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Archives for June 2023

Brewers Release Luke Voit

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The Brewers have released first baseman Luke Voit, reports Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. Voit had been designated for assignment earlier this week.

Voit, 32, has been on a fairly steady downward trajectory in recent years. He led the majors in home runs in 2020, launching 22 of them fo the Yankees in the shortened season. He hit .277/.338/.610 that year for a wRC+ of 153, indicating he was 53% better than league average. However, he made multiple trips to the injured list in 2021 and finished with a diminished line of .239/.328/.437, 112 wRC+.

Since the Yankees had effectively replaced him with Anthony Rizzo, they traded him to the Padres prior to 2022. But after a few months in San Diego, Voit was traded again to Washington, forming part of the Nationals’ return in the Juan Soto trade. Between the two clubs, his batting line fell again last year, ending up at .226/.308/.402, wRC+ of 102. The Nats could have retained him via arbitration but decided to non-tender him instead.

Voit ended up with the Brewers on a minor league deal and opted out late in the spring when he didn’t get a roster spot. But the Brewers circled back and signed him to a one-year, $2MM deal with incentives and a club option. Unfortunately, he hit just .221/.284/.265 through 22 games before landing on the injured list with a neck strain. He began a rehab assignment a couple of weeks ago but the club evidently didn’t want to add him back onto the roster, giving him the DFA treatment earlier this week.

Since Voit is only capable of serving as a first baseman or a designated hitter, his dwindling offense really puts a dent in his appeal. Given his recent struggles and salary commitment, it’s not a surprise that the Brewers didn’t find any club willing to take him on. Since he has over five years of major league service time, he would have been able to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency while retaining that salary, so the club has simply skipped that step and sent him back to the open market.

He will now be free to pursue opportunities with any of the other clubs. The interest will surely be muted based on his recent results, but any club that signs him would only have to pay him the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the active roster, with that amount subtracted from what the Brewers are paying.

Rays Acquire Robert Stephenson From Pirates

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1:05pm: The Pirates have now announced the deal and that Williams has been assigned to Triple-A Indianapolis. Infielder Mark Mathias has been recalled to take Stephenson’s spot on the active roster.

12:20pm: The Rays have acquired right-hander Robert Stephenson from the Pirates, reports Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic. Minor league shortstop Alika Williams is heading the other way.

Stephenson, 30, came up as a starting pitcher for the Reds but has been converted to relief work over the past few years. The initial results of the bullpen move were positive, as he posted a 3.76 ERA over 57 appearances in 2019. Things took a downturn in the shortened 2020 season, however, with his ERA shooting up to 9.26 in 10 appearances that year. Prior to 2021, the Reds flipped him to the Rockies in exchange for Jeff Hoffman.

He then bounced back with a solid season in Denver, putting up a 3.13 ERA in 2021. He struggled again in 2022, running up a 6.04 ERA through August before he was designated for assignment and landed with the Pirates. He was able to finish on a high note with a 3.38 ERA in ten appearances for the Bucs down the stretch.

Here in 2023, he began the season on the injured list due to elbow inflammation but was able to return in the middle of April.  He’s since made 18 appearances but has a 5.14 ERA in those. He’s still getting punchouts at a similar rate but his control seems to have fallen off this year. He struck out 26.8% of opponents from 2019 to 2022 and walked 7.9% but those figures are 27.9% and 13.1% this year.

That’s a small sample size but Stephenson has shown himself to be fairly inconsistent in his career, with notable swings in his effectiveness. Nonetheless, the Rays will take a shot on helping him harness his stuff. Given their track record of helping flawed pitchers get the best of their arsenals, it wouldn’t be a total shock to see Stephenson get back on track in Tampa.

