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Archives for August 2023

Reds Place Jake Fraley On 10-Day Injured List

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2:58PM: Reds manager David Bell spoke with The Cincinnati Enquirer’s Charlie Goldsmith and other reporters about Fraley’s injury, saying a play in Thursday’s game “re-aggravated” the issue and “pushed him to a point where it’s a different type of pain.”  In terms of when the outfielder might be back, “we still haven’t pinpointed a time frame, which is actually good.  He’s still trying to get all the information.  In [Fraley’s] mind, he’s trying to get back in a few weeks, which is great.  That’s how I’m going to think about it.”

10:10AM: The Reds placed outfielder Jake Fraley on the 10-day injured list due to a stress fracture in his left fourth toe.  The club also announced that outfielder TJ Hopkins was called up from Triple-A, and that right-hander Lyon Richardson was added to the taxi squad in advance of his planned start on Sunday.

The IL placement is retroactive to August 4, as Fraley didn’t play in Cincinnati’s 6-3 loss to Washington yesterday.  The nature and severity of the injury isn’t yet known, but it would certainly seem like Fraley will miss well beyond 10 days, leaving a notable hole in the Reds lineup.  This is the second straight year that Fraley has been sidelined by a toe injury, as while rehabbing a knee injury in 2022, his time on the IL was extended due to a toe issue suffered during rehab.

Between the injuries and the fact that the Reds use Fraley almost exclusively against right-handed pitching, he has played in only 160 games since Cincinnati acquired the outfielder as part of the Eugenio Suarez/Jesse Winker trade with the Mariners in March 2022.  When he has been able to play, however, Fraley has been a productive bat, hitting .261/.345/.467 with 27 homers over 574 plate appearances — that works out to a 116 wRC+ over essentially the equivalent of one full season.  Playing both corner outfield positions, Fraley has been a very useful platoon option for the Reds to mix and match in their outfield.

Hopkins has a .367 OPS over 25 PA in his rookie season, plus as a right-handed bat, he’s an imperfect fill-in option for Fraley’s specific role.  Nick Senzel and Stuart Fairchild (also right-handed hitters) figure to get more playing time in Fraley’s absence, or the Reds could continue to give Spencer Steer regular looks in left field.

As much as the Reds’ influx of young talent was seemingly going to create a crunch for playing time, injuries have now provided an unfortunate solution to that issue.  Fraley joins Jonathan India on the 10-day IL, and while India was at least hopeful of a quick return, Cincinnati is now missing two experienced bats in the midst of a playoff race.  The Reds are on a four-game losing streak, and are 9-12 since the All-Star break.

Tigers Release Matt Wisler

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The Tigers announced that right-hander Matt Wisler was released from his minor league contract with the club.  Wisler signed in February but hadn’t received a call-up to the majors, and he has a 4.40 ERA over 47 innings with Triple-A Toledo.

Digging deeper into the numbers, Wisler had a 25.2% strikeout rate and 12.4% walk rate in Toledo, and the spike in walks stands out considering that Wisler had a very solid 7.6BB% over his 507 1/3 career innings in the big leagues.  The Tigers simply never felt compelled to see what Wisler could contribute to their big league bullpen, and thus the 30-year-old will again hit the open market.

The Rays designated Wisler for assignment last September, and after he chose free agency rather than accept an outright assignment, he stayed unsigned until landing with Detroit in mid-February.  With the trade deadline now passed and teams having fewer avenues to make additions, there’s bound to be some interest in a pitcher who has a 2.59 ERA over 118 MLB innings since the start of the 2021 season.

Wisler has bounced around from the Twins to the Giants to the Rays to the Tigers over the last four seasons, with clubs looking beyond the surface ERA to some red flags.  For instance, Wisler also had a high walk rate over 25 innings with the Twins in 2020, and he benefited greatly from a .198 BABIP in 2022 that helped mask a lot of hard contact and a velocity on both his fastball and slider.  His performance in Toledo might not have exactly calmed any doubts about his ability to again thrive at the MLB level, but it will be interesting to monitor what teams might make a play for his services.

