Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Archives for 2023

White Sox Claim Yohan Ramirez From Pirates

By | at

The White Sox announced that they have claimed right-hander Yohan Ramirez off waivers from the Pirates. The righty will report to Triple-A Charlotte, per Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times. Chicago’s 40-man roster count is now at 39.

Ramirez, 28, has generally combined high strikeout and ground ball tallies in his career while also giving out his fair share of walks. In 34 1/3 innings for the Pirates this year, he had a 3.67 earned run average, striking out 20% of batters faced while walking 9% and keeping the ball on the ground at a 59% clip. In 22 1/3 innings at the Triple-A level, he had a 4.43 ERA, 33% strikeout rate, 12.4% walk rate and 54.2% ground ball rate.

The Bucs designated him for assignment last week to make room on the roster for their September call-ups and the White Sox have decided to grab him. The latter club had a couple of open roster spots anyway, having recently bumped out-of-options players Seby Zavala and Brent Honeywell Jr. off their roster. They have used one of those open roster spot to grab an intriguing arm to add to their depth.

Ramirez is in his final option season, meaning the Sox can stash him at Charlotte for the rest of the year while they get a look at him, but he will be out of options next year. If he continues to hold onto his roster spot, he can be retained for four more seasons beyond the current campaign.

Reds Select Kevin Herget, Designate Michael Mariot For Assignment

By | at

The Reds announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Kevin Herget, with fellow righty Michael Mariot designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

The Reds were already dealing with a number of significant injuries to their pitching staff this year and that problem has been compounded as COVID-19 has spread around the staff. Each of Hunter Greene, Ben Lively, Brandon Williamson and Fernando Cruz landed on the COVID-related IL in recent days, while pitchers like Nick Lodolo, Justin Dunn and many others were already out of action due to more typical injuries.

That’s led to the club churning pitchers through their roster on an almost daily basis as they try to scramble to cover for those absences. Mariot, 34, was just selected to the roster yesterday and tossed 2 2/3 innings, allowing just one earned run. He was one of seven pitchers the club used as they managed to turn a bullpen day into a 6-3 victory over the Mariners. But as the club continues to require fresh arms, he’s unfortunately been nudged off the roster.

That was Mariot’s first appearance in the big leagues since 2016. He spent most of the intervening time on minor league deals but also spent some time in the Mexican League and Chinese Professional Baseball in Taiwan. He started this year with the Cleburne Railroaders of the independent American Association of Professional Baseball, with a 5.06 ERA for that club but with 29 strikeouts and just five walks in 26 2/3 innings.

That performance got him a minor league deal with the Reds and he threw 37 2/3 Triple-A innings over nine appearances with a 6.93 ERA and 14.3% strikeout rate. He was selected to the roster earlier this year but was designated for assignment without getting into a game. He cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment, which led to yesterday’s return to a big league mound for the first time in seven years. He’ll be placed on waivers again in the coming days.

His roster spot will go to Herget. The 32-year-old signed a minor league deal with the Reds in the offseason and was selected in early April. He served as an up-and-down reliever for the first half of the season, posting a 5.73 ERA in 22 big league innings. He was designated for assignment in June before clearing waivers and accepting an outright assignment. He has an ERA of 5.01 at Triple-A on the whole this year, but has been better since losing his roster spot. He has a 2.51 ERA over his last 28 2/3 innings, with a 25.7% strikeout rate and 7.3% walk rate in that time. He still has a full slate of options and less than a year of service time, meaning the Reds could potentially use him as a depth option for the foreseeable future.

Braves Claim Andrew Velazquez, Transfer Yonny Chirinos To 60-Day IL

By | at

The Braves announced that they have claimed infielder Andrew Velazquez off waivers from the Angels and optioned him to Triple-A. To make room on their 40-man roster, they transferred right-hander Yonny Chirinos to the 60-day injured list.

Velazquez, 29, has been serving as a glove-first utility player in the big leagues dating back to his 2018 debut. He’s hit just .189/.244/.293 in 624 career plate appearances, including a line of .173/.264/.284 this year. But he’s played a considerable amount of time at shortstop, as well as lining up at second base, third base and in the outfield, generally getting good reviews for his glovework wherever he goes.

The Angels have fallen out of contention in recent weeks and have put many players on waivers, seeing Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo López, Matt Moore, Hunter Renfroe and Dominic Leone get claimed by other clubs last week. Those moves were primarily about clearing out salary and trying to get the club under the lowest threshold of the competitive balance tax.