Despite their reputation for producing an endless stream of quality relievers, they have had some bullpen struggles this year. They have five relievers currently on the injured list, which is putting a strain on their depth. The relief group as a whole has a collective 4.32 ERA on the season, a mark that places them 22nd out of the 30 clubs in the league. They have been looking in various places for reinforcements, including calling up several arms from their own system as well signing Jake Diekman after he was released by the White Sox. Now they will add Stephenson as well to see if he can be part of the solution as they try to hold onto the top spot in the cutthroat AL East. He will just be a short-term piece, however, since he’s slated for free agency this winter.

As for Williams, 24, he was the 38th overall selection in the 2020 draft. He has generally been considered one of Tampa’s top 30 prospects in the past few years, with his speed and defense standing out as his best qualities. The key question has been whether or not his bat would allow him to complement those skills. So far, the results there have been somewhat tepid. He hit .267/.312/.375 in 2021 across three different levels, producing a wRC+ of 86. Last year, he got his line up to .249/.353/.377 for a wRC+ of 104, spending most of his time in High-A. He’s been in Double-A this year, hitting .237/.314/.417 for a wRC+ of 101.

Williams isn’t a star prospect but he comes with a solid floor given his athletic abilities. Any offensive development would be a nice bonus for the Bucs, not a bad outcome for a struggling reliever that they grabbed off waivers less than a year ago.

White Sox Designate Hanser Alberto For Assignment

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The White Sox announced a series of roster moves today, reinstating right-hander Mike Clevinger and infielder Elvis Andrus from the injured list. In corresponding moves, they optioned right-hander Jesse Scholtens and designated infielder Hanser Alberto for assignment.

The White Sox haven’t had a good solution for second base for most of the year. Andrus was signed with the idea of slotting him next to Tim Anderson but Anderson ended up missing most of April due to a knee sprain. Andrus slid over to short to cover for him but hit just .201/.280/.254 before going on the IL himself due to an oblique strain about three weeks ago.

With Andrus out of action of late, the club has tried a couple of different players. Jake Burger had been playing third base, covering for the injured Yoán Moncada, and hit well enough that the club has considered moving him over to second base now that Moncada is back. He has 11 home runs in 40 games this year and an overall batting line of .270/.314/.603, leading to a 145 wRC+. Given that output, it’s unsurprising that the club wants his bat in the lineup, but he’s still only been entrusted with two innings at the keystone so far this year. Another option is Romy González, who had a terrible start to the season but has been on fire lately. He had a dismal .103/.103/.103 line through April 25 but has hit .286/.295/.667 since that time.

Manager Pedro Grifol recently spoke to James Fegan of The Athletic about the situation, essentially saying that the club will try to ride the hot hand. “I don’t think I’m going to be mixing and matching at second base,” Grifol said. “We need to win baseball games so if somebody’s playing as well as Romy (Gonzalez) is playing, then he’s going to play. If Elvis comes in and he does what he can do, then he’s going to play. Those are conversations that I’ll have with whoever’s involved and we’re going to put the best team on the field that’s going to help us win a baseball game every day.”

With the club suddenly juggling multiple options for the second base position, it has squeezed Alberto out of the picture. Signed to a minor league deal in the offseason, he made the club’s Opening Day roster to serve as a bench piece. He has since played in 30 games for the club, around a two-week IL stint due to a quad strain, but has hit just .220/.261/.390. That’s not too far off from his career line of .269/.292/.381, but it seems the Sox will roll with the younger and more exciting players in Burger and González.

The Sox will now have a week to trade Alberto or pass him through waivers. He has more than enough service time to reject an outright assignment and retain his $2.3MM salary. Given that financial commitment and his tepid production this season, it seems likely he simply ends up released in the coming days.

Brewers Sign Roman Quinn To Minor League Deal

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The Brewers recently signed outfielder Roman Quinn to a minor league deal, per his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He’s already reported to the Triple-A Nashville Sounds and played in a couple of games for that club.

Quinn, 30, was once a highly-rated prospect with the Phillies as his speed and defense gave him a very high floor. While he also hit well in the minors, he hasn’t yet found success against major league pitching. Going back to his debut in 2016, he has a career batting line of .226/.303/.348 in 599 plate appearances, striking out at a 30.4% rate.