White Sox Claim Brent Honeywell, Select Lane Ramsey

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The White Sox added a pair of right-handers to their 40-man roster, announcing that Lane Ramsey’s contract was selected from Triple-A and that Brent Honeywell Jr. was claimed off waivers from the Padres.  Right-hander Gregory Santos was placed on the bereavement list in a corresponding move.

San Diego designated Honeywell for assignment on Wednesday, one of a few transactions made to make space for the Padres’ trade deadline acquisitions.  Honeywell has a 4.05 ERA/4.31 SIERA over 46 2/3 relief innings this season, with a solid 48.9% grounder rate but below-average strikeout (20.5%) and walk (10.2%) rates.  The righty had some of the highest hard-contact numbers in the league, and a solid 7.2% barrel rate hasn’t quite been enough to limit the damage, as Honeywell has allowed eight home runs.

These shaky numbers notwithstanding, simply getting onto the mound represented a great result for Honeywell after years of injuries.  A top-100 regular during his days as a prospect in the Rays system, Honeywell has already undergone four different surgeries on his throwing elbow, including a Tommy John procedure.  As a result, Honeywell’s MLB resume prior to this season consisted of a three-game cup of coffee with Tampa Bay in 2021, with Honeywell tossing 4 1/3 total innings.

Honeywell was a low-cost winter signing for the Padres on a split contract, and it’s safe to say both sides were probably satisfied with how the deal worked out.  It is quite possible San Diego would’ve preferred to keep Honeywell if he wasn’t out of minor league options, so with a 26-man roster crunch, the Padres had to risk losing him on a waiver claim.  It isn’t surprising that the White Sox (and probably some other teams) had an eye on a former top prospect who might finally be healthy and ready to perform, and since Chicago is out of the race, they’ll have the rest of the season to evaluate Honeywell and see if he might be in their plans for 2024.

Ramsey was a 23rd-round pick for the White Sox in the 2018 draft, and the 27-year-old is now on the verge of his debut appearance in the Show.  Now in his third season at Triple-A Charlotte, Ramsey hadn’t much success at the top minor league level, with a 5.79 ERA over 79 1/3 innings (pitching as a reliever in 70 of 72 appearances) with a 25.34% strikeout rate and an ungainly 15.36% walk rate.  Ramsey is something of a prototypical hard-throwing reliever who hasn’t quite been able to translate that velocity into control or a higher-tier strikeout rate, though the White Sox coaches will get a closer look at his live arm during his stint in the majors.

Marlins Announce Four Roster Moves

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The Marlins placed right-hander JT Chargois on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to August 4) and designated left-hander Devin Smeltzer for assignment, according to Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald.  In corresponding moves, the club called up righty Huascar Brazoban and left-hander Ryan Weathers from Triple-A.

This is the third time that Smeltzer has been DFA’ed this season, so it is possible that he’ll once again clear waivers and accept an outright assignment to Triple-A Jacksonville.  He does have the ability to reject an outright and become a free agent, though Smeltzer might not mind shuttling back and forth as one of the Marlins’ go-to depth options.

The numbers also aren’t in Smeltzer’s favor this season, as he has a 5.79 ERA over 18 2/3 innings with the Marlins and a 5.95 ERA over 65 frames at the Triple-A level.  The home run problems that arose for Smeltzer with the Twins in 2022 have continued this year, as he has allowed 20 homers over his 83 2/3 combined innings at both levels.  Smeltzer has started all 14 of his games in Jacksonville but he has only started one of his eight appearances with the Marlins, as Miami has mostly utilized him as a long reliever.

Chargois is dealing with a strain in his right rib cage, marking his second IL stint of the season after he missed about five weeks earlier this year with a right oblique strain.  When he has been able to play, Chargois has been a solid member of Miami’s bullpen, posting a 3.68 ERA/4.09 SIERA over 29 1/3 innings.  Despite a 96.3mph fastball, Chargois isn’t a big strikeout pitcher, instead relying on soft contact and keeping the ball on the ground.  The right-hander has a 59.3% grounder rate this season, and a .259 BABIP has further enhanced his success.

