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Rob Manfred Discusses Automated Strike Zone, Pitch Clocks And Potential Expansion

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In a wide-ranging piece, Don Van Natta Jr. of ESPN chats with MLB commissioner Rob Manfred about possible changes to the sport that could be implemented over the coming years. Of particular note are Manfred’s comments on a trio of issues: an automated strike zone, pitch clocks and the possibility of league expansion.

Manfred expressed support for the implementation of the robotic strike zone at the major league level in 2024. Precisely what form that’d take isn’t clear, as the commissioner raised two possibilities for such a setup. The first would be to have all ball-strike calls computer-generated, with the result relayed to the human umpire via earpiece. An alternative possibility is to leave the home plate umpire in charge of initial calls but institute some form of challenge system, whereby each manager would have a finite number of chances to contest a ball-strike call during the game.

MLB has tested the automatic strike zone in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League for the past five weeks. The possibility of taking calls away from human umpires has been discussed for some time, with the proliferation of pitch-tracking technology making that a more viable possibility. The process hasn’t always gone entirely smoothly, however. Last month, Guardians manager Terry Francona opined to The Athletic that an automated zone used in exhibition play in 2020 was “not ready.” Francona suggested that while the zone tended to be precise on the corners of the plate, “up and down it’s got some work to do.”

In addition to having every pitch called by the robotic zone, MLB has experimented with the challenge system during certain minor league games. Two weeks ago, Manfred told reporters (including Evan Drellich of the Athletic) that the league was likely to continue both systems in the minors and didn’t intend to institute the automated zone next season. “We’re continuing to experiment in the minor leagues,” Manfred said at the time. “Big kind of development in the challenge-system alternative. The idea of using two different formats is a big change this year.”

While the automated strike zone seems unlikely to be a factor at the major league level before 2024, the pitch clock seems to be trending towards implementation next season. MLB has been testing with as few as 14 seconds between offerings when no runners are on base at certain levels of the minors. Van Natta writes that the 14-second marker would also be a target for major league implementation, while pitchers would have 18 or 19 seconds to throw when runners are on base. Manfred’s affinity for the pitch clock as a means of expediting pace of play is hardly a new development. He’s supported its testing in the minor leagues, and he expressed a desire last November for it to be part of the most recent round of CBA negotiations.

On-field rules changes ended up on the back burner as the league and Players Association focused on bigger core economics issues late in CBA talks. Yet the sides did agree to the implementation of a rules committee that’ll go into effect in 2023. The committee will be made up of four active players, six league appointees and an umpire. The league’s majority gives it de facto authority to implement many on-field rules changes it desires, and the committee will have the right to institute a new rule within 45 days of informing the MLBPA. (Under the previous CBA, the league had to wait one year after informing the PA before making a unilateral on-field rules adjustment).

This week, Andy Martino of SNY reported the identities of the people expected to be on the 2023 committee. Making up the players’ contingent are Jack Flaherty, Whit Merrifield, Austin Slater and Tyler Glasnow, with Ian Happ and Walker Buehler tabbed as alternates. On the league side will be John Stanton (Mariners), Bill DeWitt (Cardinals), Greg Johnson (Giants), Dick Monfort (Rockies), Tom Werner (Red Sox) and Mark Shapiro (Blue Jays). Bill Miller is expected to serve as the umpire representative. Along with the pitch clock, the committee is widely expected to examine the possibility of enlarging the bases and limiting defensive shifting.

While on-field rules changes figure to be relatively simple to implement, league expansion would be a much more complex process. Manfred tells Van Natta he’d “love to get to 32 teams,” although he didn’t elaborate a timetable or possible target cities for two new franchises. MLB’s last round of expansion was in 1998, when the Diamondbacks and Devil Rays were added to push the league from 28 to 30. Each of the NFL (2002), NBA (2004) and NHL (2021) have added teams to their respective leagues within the past two decades.