He stayed with the Phillies through the end of 2021 but lost his roster spot at the end of that year and has gone into journeyman mode since then. He jumped to the Marlins and then back to the Phillies on minor league deals in early 2022. He got back to the big leagues with the Phils for a time but wound up back on the free market after a little more than a month. That led to another minor league deal with the Royals and then a major league deal with the Rays, though he landed on the injured list after about a month with Tampa and wasn’t able to return.

He lost his roster spot at the end of last year and signed a minor league deal with the Guardians this winter. Unfortunately, he hit just .176/.391/.235 in 15 Triple-A games before getting released, which is what allowed him to join the Brewers on yet another minors deal.

The Brewers have dealt with some issues in their outfield this year, particularly in center. Garrett Mitchell was expected to be the everyday option up the middle but he required shoulder surgery in April that could potentially keep him out for the remainder of the year. Prospect Sal Frelick also isn’t an option as he’s still rehabbing from April thumb surgery. That’s left the position in the hands of Joey Wiemer, who has provided excellent defense and stolen nine bases but is hitting just .199/.261/.348 on the year.

Quinn will give the club some experienced non-roster depth while trying to get into a good groove at the plate. Should he eventually earn his way back to the big leagues, he is out of options but could be retained for future seasons via arbitration since he has just over four years of major league service time.

Diamondbacks Outright Peter Solomon

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The Diamondbacks have sent right-hander Peter Solomon outright to the Triple-A Reno Aces, per his transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment earlier this week.

Solomon, 26, was once an intriguing prospect in the Astros’ system, having been drafted by that club in the fourth round in 2017. However, he required Tommy John surgery in 2019 and then the minor leagues were canceled by the pandemic in 2020, leading to a significant gap in his development. He seemed to get back on track in 2021, posting a 4.70 ERA for Triple-A Sugar Land in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. He also made his major league debut with a 1.29 ERA in six relief appearances.

In 2022, the Astros kept him in the minors and his results took a step back. His ERA ticked up to 5.20 and his peripherals went in the wrong direction at Triple-A as well. His 26.3% strikeout rate from 2021 dropped to 20.5% and his walk rate went from 9.9% to 10.2%. He was put on waivers in September and was claimed by the Pirates. He made four appearances for their Triple-A club as the season was winding down but was outrighted at season’s end.

He came to the Diamondbacks this winter via the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft. He was selected to the big league roster in early April but was shelled for a 12.15 ERA in five long relief outings. He got optioned back to Triple-A Reno but has posted a 9.69 ERA for that club. The club needed a roster spot when prospect Kristian Robinson was coming off the restricted list and Solomon was the casualty.

Since Solomon has a previous career outright, he has the right to reject this assignment and elect free agency, though it’s not publicly known if he has chosen to do so.

The Opener: Olson, Sale, Twins

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On the heels of an early-morning transaction, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. Olson to make MLB debut:

The Tigers are expected to promote right-hander Reese Olson to start this evening’s game against the White Sox, marking Olson’s MLB debut. A former 13th round pick by the Brewers, Olson was traded to the Tigers in 2021. Since then, Olson has pitched primarily at the Double-A level, posting a 4.24 ERA in 144 1/3 innings of work. He opened the 2023 campaign with a promotion to the Triple-A level, but has largely struggled there this season, with a 6.38 ERA in 36 2/3 innings of work. That ugly figure is inflated by a 15.83 ERA in his first four appearances this season, though the 23-year-old owns a worrisome 12.6% walk rate that has stayed consistent even as his results have improved.

Olson, for whom the club will need to open an active roster spot before today’s game, will step into the rotation in the stead of the club’s injured ace, left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez. It certainly seems unlikely that Olson will be able to match Rodriguez’s dominant start to the 2023 season (2.13 ERA and 3.17 FIP in 11 starts), but he’ll nonetheless be relied upon to help stabilize a Tigers rotation that has been a clear weak spot for the club this season. Each of Matthew Boyd, Joey Wentz, and Alex Faedo sport ERAs well above 5.00, with Michael Lorenzen standing as the only active member of the rotation having an above average season by measure of ERA+ with a 122 figure. Olson will take the ball in Chicago at 7:10pm CT tonight.