It isn’t great news for the Marlins to lose a pretty reliable reliever during their playoff push, especially after the club made a point of adding to its bullpen at the deadline.  The reinforcements from Jacksonville might help, as Brazoban has also been back and forth from Triple-A a couple of times this season, while Weathers is now set to make his Marlins debut.  The Fish acquired Weathers from the Padres in exchange for Garrett Cooper and Sean Reynolds in a deadline deal on Tuesday, and Weathers will look to get on track in a new environment after posting a 6.25 ERA over 44 2/3 innings with San Diego this season.

Jorge Alfaro Elects Free Agency

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Catcher Jorge Alfaro has elected to become a free agent, according to his MLB.com player page.  Alfaro was designated for assignment by the Red Sox earlier this week and he cleared waivers, then choosing to return to the open market rather than accept an outright assignment to Boston’s Triple-A affiliate.

Alfaro has now been a free agent four times in the last eight months, with three of those trips coming since the start of June.  After signing a minor league deal with the Red Sox during the offseason, Alfaro exercised his June 1 opt-out clause and then caught on with the Rockies on another minors pact.  Colorado selected Alfaro to the majors for 10 games, but then DFA’ed the veteran in early July, and Alfaro returned to the Sox on a Major League contract after again choosing free agency over an outright assignment.

In reaching five years of MLB service time last season, Alfaro gained the right to reject any outright assignment in favor of free agency.  The 30-year-old appears intent on seeing if he can find another guaranteed big league deal or at least a minor league contract on a team with more opportunity for an eventual promotion to the majors.  That might preclude a return to Boston, now that Reese McGuire is back from the injured list and sharing time with Connor Wong.  Alfaro has hit only .146/.212/.292 over 52 plate appearances this season, but with catching depth scarce around the league, it might not take him long to secure another contract.

Marlins Had Interest In Turner, Lynn, Cron Prior To Trade Deadline

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The Marlins were one of the league’s busier teams in advance of the trade deadline, as Miami made several moves to bolster its lineup and bullpen for the wild card race.  Such names as Josh Bell, David Robertson, Jake Burger, Jorge Lopez, and Ryan Weathers joined the organization, but there were plenty of interesting players on Miami’s radar, including a few who weren’t previously mentioned in pre-deadline buzz.  The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Levi Weaver report that the Marlins had “extensive discussions” with the Red Sox about Justin Turner, while Barry Jackson and Craig Mish of the Miami Herald report that the Marlins were also interested in Lance Lynn and C.J. Cron.

Reports surfaced on July 28 that the Sox weren’t moving Turner, which is probably when (as Rosenthal and Weaver write) the Marlins turned their attention to other position players.  Miami’s talks with the White Sox about Lynn also developed into the eventual Burger trade, as the Fish landed Burger for left-hander Jake Eder in a one-for-one swap.  Burger was also something of a fallback once the Marlins balked at the Nationals’ asking price for Jeimer Candelario, and Miami was more comfortable trading a controllable pitcher like Eder for another younger player with multiple years of control, whereas Candelario is a free agent after the season.

Lynn and Cron were seen as likely trade candidates since the White Sox and Rockies are both out of contention, and indeed both players were moved in pre-deadline deals.  (Chicago sent Lynn and Joe Kelly to the Dodgers as part of a five-player trade, while the Rockies dealt Cron and Randal Grichuk to the Angels for two pitching prospects.)  There would certainly have been more eyebrows raised over a Turner deal given that the Red Sox are fighting for a wild card berth in the American League, yet even such a trade wouldn’t have been a total shock considering how Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom both moved and acquired veterans at the 2022 deadline when Boston was also on the periphery of the playoff chase.

This year’s deadline season was comparatively quieter at Fenway Park, as the Sox only acquired Luis Urias from the Brewers and sent Enrique Hernandez to the Dodgers.  The Red Sox were known to be looking for controllable pitching, and Rosenthal/Weaver theorize that the Marlins’ deep crop of arms might have gotten Bloom to at least consider the idea of moving Turner.