Manfred himself is under contract through 2024, having been unanimously approved for an extension by the league’s owners in November 2018. Van Natta reports the commissioner has a $17.5MM annual base salary under that deal, which also includes unspecified performance bonuses. Asked whether he wanted to continue in the role beyond 2024, the 63-year-old Manfred said he “hasn’t made a decision about what I’m going to do, whether I want to continue. I love the job, but I haven’t really made a decision about what’s next.“

Braves Acquire Silvino Bracho From Red Sox

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The Red Sox have traded reliever Silvino Bracho to the Braves for cash considerations, according to announcements from both teams. Atlanta has a vacancy on the 40-man roster, so no further move was necessary.

Boston had just designated Bracho for assignment this afternoon. He finds another landing spot fairly quickly, and he’ll presumably get an opportunity to make his season debut at some point shortly. The Red Sox had selected Bracho onto the major league roster on Tuesday, but they designated him for assignment without his appearing in an MLB game. The 29-year-old is seeking his first big league outing since 2020 after spending the past year and a half in Triple-A.

Despite his lack of recent MLB experience, Bracho was an appealing target for the Atlanta front office based on the strength of his minor league performance. He’s worked 31 1/3 innings over 18 outings with the Sox’s top affiliate in Worcester, posting a 3.16 ERA. The righty has punched out an excellent 29.3% of opponents while walking only four of the 123 hitters he’s faced. He’ll add a multi-inning possibility to the middle frames for skipper Brian Snitker.

Bracho owns a 4.82 ERA in 89 2/3 career big league innings. Most of that time was compiled with the 2015-18 Diamondbacks. He’s made just one MLB appearance in the past three years, owing in part to a Tommy John surgery that cost him all of 2019. Bracho is out of minor league option years, so he’ll have to stick on the active roster or be designated for assignment again.

Close: Braves Have Fostered “False Narrative” Surrounding Freeman Negotiations

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Many both within and outside the baseball industry were surprised when Freddie Freeman signed with the Dodgers last offseason. The general expectation had been that he’d re-sign with the Braves, continuing his career-long stint in the organization. Yet that was foreclosed when Atlanta acquired Matt Olson from the A’s shortly after the lockout, and Freeman landed in L.A. a few days later.

The course of events over the final few days of negotiations has been a subject of controversy, one that resurfaced over the weekend when a visibly emotional Freeman made his return to Atlanta. The 2020 NL MVP received his World Series ring and caught up with many former teammates and coaches, and he understandably struggled to put into words how much his time in the Braves organization had meant to himself and his family.

On Tuesday, Buster Olney of ESPN reported that Freeman had dismissed his longtime agency, Excel Sports Management, out of frustration with how his free agent process played out. Freeman himself characterized the matter differently, conceding his representation was a “fluid situation” but leaving open the possibility of mending fences with Excel and expressing a desire to move forward with the Dodgers.

The controversy was reignited yesterday when Fox Sports Radio host Doug Gottlieb tweeted that Excel’s lead negotiator Casey Close never informed Freeman about a final offer from the Braves. Gottlieb alleges Close “knew (Freeman) would have taken the Atlanta deal” but made the unilateral decision to withhold it from his client, ostensibly because he felt he could top the offer elsewhere. Close forcefully denied that notion last night, releasing a statement (on Twitter) that reads “Doug Gottlieb tweeted a wholly inaccurate characterization of our negotiations with the Atlanta Braves on behalf of Freddie Freeman. We are immediately evaluating all legal options to address the reckless publication of inaccurate information.”

This afternoon, Close put out another statement taking aim at the Braves themselves. In a release first tweeted by Jeff Passan of ESPN, Close alleged “the Braves have fostered a narrative about the negotiations which, stated plainly, is false. Part of that false narrative is the suggestion that I did not communicate a contract offer to the Freemans. To be clear, we communicated every offer that was made, as well as every communication Excel had with the Braves organization throughout the entire process.”

Close didn’t take aim at anyone specific in his statement. Nevertheless, it’s worth noting that Freeman acknowledged in late March that he had a three-hour conversation with Atlanta president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos “to hear his side of things” after initially implying that Anthopoulos and his staff hadn’t been especially forthcoming during the free agent process (link via Gabe Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution). Freeman made more general reference to communications with Braves personnel this week, telling reporters (including Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times) he’d “learned a lot” about his free agency “because I talked to the other side.”