2. Sale to undergo MRI:

Red Sox left-hander Chris Sale exited yesterday’s start against the Reds with shoulder soreness. He’s scheduled to undergo an MRI today to determine the extent of the issue, as noted by MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo. While Sale has posted a rather pedestrian 4.58 ERA, exactly league average by measure of ERA+, that figure doesn’t tell the whole story of his 2023 campaign to this point. The 34-year-old veteran had a disastrous April, with a 6.75 ERA in 29 1/3 innings over six starts. Since then, however, Sale has turned a corner, posting a 2.43 ERA, 2.89 FIP, and a 31.3% strikeout rate in 29 2/3 innings over five starts that have been far more reminiscent of his ace-level production in previous seasons.

Should Sale miss time, it would not only be a serious blow to the Red Sox rotation, but surely frustrating for Sale himself, as the veteran lefty managed just 48 1/3 innings across the 2020-2022 seasons while battling a myriad of injuries, including Tommy John surgery. Right-handers Corey Kluber and Nick Pivetta were both recently demoted to the bullpen, and could theoretically step back into the rotation should Sale require a trip to the injured list.

3. Buxton, Correa exit game:

A pair of concerning injury situations popped up for the Twins during last night’s game against the Guardians, as both Byron Buxton and Carlos Correa exited the game. Buxton exited yesterday’s game with rib soreness after being struck by a pitch, and is expected to undergo imaging today, per Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com. Meanwhile, Correa exited after re-aggravating the plantar fasciitis that recently kept him out of the lineup for a few days, per Dan Hayes of The Athletic.

Losing either superstar would be a significant blow to the club, let alone both players. That said, the Twins have the remarkable position player depth necessary to weather such a blow, with Donovan Solano and Kyle Farmer both able to come off the bench and step into everyday roles while Matt Wallner and Edouard Julien would both be options to return to the big league club should either Buxton or Correa require a stint on the injured list.

Reds Disinclined To Trade Jonathan India

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Reds second baseman Jonathan India is amidst a bounceback season. The 2021 NL Rookie of the Year had a down ’22 campaign. He spent some time on the injured list with hamstring issues and only hit .249/.327/.378 in 103 games.

The first two months of this season have more closely resembled India’s rookie form. He entered play Thursday with a .282/.369/.426 batting line over 244 plate appearances. His 15 doubles are one shy of last year’s mark in a little over half the playing time. He has a modest five home runs but is reliably reaching base at the top of the Cincinnati lineup. He’s avoided the IL and been in the starting lineup for all but one of the Reds’ games thus far.

While he’s not hitting for a ton of over-the-fence power, India has taken a marked step forward in his strike zone coverage. He’s always been a disciplined, high-contact hitter and he’s taken that to career-best heights. India’s walking at a quality 10.7% rate and has cut his strikeouts to a personal-low 18% clip. He’s chasing fewer pitches outside the strike zone than ever and making contact on a career-high 83.7% of his swings. He’s also hitting the ball a fair bit harder than he did last season.

Other clubs have unsurprisingly taken note. Jeff Passan of ESPN reported this morning the Reds are receiving trade interest in India but aren’t anxious to move him. That’s not to say they’re completely opposed to talks — few players around the league are truly “untouchable” in negotiations — but reflects the lack of urgency for Cincinnati to make a deal.

India broke camp in 2021, giving him exactly two years of big league service entering this season. He’ll be eligible for arbitration at the end of the year and isn’t slated to reach free agency until after the 2026 campaign. The Reds have very little money on the books beyond this season and won’t have any issue accommodating India’s arbitration salaries.