Speculatively, it is also worth wondering if Edward Cabrera might have been part of the Marlins/Red Sox talks.  Jackson and Mish write that several teams called about Cabrera, to the point that the Marlins had Devin Smeltzer on hand in case Cabrera was moved prior to his scheduled start on Monday.  Cabrera only lasted three innings in that start, and he was optioned to Triple-A on Wednesday and Smeltzer’s contract was officially selected from Triple-A a day later.

As much as the Red Sox needed pitching, it is safe to guess that trading Turner for almost anyone wouldn’t have gone over well with Boston fans, or even within the clubhouse.  Turner has hit .286/.356/.481 with 17 homers over 441 plate appearances, with his offense steadily increasing over the course of the season.  Though Turner will be 39 in November, he is still playing well enough that it’s possible he could opt out of the final season of his two-year contract with the Sox and again enter free agency this winter, looking to land a more lucrative multi-year commitment.  If that scenario occurs, one would imagine the Marlins would come calling, considering their interest in Turner dates back at last winter.

Justin Wilson Won’t Pitch Again In 2023

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When the Brewers placed Justin Wilson on the 15-day injured list on July 29, it was expected that the southpaw was in for another lengthy absence.  Manager Craig Counsell described Wilson’s left lat strain as “pretty significant” at the time, and Counsell updated reporters (including Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) on Friday that Wilson will indeed miss the rest of the 2023 season.

Wilson’s year will end without a single MLB appearance, as his time on the Brewers’ active roster was short-lived.  Milwaukee only activated Wilson from the 60-day IL on July 28, as the left-hander was returning from Tommy John surgery rehab.  Unfortunately, Wilson was warming up in the bullpen for his first appearance of the season when he suffered his lat strain, thus ending his Brewers debut before it officially happened.  Between this injury and the TJ surgery, Wilson has only pitched in five games (for 3 2/3 innings) since the start of the 2022 season.

The Brew Crew signed Wilson to a one-year free agent deal last offseason worth $1MM in guaranteed money — $850K in salary for 2023, and a $150K buyout of a $2.5MM club option for 2024.  The contract was designed to give Milwaukee some flexibility if Wilson ended up missing most or all of the season due to Tommy John rehab, so in theory, the lat strain shouldn’t much change the original equation for the team.  On the other hand, $2.5MM is a decent amount of money for a medium-payroll team to spend on a veteran (Wilson turns 36 this month) reliever who hasn’t pitched in almost two full seasons.  This isn’t a decision the Brewers will have to make until after the World Series is over, so there’s plenty of time for the club to monitor Wilson’s recovery from the lat injury.

In better injury news for the Brewers, Counsell said that Rowdy Tellez is slated to begin a Triple-A rehab assignment on Tuesday.  Tellez hasn’t played since July 4, as a 10-day IL stint that started due to forearm inflammation was then extended when Tellez broke the fingertip on his left ring finger in a fluke accident while shagging fly balls before a game.

Yankees Activate Nestor Cortes From 60-Day Injured List

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TODAY: The Yankees officially activated Cortes.  Left-hander Nick Ramirez was optioned to Triple-A in the corresponding move.

AUGUST 3: The Yankees are planning to reinstate left-hander Nestor Cortes from the 60-day injured list Saturday, manager Aaron Boone announced to reporters (Twitter link via Greg Joyce of the New York Post). Cortes, who’s been out since late May due to a rotator cuff strain in his left shoulder, will return to the rotation and take the mound against the Astros.

Cortes, 28, returned to the Yankees (who selected him in the 36th round of the 2013 draft) in 2021 after spending a year in Seattle and enjoyed a breakout season that carried over into the 2022 campaign. From 2021-22, the southpaw turned in a sensational 2.61 ERA with a 26.9% strikeout rate, a 6.4% walk rate and just 1.07 homers allowed per nine innings pitched. His 2022 performance was strong enough to secure his first All-Star bid and to nab some down-ballot mentions in Cy Young voting, where he finished eighth.