Throughout the winter, the holdup between the Braves and Freeman seemed to be on the issue of a sixth guaranteed year. Atlanta was reluctant to go beyond five years for the 32-year-old. Justin Toscano of the Journal-Constitution hears from a source who suggests Freeman’s camp had offered the Braves a choice between two offers: $165MM over five years or $175MM over six years. Atlanta declined to meet those numbers and, according to Toscano, the sides mutually agreed to move on. (Olney wrote this week that the Braves had nudged their final offer to around five years and $140MM). The Braves acquired Olson two days later; Freeman wound up signing a six-year, $162MM offer with the Dodgers, although deferrals reduced the contract’s net present value to around $149MM.

Whatever caused talks between the Braves and Freeman to hit a stumbling block, the fallout has involved an ugly spat between his former team and one of the game’s most influential agents. Excel Sports Management represents dozens of players, including stars like Walker Buehler, Clayton Kershaw, Paul Goldschmidt, Kyle Tucker and high-profile impending free agents Andrew Benintendi and Dansby Swanson. Swanson has already stated the Freeman saga wouldn’t have any effect on his choice of representation, as he has no plans to leave Excel before his first trip to the open market.

There’s obviously some level of tension between the agency and the Atlanta organization, but it’s worth noting neither Close nor anyone with the Braves has suggested there’ll be adverse effects on negotiations between the team and other Excel clients. It stands to reason the Braves will have some interest in re-signing Swanson, a Georgia native and six-year starting shortstop who’s amidst the best season of his career.

The Orioles’ Waiver Claim All-Star (And Trade Candidate)

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The Orioles have acquired their fair share of formerly well-regarded prospects over the course of a drawn-out rebuild, as one would expect of a team in their situation. For the most part, there’s little to show for their frequent waiver claims and minor trades in this arena, however. Names like Maikel Franco, Kelvin Gutierrez, Carson Fulmer, Chris Shaw, Dilson Herrera, Rio Ruiz and Jahmai Jones have had brief spells in recent years, none producing much in the way of value. Longtime top prospect Jorge Mateo is currently on the roster and leading the AL with 19 steals … but he’s also been one of MLB’s worst hitters, evidenced by a .199/.247/.335 batting line.

For much of his tenure with the Orioles, it looked as though right-hander Jorge Lopez was destined to join that list of once-promising names who got another shot in Baltimore but never really panned out. Lopez was a second-round pick of the Brewers back in 2011 and ranked as one of the system’s better arms for years. He was eventually traded to the Royals alongside Brett Phillips in the deal that brought Mike Moustakas to Milwaukee, and Lopez went on to have a rather nondescript run in Kansas City. Appearing in 47 games — 25 of them starts — he was rocked for a 6.42 ERA over the life of 158 1/3 innings. The Royals eventually felt he’d had enough opportunities and cut bait. The Orioles claimed Lopez off waivers.

Lopez’s first two years in Baltimore were a near-mirror image of his ugly run with the Royals. From Aug. 2020 through the end of the 2021 season, Lopez started 31 games and made 11 relief appearances with the O’s; he posted a 6.13 ERA (5.22 FIP) with a 19.3% strikeout rate, a 9.4% walk rate and 1.58 HR/9 through 160 innings pitched.

Heading into the offseason, Lopez looked as though his time with the team could be up. Due for his first trip through the arbitration process, Lopez was a soon-to-be-29-year-old who’d posted an ERA north of 6.00 in three consecutive seasons. The O’s had acquired and subsequently discarded plenty of former top prospects of this nature, and few fans or pundits would’ve been surprised to see Lopez meet the same fate. Many — myself included — felt a Lopez non-tender was all but a given.

Instead, the Orioles signed Lopez to a one-year, $1.5MM deal on the day of the non-tender deadline. It might prove to be the best use of payroll resources so far during Mike Elias’ time as the team’s general manager, as Lopez  appears all but assured of earning his first ever All-Star nod.

