game, with the right-hander falling to the ground after throwing a pitch.  Manager Kevin Cash ominously reported that Johnson said he felt a crack in his shoulder, though further tests revealed only a sprain rather than a more serious injury.  Johnson was making his third appearance for Tampa Bay after being acquired in a deadline deal with the Indians.

Cubs Activate Rowan Wick From Injured List

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The Cubs are activating reliever Rowan Wick from the 60-day injured list before the second game of today’s doubleheader with the Brewers, the team informed reporters (including Russell Dorsey of the Chicago Sun-Times). He’ll be making his season debut whenever he gets into a game. The Cubs already had a vacancy on the 40-man roster, so no corresponding move is required.

Wick hasn’t pitched since last September on account of a left oblique strain. The righty was one of the Cubs’ top relievers from 2019-20, combining for 50 2/3 innings of 2.66 ERA ball. Wick punched out a solid 25.7% of batters faced in that time, albeit with a slightly elevated 10.3% walk rate.

At 52-62, the Cubs have fallen into fourth place in the National League Central. The team is playing out the string at this point. Still, Wick’s return gives him a few weeks to log some innings and look to cement himself as a back-end option for the team going into 2022.

Phillies Place Rhys Hoskins On Injured List

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The Phillies announced they’ve placed first baseman Rhys Hoskins on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to August 7, with a left groin strain. Outfielder Mickey Moniak has been recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to take his active roster spot.

Hoskins hasn’t played since Friday as he’s battled groin discomfort. There’s no indication the Phils expect he’ll require a particularly lengthy IL stay, but he’s clearly not progressed as quickly as had been hoped. He’ll miss at least another week, as he’s first eligible to return next Tuesday against the Diamondbacks.

The Phils have been surging of late, completing sweeps over the Nationals and Mets as part of an active eight-game win streak. That run has pushed them to the top of the National League East, but the Braves and Mets each remain within 2.5 games. It figures to be a tightly contested race between the three clubs, and the Phils will have to navigate a pair of difficult upcoming series — against the Dodgers and Reds — without their starting first baseman.

Hoskins is having another strong season at the dish. The right-handed slugger has been an above-average offensive player in every year of his career. He’s continued the trend with a .240/.332/.509 line (123 wRC+) with 24 home runs over 434 plate appearances in 2021. That’s not too dissimilar from the .239/.366/.495 career mark he carried into the year.

Twins Select Nick Vincent

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The Twins announced they’ve selected the contract of veteran reliever Nick Vincent. Righty Beau Burrows has been optioned to Triple-A St. Paul to create active roster space. To clear a 40-man roster spot, the club transferred outfielder Alex Kirilloff from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list.

Vincent is now in line to pitch in the big leagues for the tenth consecutive season. The right-hander has been a generally solid middle innings option, pitching to an ERA below 4.00 in each of his first seven campaigns. Vincent has a matching 4.43 mark in each of the past two seasons, with his strikeout rate falling to a career-worst 18.5% during his time with the Marlins in 2020.

Those declining peripherals limited Vincent to a minor league deal with the Rangers over the offseason. He was released in late June and caught on with Minnesota on a minors pact the following day. Vincent has thus far spent the campaign split between the two clubs’ top affiliates, pitching to a 4.19 ERA but seeing a significant bounceback in his swing-and-miss capabilities. The 35-year-old has punched out a strong 29.3% of opposing hitters in the minors to earn his way back to the big leagues. He’ll reach free agency again at the end of the season.

Kirilloff was already expected to be out for the rest of the year after undergoing right wrist surgery in late July. His IL transfer is a simple formality, and the expectation remains that he’ll be ready for Spring Training in 2022.

Rockies Place Raimel Tapia On 10-Day IL, Select Taylor Motter

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The Rockies announced that outfielder Raimel Tapia has been placed on the 10-day injured list because of a strained right big toe.  To fill Tapia’s roster spot, Colorado selected the contract of utilityman Taylor Motter from Triple-A.

Tapia missed a couple of games due to his toe injury last week, and he re-aggravated the injury on Sunday, leading to a quick exit from that contest.  The IL stint cuts short a nice little hot streak for Tapia, who had an .893 OPS over his last 42 plate appearances.

For the season as a whole, Tapia is hitting .288/.339/.386 over 432 PA.  It’s below-average production (83 wRC+, 87 OPS+) considering Tapia’s lack of power, especially considering he plays his home games at Coors Field.  Like most Rockies hitters this season, Tapia has big home/away splits, with an .824 OPS at Coors and only a .619 OPS on the road.