Thus far, the 2023 season has been a massive departure from that success. Cortes has pitched to a 5.16 ERA while his strikeout, walk, ground-ball, home run and hard-hit rates have all trended in the wrong direction relative last season’s levels. Opponents hit just .189/.241/.313 against Cortes last season but were batting .253/.318/.450 against him in 59 1/3 innings before he was placed on the injured list. Cortes held his opponents scoreless in seven of his 28 starts last year and allowed just one earned run in nine of them. This year, he’s allowed at least one run in all 11 of his starts — and two or more in 10 of his 11 outings.

Glaring as this year’s struggles have been, the return of Cortes could provide a much-needed boost to a struggling Yankees staff. Luis Severino has been one of baseball’s worst starters this year, logging a 7.49 ERA in a dozen starts. Offseason signee Carlos Rodon has pitched to a 6.29 ERA in five starts since making an injury-delayed debut with the team. Domingo German recently entered treatment for alcohol abuse and will not return to the team this season.

As it stands, Gerrit Cole — in his typical Cy Young-caliber form — and Clarke Schmidt are the only two consistent performers on the active roster for Boone. Only time will tell which version of Cortes shows up, but even if he’s not pitching at his 2021-22 levels, he should be an upgrade to the staff. Cortes has made a pair of minor league rehab starts, both in Double-A, and allowed one run on six hits and a walk with nine punchouts in 6 1/3 frames.

Braves Re-Sign Charlie Culberson

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Charlie Culberson is back with the Braves, as the veteran’s MLB.com profile page reveals that the veteran utilityman has signed a new minor league deal with the team.  Culberson was designated for assignment and outrighted off Atlanta’s 40-man roster within the last week, and he elected to become a free agent on Thursday.

This is the second time in a little over a month that Culberson was DFA’ed and outrighted, and then went into free agency only to shortly re-sign with the Braves.  It continues a curious 2023 season for the veteran, who has spent over two months on Atlanta’s active roster with only a single in-game appearance — a pinch-hit single on July 16, in an 8-1 Braves loss to the White Sox.  Since the Braves’ core of position players have been so generally durable and overall impressive this season, there simply hasn’t been much playing time available for any of the bench players, let alone a proverbial 26th man like Culberson.

Still, the organization obviously has a kinship with Culberson, who previously played for the Braves from 2018-20 and hails from nearby Rome, Georgia.  He’ll head to Triple-A Gwinnett for now, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see him back on the active roster sooner than later, even if trade deadline acquisition Nicky Lopez will now be Atlanta’s top backup infield option.

With at least one game played this year, Culberson has now been a part of 11 different Major League seasons since debuting with the Giants in 2012.  Culberson has hit .248/.294/.386 over 1312 career plate appearances, appearing in 586 games with the Giants, Rockies, Dodgers, Rangers, and Braves while getting significant playing time at every position except catcher and center field.

Nationals Release Jose Urena

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The Nationals released right-hander Jose Urena, according to his MLB.com profile page.  Urena has been part of the Nats organization since May, when he inked a minor league contract after being released by the Rockies.

Things haven’t gone smoothly for Urena at either the major or minor league levels in 2023.  He posted a 9.82 ERA with nine homers allowed over 18 1/3 innings for the Rockies, before being released at the end of April.  Urena followed up those struggles with a 6.31 ERA in 67 frames for the Nationals’ Triple-A affiliate, with 16 more long balls allowed.  A low-strikeout grounder specialist throughout his career, Urena has had some home-run issues in the past, but those problems have become a full-blown crisis this season.

Colorado still owes Urena the balance of his 2023 salary — roughly $950K left of a $3MM guarantee, and there is a $500K buyout of his 2024 club option.  The Nationals ended up not having to pay Urena even a prorated MLB minimum salary, as he never made Washington’s big league roster.

Rough 2023 numbers aside, there’s a chance Urena might still catch on elsewhere on a minors deal, as teams are always looking for starting pitching depth.  The right-hander could also fill a roster hole left as clubs call up pitching prospects to the Show.  However, with about a month left in the minor league season, teams also simply might prefer to give that remaining playing time to their future prospects, rather than a 31-year-old who hasn’t been effective at the MLB level (5.61 ERA in his last 324 innings) for a few years now.

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