Jorge Lopez | Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Through the first three months of the season, the 29-year-old Lopez has stepped up not only as Baltimore’s closer but as one of the best relievers in Major League Baseball. Pitching exclusively in relief for the first time in his big league career, Lopez has seen the average velocity on his sinker jump to a career-best 98.0 mph. Never one to miss many bats in prior seasons, he’s logged an 11.6% swinging-strike rate that, while not elite, is three percentage points higher than his pre-2022 career mark and is slightly north of the 11.1% MLB average. Unsurprisingly, he’s fanning opponents at a career-best 27.1% clip so far in 2022. Again, it’s not an elite level — Lopez is tied for 64th among 178 qualified relievers in overall strikeout rate — but it’s comfortably above the 23.4% league average for relievers.

Lopez does possess at least one elite skill, however. Opposing hitters can barely elevate the ball against him. The right-hander’s 64% ground-ball rate is the third-best in baseball among qualified relievers, and while no one’s catching Clay Holmes in that regard (82.4%), Lopez’s power sinker has helped to turn him into a bona fide bullpen force.

The success lies not solely in the fact that Lopez is getting hitters to pound the ball into the ground — it’s in the fact that the contact against him, both in the air and on the ground, is generally hapless. Hitters are averaging an 84.5 mph exit velocity against Lopez on grounders — well below the league average — but even when they manage to lift the ball, it’s been wildly ineffectual. Lopez has yet to surrender a home run this season, and his opponents’ average 89.7 mph exit velo on liners/fly-balls is tied for the 19th-lowest mark among 368 qualified big league pitchers.

Given the sinker’s dominance, it’s not a surprise to see Lopez going to it more than ever before. He’s all but scrapped his four-seamer, throwing it at just a three percent clip so far in 2022, while his sinker is being used at a career-high 51.3% clip. He’s also throwing his slider at a career-high 12% pace and his changeup at a career-high 15.9% rate — with that change in secondary offerings coming at the expense of his previous go-to curveball. Lopez is still tossing that curve 17.8% of the time, but that’s down considerably from 2018-21’s 27.8% usage rate. The velocity uptick is across the board — even Lopez’s changeup is average just under 91 mph — and it’s effectively rendered all four of his main offerings as above-average pitches. FanGraphs’ run values peg each of Lopez’s sinker, curveball, changeup and slider as positive-value pitches this season.

If it seems like an out-of-the-blue breakout, that’s mostly true, although it’s possible that Lopez’s August/September performance in 2021 served both as a portent for this turnaround and as a means of saving his roster spot. Lopez lost his rotation spot after an Aug. 19 drubbing at the hands of the Rays (four runs in two innings). His next outing came out of the bullpen and featured a scoreless inning with a pair of strikeouts — and from that point forth, Lopez would pitch 8 1/3 innings of relief while allowing just two runs on six hits and two walks with 10 strikeouts.

That’s a tiny sample, of course, but the seeds of this breakout were quite likely planted at that point. From Opening Day 2021 through that final start on Aug. 19, Lopez threw his four-seam fastball at a 24.2% clip and his sinker at a 33.3% clip. The sinker was still favored, but his ineffective four-seam heater was a prominent part of his repertoire. Over his final eight relief appearances, Lopez shifted gear and turned to his sinker at a 48.4% rate while cutting back the use of his four-seamer to just 15.3%. The sinker, which had sat at 95 mph out of the rotation, jumped to 96.5 mph on average, and Lopez’s overall ground-ball rate soared from 49.4% to 66.7%.

Small-sample sources of intrigue like these don’t always pan out, but the O’s deserve credit for looking at Lopez’s strong bullpen showing down the stretch in 2021 and believing that he could build on that formula over a larger sample. The risk was minimal — $1.5MM and a 40-man roster spot all winter — but few would’ve batted an eye had the O’s non-tendered Lopez and looked to utilize that roster spot in a different manner.