There’s a straightforward case for Cincinnati to keep him around. Even in a weak NL Central, the Reds aren’t expected to compete this season. Their 26-29 record is a little better than most outside observers likely anticipated, though they’re still a longshot to hang in the playoff mix all year. Given their post-’23 payroll flexibility and a farm system with plenty of upper minors talent, the Reds could more seriously angle for postseason contention as soon as next year.

As arguably the club’s best position player, India could be a significant part of those efforts. It’s not entirely outlandish for others teams to touch base with general manager Nick Krall and his front office, though. The strength of Cincinnati’s minor league pipeline is the middle infield, leading the Reds to look into trading from that depth to address other areas of the farm system over the offseason.

Former first round pick Matt McLain reached the majors last month after tearing up Triple-A pitching. He’s hit the ground running as the primary shortstop, posting a .361/.426/.541 line over his first 68 plate appearances. Elly De La Cruz, in the conversation for the top prospect in baseball, likely isn’t far behind while carrying a .303/.401/.648 slash as a 21-year-old in his first crack at Triple-A. Noelvi Marte — arguably the next-best prospect in the system — is hitting .295/.369/.500 while playing shortstop in Double-A. Edwin Arroyo isn’t hitting well in High-A but entered the year as a top 100 caliber prospect and is expected to stick at shortstop himself.

India is a productive hitter but has drawn below-average defensive grades from metrics like Defensive Runs Saved and Statcast’s Outs Above Average throughout his career. There’s no reason for the Reds to move him off the keystone imminently. Prospect promotions could alter that calculus in the coming months or next year.

Still, the Reds could see any India trade offers as putting the cart before the horse. They opened the season with Jose Barrero and Kevin Newman as their shortstop tandem. Talented as the upper minors options are, none of them have more than a two-week MLB track record.

It’s also common for middle infield prospects to branch out to other positions as they approach the MLB level. McLain played some center field at UCLA and could eventually be an option in the outfield. De La Cruz and Marte are both larger-framed shortstop prospects, leading some evaluators to question whether either might be a better fit for third base down the line.

KBO’s Hanwha Eagles Release Brian O’Grady

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The Hanwha Eagles of the Korea Baseball Organization released first baseman/corner outfielder Brian O’Grady this week, as noted by Jee-ho Yoo of Yonhap News. He returns to free agency while the Eagles explore options for a new foreign-born player to take the vacated roster spot.

O’Grady signed with the Eagles over the winter. He struggled immensely in his limited work. O’Grady punched out 40 times against five walks in 86 plate appearances. He had only three extra-base hits (all doubles) and compiled a .125/.174/.163 batting line. With a limit of three foreign players on KBO rosters, the Eagles didn’t have much time to afford O’Grady a longer leash.

The Rutgers product has spent parts of three seasons in the majors. Between the Reds, Rays and Padres, he hit .184/.283/.388 in 62 games from 2019-21. He’s been much better at the Triple-A level, positing a .284/.362/.551 slash in just shy of 1000 plate appearances. O’Grady also spent a year in Japan with the Seibu Lions, putting up a .213/.312/.380 line in 2022.

Now that he’s a free agent, O’Grady could look for affiliated ball opportunities. He’d surely be limited to minor league offers given his KBO numbers but has a strong enough minor league track record to potentially attract teams looking for left-handed hitting depth.

Hanwha made a change on the pitching staff in April, signing Ricardo Sánchez while letting go of Burch Smith. Sánchez and right-hander Félix Peña are the two foreign players currently on the roster.

Court Rules In MLB’s Favor In Diamond Bankruptcy Hearing

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There was a notable development in the Diamond Sports Group bankruptcy saga this evening. The court ruled in Major League Baseball’s favor on yesterday’s hearing regarding Diamond’s efforts to restructure a number of its local broadcasting deals.

The broadcasting conglomerate has temporarily been paying reduced rights fees (75%, according to Alden González of ESPN) to the Twins, Guardians, Diamondbacks, Reds and Rangers since filing for bankruptcy two and a half months ago. Diamond had sought a ruling that’d require the team to renegotiate their broadcasting contracts to more accurately align with the current market value of broadcasting rights — which has dropped sharply in recent years due to the rise of cord-cutting, contributing to Diamond’s bankruptcy filing.