While the batting is still something of a work in progress, there is still a lot to like about Tapia’s season.  He has been worth 1.2 fWAR thanks in large part to outstanding baserunning (19 steals in 23 attempts) and defense as Colorado’s regular left fielder.  Among all qualified players at any position in baseball, Tapia ranks third in UZR/150 (+11.4) and tied for 14th in Defensive Runs Saved (+7).

Motter signed a minor league deal with the Rockies back in March, and he is now in position to appear in his first MLB game since 2018.  Motter hit .191/.263/.312 over 411 PA with the Rays, Mariners, and Twins from 2016-18, and he has since had stints in the minors with the Athletics and Tigers, as well as some action for independent teams and the Kiwoom Heroes of the Korean Baseball Organization.

Griffin Canning To Miss Rest Of 2021 Season

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Angels right-hander Griffin Canning has been on the Triple-A injured list for close to a month, and he will now miss the remainder of the season.  According to a statement released by the Angels, Canning is suffering from a stress fracture in his lower back.

The initial injury from mid-July was characterized as a lower back strain, though unfortunately Canning now faces a lengthier recovery period.  Details of the injury have yet to be revealed and a potential timeline for Canning’s return isn’t known.

In his third season as a member of the Anaheim rotation, Canning had a 5.60 ERA/4.65 SIERA over 62 2/3 innings for the Halos before he was sent to the minors on July 3.  The demotion was thought to be based around the schedule, as between the All-Star break and some off-days in July, the Angels wanted to give Canning some work until they again required his services for their six-man rotation.

Unfortunately, since the injury occurred while Canning was in the minors, he’ll won’t accumulate any MLB service time during his recovery.  This will cost him any chance at Super Two qualification and an extra year of arbitration eligibility, and it might even impact his ability to become a free agent after the 2025 season, depending on how long it might take for Canning to get back to action on a big league mound.

For the pitching-thin Angels, they’ll now lose a depth arm for the remainder of 2021, and possibly for the start of the 2022 campaign.  It isn’t any secret that the Halos will be looking for rotation help this winter as they look to augment their starting staff beyond Shohei Ohtani and younger arms like Patrick Sandoval and prospects Chris Rodriguez and Reid Detmers.

Dodgers Activate Corey Knebel From 60-Day Injured List; Place Joe Kelly On IL

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The Dodgers announced two bullpen moves, activating right-hander Corey Knebel from the 60-day injured list.  Knebel will take the place of Joe Kelly, who was placed on the injured list for unspecified reasons.

Knebel hasn’t pitched since April 23 due to a right lat strain, marking yet another significant injury setback for the veteran righty.  Tommy John surgery sidelined Knebel for the entire 2019 season, and he was limited to 13 1/3 innings last season due to both a hamstring problem and some struggles on the mound — Knebel had a 6.08 ERA over 13 1/3 frames.

Los Angeles acquired Knebel from the Brewers in the hopes that he could return to his old All-Star form from 2017, and though Knebel only tossed six innings before hitting the IL, there were some positive signs.  Knebel struck out nine of 24 batters faced, and his fastball was averaging 96.4mph.  This was well above his 94.4mph mark from 2020, and roughly around what Knebel averaged in his heyday in Milwaukee’s bullpen.

Astros Notes: Bregman, Brantley, Montero

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TODAY: Bregman is “not ready yet,” Baker said during a radio interview on SportsTalk 790 (hat tip to Chandler Rome of The Houston Chronicle).  The third baseman is “taking a couple days off to get some treatment” and will then presumably return to his minor league rehab assignment, with Baker hopeful Bregman can return to the Astros within 7-10 days.

AUGUST 8: Alex Bregman was in Houston today watching the Astros in action, and an official return to the field might not be far away.  Manager Dusty Baker told reporters (including MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart) that Bregman was meeting with the team after playing nine innings in each of his last two rehab games with Triple-A Sugar Land.

A left quad strain sent Bregman to the 10-day injured list back on June 17, so it will be just shy of a two-month absence for the third baseman if he is indeed activated this week.  The Astros have a two-game series with the Rockies sandwiched between off-days on Monday and Thursday this week, and if Bregman is already in Houston, it would hint that he could be reinstated from the IL as early as Tuesday.