Instead, the Orioles now have a pitcher who has genuinely been one of MLB’s best relievers in 2022. Lopez has a minuscule 0.73 ERA on the year, and he ranks in the 93rd percentile or better in each of the following (according to Statcast): expected ERA, average exit velocity, hard-hit rate, barrel rate, expected wOBA, expected batting average and expected slugging percentage. Lopez is one of just five relievers in MLB (min. 30 innings) with a strikeout rate greater than 25%, a walk rate under 10% and a ground-ball rate north of 50%. The others — Holmes, Taylor Rogers, Emmanuel Clase and breakout rookie Jhoan Duran — are considered among baseball’s elite.

Of course, given the Orioles’ place in the standings and the protracted nature of their rebuild, trade speculation regarding Lopez is inevitable. General manager Mike Elias will absolutely be receiving calls and texts about Lopez’s availability — he surely already has — and Elias generally takes a “no one is off the table” approach regarding his veteran players. Lopez will surely be “available” to an extent, but there might not be a trade candidate in baseball who has elevated his stock quite this dramatically in 2022.

Beyond Lopez’s pure dominance, he’d be a multi-year fix for any team willing to pony up with a hefty offer. The right-hander has two years of club control remaining beyond the current season, and given this year’s eminently affordable $1.5MM salary, his future raises will be starting from a relatively low baseline. In other words, he ought to remain overwhelmingly affordable — especially relative to his newfound production — over the remainder of that club control.

The Orioles certainly don’t have to trade Lopez. By the time his club control is drawing to a close, in 2024, they may well finally be back to a state of competitiveness. At the same time, reliever performance is volatile on a year-to-year basis. Just as there’s risk in selling a high-end contributor like Lopez for unproven young talent, there’s risk that Lopez will sustain an injury or simply a downturn in performance — even if that appears unlikely based on his current skill set.

The O’s, for instance, had plenty of interest in lefty Paul Fry prior to last year’s deadline but held onto him (and his remaining three-plus years of club control). Fry melted down with 19 runs over seven post-deadline innings and wound up being designated for assignment earlier this year (at which point he was flipped to the D-backs for a 19-year-old in Rookie ball). Fry’s trade value wasn’t nearly as high as Lopez’s is now, nor was his future outlook quite so promising. That said, the manner in which his Baltimore tenure panned out is illustrative of the risk associated with rebuilding clubs holding onto bullpen arms in hopes of down-the-road contributions.

The nexus of Lopez’s dominance, his remaining club control and the Orioles’ timeline to compete will make him one of the most fascinating borderline cases to monitor as this year’s Aug. 2 trade deadline draws nearer. In the meantime, he’ll give O’s fans good reason to tune into the All-Star Game — well, if he’s still wearing an Orioles uniform by that point.

A’s Designate Adam Kolarek, Option Cristian Pache

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The A’s announced a series of roster moves before tonight’s game in Seattle. Right-hander Adrián Martínez and infielder Vimael Machin have been promoted from Triple-A Las Vegas, as previously reported. Oakland also reinstated outfielder Skye Bolt from the 60-day injured list, placed Jed Lowrie on the 10-day IL due to a left shoulder sprain, and optioned center fielder Cristian Pache and starter Adam Oller to Triple-A. Bolt’s activation required a 40-man roster spot, which has been created by designating reliever Adam Kolarek for assignment.

Kolarek has spent the past couple seasons in Oakland. The A’s acquired him from the Dodgers in February 2021, sending infielder Sheldon Neuse the other way. (Oakland has since reacquired Neuse via waivers). Kolarek has bounced on and off the active roster since that point, making 27 combined appearances. He was tagged for ten runs in nine innings last season, and it’s been a similar struggle thus far in 2022.

Through 17 2/3 innings, the southpaw has posted a 4.58 ERA. Kolarek has struck out only 11.4% of batters faced on a 4.7% swinging strike rate, and he’s walked a personal-high 10.1% of opponents. Kolarek has never missed many bats, but he’s seen his average fastball drop from the 91-92 MPH range down to 88.1 MPH this year. The 33-year-old has also allowed eight runs over 12 2/3 frames with Las Vegas during his optional stints.