That argument wasn’t persuasive to the court, which concluded that a change in the market “doesn’t mean the contract price is clearly unreasonable” (relayed by Evan Drellich of the Athletic). As a result, Diamond is now responsible for backpay to the five organizations it had been paying the reduced rate. According to González, the court hasn’t yet set the deadline for those payments. If Diamond fails to meet its responsibilities by whatever dates are ultimately chosen, MLB would have the ability to reclaim the broadcasting rights for those clubs from the Bally networks.

“MLB appreciates the ruling from the federal bankruptcy court in Houston requiring Diamond to pay the full contractual rate to clubs,” the league said in a statement relayed by González. “As always, we hope Diamond will continue to broadcast games and meet its contractual obligations to clubs.”

Diamond carried broadcasts for 14 major league teams entering the season. It forfeited the ability to carry Padres’ games earlier this week by opting not to meet a scheduled payment in that contract. MLB promptly took over in-market broadcasting and is making those games available both for streaming on MLB.TV and via other cable platforms. The league reiterated this evening it is prepared to do so for any other contracts which Diamond lets lapse. Today’s ruling increases the odds of Diamond abandoning other deals, though the corporation hasn’t announced any immediate plans to do so.

Dodgers Acquire Ricky Vanasco From Rangers

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The Rangers have traded pitching prospect Ricky Vanasco to the Dodgers for minor league left-hander Luis Valdez, both teams announced. Los Angeles designated reliever Zack Burdi for assignment to free a spot on the 40-man roster.

Vanasco, 24, has yet to reach the majors. An overslot 15th round draftee out of high school six years ago, the 6’3″ hurler developed into one of the more interesting arms in the Texas farm system. Baseball America ranked him between 12th and 21st on the Rangers’ prospect list each season between 2020-22. He impressed evaluators with a mid-90s fastball and above-average to plus breaking pitch but faced questions about his command and third offering.

The Florida native had his career interrupted by both the canceled 2020 minor league season and a subsequent Tommy John surgery. He lost all of ’21 rehabbing but returned to make 23 starts in High-A last year. Vanasco posted a 4.68 ERA over 92 1/3 innings, striking out a quality 28.9% of opposing hitters but with an alarming 12.7% walk rate.

Vanasco was set to start this year in Double-A. A Spring Training knee injury required surgery and cost him the first two months of the season. He made it back in late May and started two games there. They haven’t gone as planned, as he’s failed to get out of the second inning in either appearance. He allowed ten runs (six earned) with four walks and two strikeouts over 2 1/3 combined frames before losing his 40-man position earlier this week.

The Dodgers will take a flier on Vanasco’s arsenal to see if he can hone in his command. He’s in his second of three minor league option years, so they can keep him in the minors for the foreseeable future if he holds his 40-man spot.

Los Angeles sends a 19-year-old southpaw the other way. Valdez signed with the Dodgers as an amateur out of Mexico two years ago. He’s logged 17 2/3 innings with Low-A Rancho Cucamonga this year, posting a 3.12 ERA with a 28.9% strikeout rate while walking nearly 17% of opponents.

Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs slotted him 29th among Dodger prospects over the offseason, praising a potential plus changeup but noting that his velocity presently sits in the upper-80s. He won’t be eligible for the Rule 5 draft until after the 2024 campaign.

Burdi gets squeezed off the roster within a week of being claimed from the Rays. He didn’t pitch in an MLB game for the Dodgers, making just one appearance in Triple-A. He’s pitched three times for Tampa Bay this season, allowing six runs in four innings. A former first round draftee, Burdi throws in the mid-90s and has paired high minor league strikeout tallies with lofty walk rates.

The Dodgers will have a week to trade him or put him on waivers. Burdi has gone unclaimed on waivers in his career before, so he’d have the right to elect minor league free agency if he clears the wire this time around.

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