Between his quad issue and a week-long absence in April due to COVID-19 protocols, Bregman has played in only 59 games this season, but he has still been productive in hitting .275/.359/.428 over 262 plate appearances.  This roughly matches his slash line over 180 PA in 2020, as Bregman was hampered by a hamstring injury last year and limited to 44 games of the 60-game regular season.  While a big step down from his MVP-caliber numbers in 2018 and 2019, Bregman is certainly still a dangerous bat when healthy, and his return will help bolster a Houston team that has its eyes on more postseason success.

While Bregman’s probable return is good news for the Astros, the club also had some more injury scares in today’s 7-5 loss to the Twins.  The Astros announced that Michael Brantley was removed for precautionary reasons after a blow to the head during a collision with Twins shortstop Andrelton Simmons while running the bases early in the game.  Brantley, in the lineup as the DH, was replaced by a pinch-hitter in the third inning.

In the eighth, Rafael Montero had to depart one pitch into a Rob Refsnyder plate appearance.  Entering the game in the previous inning, Montero retired his first five batters before walking Miguel Sano, and then picking up some type of injury against Refsnyder.  Post-game, Baker said Montero was suffering from some shoulder soreness, and will receive further examination by the team’s medical staff.

Cleveland Prospect Tyler Freeman Undergoes Season-Ending Shoulder Surgery

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Indians infield prospect Tyler Freeman underwent surgery on his left shoulder yesterday, the team announced.  The Athletic’s Emily Waldon (Twitter link) reported back on July 29 that Freeman’s season would be ended due to the injury, though he is expected to be recovered in time for the start of Spring Training.  Freeman’s shoulder has been bothering him since late June, and he played in only five games sandwiched in between a pair of stints on the injured list.

On the plus side, Freeman has likely done enough at Double-A this year to earn himself a spot on the Triple-A roster to begin the 2022 season.  A second-round pick in the 2017 draft, Freeman has hit .323/.372/.470 over 180 plate appearances in his first exposure to Double-A pitching this season, recording two home runs and 14 doubles.  Assuming he returns healthy from his shoulder surgery and plays well at Triple-A, Freeman is on pace to make his Major League debut next season.

Baseball America’s midseason prospect rankings place Freeman as Cleveland’s top minor leaguer, and as the 40th best prospect in all of baseball.  Freeman has continued to display excellent bat speed and contact skills, and while he has continued to mostly work as a shortstop, he has also seen action as a second baseman and played his first seven pro games as a third baseman.  The Tribe currently have Amed Rosario and Andres Gimenez up the middle, though between Rosario’s ability to play in the outfield and Gimenez’s struggles at the plate, there is room for Freeman to emerge as a regular at either middle infield position (with some scouts believing he’ll eventually be a second baseman).

Athletics Designate J.B. Wendelken, Promote A.J. Puk

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The Athletics have designated right-hander J.B. Wendelken for assignment.  Left-hander A.J. Puk has been called up from Triple-A to take Wendelken’s spot on the 26-man roster.

Wendelken posted a 2.61 ERA over his first 10 1/3 innings of the season before a couple of shaky outings preceded a stay of almost two months on the injured list due to an oblique strain.  Over 25 relief innings this year, Wendelken has a 4.32 ERA/4.29 SIERA and a below-average 22.2% strikeout rate, though a .355 BABIP has been working against him.  Wendelken has continued his trend of keeping the ball in the park by allowing only two homers this year.

Apart from a 2017 season wiped out by Tommy John surgery, Wendelken has appeared in five of the last six MLB seasons, all with the A’s.  The 28-year-old has been quite solid over most of his 112 career innings in the Show, including an excellent 1.80 ERA over 25 frames out of Oakland’s bullpen last season.

With teams perpetually in need of relief pitching down the stretch, it wouldn’t be surprising to see another club make a waiver claim on a pitcher who is controllable (through 2024) and has had such recent success at the big league level.  Wendelken is out of options, so the Athletics’ hand was forced in having to DFA him rather than just option him to the minors.

Puk pitched in one game for the A’s before being placed on the 10-day injured list due to a biceps strain.  After being reinstated from the IL and sent to the minors, Puk got off to a brutal start at Triple-A but has since settled down — the southpaw has a 1.64 ERA over his last 22 innings, following a ghastly 11.50 ERA in his first 18 frames.  Long considered one of baseball’s top pitching prospects, Puk’s star has been dimmed by multiple injuries, though the A’s will give him another look to see if he can contribute to their bullpen during the pennant race.

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