Those struggles led the A’s to move on, but Kolarek could still hold some appeal to other clubs. The sidearmer has typically been excellent at handling left-handed opponents. For his career, he’s held southpaws to a pitiful .190/.243/.260 line over 277 plate appearances. Right-handers have teed off at a .311/.383/.490 clip, but that kind of situational dominance made him a productive bullpen option in Los Angeles and Tampa Bay earlier in his career. Kolarek also routinely generates ground-balls at a 60% clip or better, and that’s been the case even as his velocity and swing-and-miss have taken a step back in Oakland.

While Kolarek’s time in the organization could be coming to an end, the A’s are surely hopeful Pache will yet emerge as a member of the long-term core. The 23-year-old was one of four players (arguably the headliner) of the Spring Training return from the Braves for Matt Olson. He’s gone on to start 60 of the team’s 72 games in center field, but his first season in green and gold has been a disappointment.

Pache carries just a .159/.203/.224 line across 214 plate appearances. He’s collected only eight extra-base hits while walking at a subpar 5.1% rate and striking out 26.2% of the time. Of the 206 MLB hitters with at least 200 trips to the plate, Pache ranks last with a 24 wRC+ (suggesting he’s been 76 percentage points worse than the league average batter). The non-competitive A’s continued to give him opportunities to get on track offensively, but his woes have spiraled of late. Dating back to the start of June, he’s collected only six hits and three walks over 19 games.

Of course, Pache has long been a glove-first player. He drew top prospect attention during his time in the Atlanta system based largely on the strength of his defense, which most evaluators suggested could be among the league’s best. Pache has lived up to that reputation early in his MLB days. He ranks fourth among outfielders in Statcast’s Outs Above Average metric this season, checking in seven plays better than par. That kind of ability could make Pache a perennial Gold Glove candidate, but he’ll need to hit far better than he has this season if he’s to earn everyday run in the majors.

The Braves had optioned Pache during both the 2020 and ’21 campaigns. Assuming he spends 20+ days in the minors this year, he’ll exhaust his third and final option year. That means the A’s will need to keep him on the active roster next season, assuming they don’t want to make him available to other teams. Needless to say, organizational higher-ups will hope that this latest reboot against upper minors arms will help him take a step forward at the plate. Pache owns a more serviceable .267/.331/.414 line through 458 Triple-A plate appearances; the A’s would be thrilled if he could come anywhere close to that kind of production in the majors given his defensive acumen.

How quickly Pache returns to the big leagues will depend in large part on how he hits in Las Vegas. Getting back at some point this season would have important service time repercussions, as he’s just shy of reaching a full year of big league service. Pache entered the 2022 campaign with 79 days. Players reach a full service year upon accruing 172 days on an MLB roster or injured list, meaning he needs 93 days this season to surpass the one-year mark. Pache has tallied around 84 days in the majors to this point, so he needs about a week and a half more time in the big leagues in 2022 to keep on track towards a post-2027 free agent trajectory.

While Pache tries to find his footing, the A’s figure to turn center field over to Bolt. The 28-year-old hasn’t played in the big leagues this season due to an oblique strain, but he’ll get the nod in center tonight. Bolt has only 37 games of MLB experience under his belt, but he’s out of options and has to remain on the active roster or be designated for assignment now that he’s healthy.

Padres Select Matthew Batten, Designate Sergio Alcantara For Assignment

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The Padres announced they’ve selected infielder Matthew Batten onto the big league roster. Fellow infielder Sergio Alcántara has been designated for assignment to clear active and 40-man roster space.

Batten, who turned 27 last week, is in the major leagues for the first time. The Friars selected the 5’11” infielder in the 32nd round of the 2017 draft out of Quinnipiac University. Despite lacking draft or prospect pedigree, he’s played his way to the big leagues with a productive five-year showing in the minors. Batten is a .286/.368/.401 hitter in 420 minor league games, and he’s amidst a breakout 2022 campaign.

The Connecticut native has spent the entire season with the Padres’ Triple-A affiliate in El Paso. Through 264 trips to the plate, he’s hitting .299/.399/.504 with ten home runs. Batten has walked at an excellent 13.6% clip while striking out in a lower-than-average 19.7% of his trips, and he’s chipped in 13 stolen bases. El Paso is a hitter-friendly environment, but that level of production was eye-opening enough for the front office to give him an opportunity nevertheless.

Batten has a fair bit of minor league experience at each of second base, third base and shortstop. He’s seen sporadic time at first base and throughout the outfield as well, and he figures to serve a multi-positional bench role for manager Bob Melvin. That role had been filled of late by Alcántara, but he’ll lose his spot amidst a rough season at the plate.

The Padres claimed Alcántara off waivers from the division-rival Diamondbacks in early May. The out-of-options infielder stuck on the active roster and appeared in 22 games, but he offered very little offensive production during his limited at-bats. Alcántara had also struggled during his early-season stint in Arizona, and he carries just a .159/.183/.239 season line. Over a career-high 255 plate appearances with the Cubs last year, the 25-year-old (26 next month) posted a .205/.303/.327 showing.

Despite lacking much offensive punch, Alcántara has suited up for four different teams over the past three years. A highly-regarded defensive infielder, he’s capable of playing anywhere on the dirt and has drawn strong reviews from public defensive metrics for his shortstop play. The Friars will have a week to trade the defensive specialist or place him on waivers.

Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune reported Batten’s promotion before the team announcement.

Cubs Select Narciso Crook, Place Jason Heyward On Injured List

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The Cubs announced that corner outfielder Narciso Crook has been selected onto the major league roster. Center fielder Jason Heyward is headed to the 10-day injured list, retroactive to June 27, due to right knee inflammation. In order to create a 40-man roster spot for Crook, Michael Hermosillo has been transferred from the 10-day to the 60-day IL.

Crook, 27 next month, is in position to make his major league debut. He’s spent almost a decade in pro ball, originally entering the affiliated ranks as a 23rd round pick of the Reds back in 2013. A New Jersey junior college product, Crook played in the Cincinnati farm system until last year. His performance was generally inconsistent, but the 6’3″ outfielder slowly played his way as high as Triple-A. He spent the bulk of last season at that level, hitting .245/.360/.448 in 86 games.

The Reds never selected Crook onto their 40-man roster, and he qualified for minor league free agency at the end of the year. He inked a non-roster pact with the Cubs and has spent the whole season at Triple-A Iowa. Crook is hitting .268/.375/.510 with nine home runs through 184 plate appearances, drawing walks at a strong 11.4% rate along the way. He’s striking out nearly 30% of the time with Iowa, but the power and plate discipline were enough to get him his long-awaited big league look.

Crook adds a right-handed bat to the corner outfield and designated hitter mix for manager David Ross. The trio of Ian Happ, Christopher Morel and Rafael Ortega figure to assume much of the playing time. Heyward had already begun losing reps of late, as he’s having another very rough season. Through 151 plate appearances, he owns a .204/.278/.277 line with a single longball.

Hermosillo has been out since May 8 with a left quad strain. Today’s transfer rules him out for sixty days from that time, pushing his return window back to early July. The 27-year-old outfielder began some baseball activities last week but has yet to start a minor league rehab assignment.

Dodgers Claim Ian Gibaut From Guardians

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The Dodgers have claimed reliever Ian Gibaut off waivers from the Guardians, according to an announcement from GuardsInsider. Los Angeles has transferred reliever Daniel Hudson from the 15-day to the 60-day injured list to clear a spot on the 40-man roster.

Cleveland designated Gibaut for assignment on Tuesday, just one day after selecting him to the big league roster. The righty did make an appearance, tossing 1 1/3 scoreless innings during a blowout loss to the Twins. Gibaut averaged 96.9 MPH on his fastball during that lone stint, two ticks harder than his average heater from last season. Signed to a minor league deal over the winter, the 6’3″ righty had otherwise spent the season with Triple-A Columbus. He tossed 19 2/3 innings of 3.20 ERA ball, striking out a fine 24.1% of opponents against an elevated 10.1% walk rate.

Gibaut induced grounders on over the half the batted balls he allowed with the Clippers. Between his capable minor league showing and seeming 2022 velocity uptick, the Dodgers were intrigued enough to give him a look. Gibaut is out of minor league option years, so he’ll have to stick on Los Angeles’ active roster or be designated for assignment. Also a former Ray, Ranger and Twin, the 28-year-old owns a 5.19 ERA in 34 2/3 big league innings over the past four years.

Hudson’s IL transfer is a formality. The veteran righty suffered a season-ending ACL tear in his left knee last week.

Pirates Designate Yu Chang For Assignment

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The Pirates have designated infielder Yu Chang for assignment and reinstated fellow infielder Tucupita Marcano from the Covid-related injured list. Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic first pointed out that Marcano was in the clubhouse and that Chang, who is out of minor league options, was collecting his things and likely to be the corresponding roster casualty.

Chang has spent about a month in the Steel City, having been acquired from the Guardians at the end of May. He appeared in 18 games but managed only a .167/.286/.262 line, striking out in 18 of his 49 trips to the plate. That was enough for the Bucs to move on fairly quickly, as manager Derek Shelton has turned to Hoy Park and Josh VanMeter on the right side of the infield over the past few days. Chang is capable of covering all four spots on the dirt, but the Bucs’ left side is spoken for by Oneil Cruz and Ke’Bryan Hayes.

The 26-year-old Chang was regarded by evaluators as a solid prospect for much of his time climbing the Cleveland farm system. He reached the big leagues in 2019 and has seen sporadic MLB action in each of the past four seasons. He’s posted a meager .204/.268/.359 slash in just more than 400 career plate appearances, striking out at an alarming 29.5% rate in the process. He has rarely had much opportunity for everyday at-bats, however, and he owns a more serviceable .258/.332/.427 mark over parts of four Triple-A seasons.

Within the next week, the Bucs will trade Chang or try to run him through waivers. That Pittsburgh sent cash to Cleveland for him a month ago indicates they believed there was a good chance he’d be claimed off waivers or acquired by another team at the time. Whether that’ll still be the case after another month of struggles remains to be seen, but Chang’s prospect pedigree and affordability could hold some appeal. Any club that acquires him would need to keep him on the active roster or designate him for assignment themselves.

Mariners Sign Chris Mazza To Minor League Deal

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The Mariners have signed right-hander Chris Mazza to a minor league contract, as announced by Triple-A Tacoma media relations director Paul Braverman (Twitter link). Mazza, a client of NPG Sports, has already joined the Rainiers, per Braverman..

Mazza, 32, spent the season to this point in the Rays organization, though the bulk of that time came on the 60-day injured list due to back troubles. He’d been on a minor league rehab assignment with the Rays, but at the end of his 20-day rehab window, Tampa Bay opted to reinstate Mazza and designate him for assignment rather than add him back to the big league roster. The right-hander is out of minor league options, so the Rays had to either cut him loose or carry him on the roster. Mazza went unclaimed on waivers and elected free agency last week.

This will be the second stint in the Mariners organization for Mazza, who signed a minor league deal with Seattle back in Aug. 2018. He finished out the season with their Double-A affiliate but wound up going to the Mets in the minor league phase of that year’s Rule 5 Draft.

Mazza has since spent parts of four seasons in the Majors, seeing time with the Mets, Red Sox and Rays. He’s compiled a 5.35 ERA in 79 innings, striking out batters at an 18.5% clip against a 9.2% walk rate and 36.3% grounder rate. He logged 27 1/3 innings with the Rays a year ago, pitching to a 4.61 ERA in a career-high 14 Major League appearances.

Looking past those sub-par strikeout and walk rates, Mazza has shown a repeated knack for inducing weak contact. That was truer than ever last season, when Mazza yielded just an 85.5 mph average exit velocity and a meager 29.7% hard-hit rate as a member of the Rays. He couldn’t sustain that in 2022, when he was tagged seven earned runs in 5 1/3 innings, though it seems fair to wonder whether he was ever pitching at full strength this season.

Regardless, Mazza will give the M’s some upper-level bullpen depth with big league experience and a solid track record in Triple-A, where he’s pitched to a 3.68 ERA with a solid 23.9% strikeout rate and a strong 7.5% walk rate in 142 career innings.

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