It doesn’t appear that would be a factor with Velazquez, as he has yet to qualify for arbitration and is presumably making a salary near the league minimum. But he was recently optioned to Triple-A as the club is getting a look at rookie Kyren Paris at short, with the versatile Luis Rengifo also able to take over that position at times. Velazquez has surpassed three years of service this season and will qualify for arbitration for the first time this winter. He will also be out of options next year and need an active roster spot. Perhaps he has fallen out of the club’s long-term plans and they decided to see if anyone else wanted to give him a shot.

It seems Atlanta will be that club, adding Velazquez to their system for a bit of extra infield depth. Since he has been acquired after September 1, he won’t be eligible to play for them in the postseason, but could perhaps be of use if any of their regular players suffers an injury or simply needs a rest over the next few weeks. He can also be retained for three more seasons, though his impending arbitration and out-of-options status will make it harder for him to hold onto a roster spot going forward.

As for Chirinos, he was placed on the injured list August 20 with right elbow inflammation. It seems the club wasn’t expecting him back anytime soon, as he will now be ineligible to return until the middle of October. He could technically return to the club in the event of a deep postseason run, but it seems fair to deduce that his season is over.

It was a bit of a bounceback for him this year, as he hardly pitched over the 2020-2022 period due to various injuries but was able to throw 85 innings between Atlanta and Tampa this year, going from the former to the latter via a waiver claim. However, his 5.40 ERA and 14.4% strikeout rate were well below his marks of 3.85 and 21.5% in 2019. Like Velazquez, he is eligible for arbitration this winter and will be out of options next season.

Miguel Castro Has Reached Required Number Of Appearances For 2024 Option To Vest

By | at

Diamondbacks righty Miguel Castro signed a one-year deal that guaranteed him $3.25MM but also came with various incentives and a vesting option for the 2024 season. That $5MM salary was contingent on Castro reaching 60 appearances and passing an end-of-season physical, the former of which Castro quietly checked off late last month. The right-hander is now up to 65 appearances on the year, meaning that so long as he’s healthy for that end-of-year physical, he’ll be back in the fold for the D-backs next year at that $5MM price point. He’s also maxed out his appearance-based incentives for the 2023 season, adding an additional $900K to this year’s salary.

Already in his ninth Major League season despite not yet celebrating his 29th birthday, Castro was a solid member of the Arizona bullpen for the bulk of the year before a recent pair of nightmare outings sent his ERA north of 5.00. From Opening Day through Aug. 14, Castro logged a 3.86 ERA — albeit with worse-than-average strikeout, walk and ground-ball rates (20.9%, 10.2%, 41%, respectively). Castro was rocked for four earned runs in each of his next two appearances and tagged for three runs less than two weeks later; more than one-third of the runs he’s yielded this season came in a span of just 10 days.

It’s an awful stretch, but Castro’s season otherwise more or less lines up with the broader track record he put together from 2017-22: 350 innings, 3.93 ERA, 20.6% strikeout rate, 12.5% walk rate, 49.6% ground-ball rate. Both his ground-ball rate and average sinker velocity are down this season — he’s still averaging a hearty 96.8 mph on that two-seamer — but Castro is also walking batters at his lowest clip of any full big league season (9.8%).

Assuming Castro indeed passes his physical, he’ll return to a D-backs relief corps that’ll be fronted by deadline pickup Paul Sewald. Righty Kevin Ginkel and lefty Kyle Nelson have both cemented their places in the Arizona ’pen as well, and veteran Scott McGough is slated to return for the second season of his two-year deal. (Like Castro, McGough got out to a strong start but had his ERA blown up by a rough patch this summer.) Newcomer Ryan Thompson will also be looking to earn a role for the ’24 bullpen over the final few weeks of the current season.

If the D-backs want to go outside the organization to add to that group, there ought to be ample funds available to do so. Even after accounting for Castro’s $5MM salary next year, Arizona has just shy of $53MM on the books, per Roster Resource. That doesn’t include arbitration raises to notable names like Christian Walker, Zac Gallen, Sewald and Ginkel. Still, that bunch of raises will likely leave the Diamondbacks south of $90MM in guarantees, which is well shy of both this year’s $123MM payroll and their franchise-record $132MM payroll from the 2018 season.

As such, general manager Mike Hazen and his staff should have some money to work with this offseason — particularly with the organization’s regrettable commitment to Madison Bumgarner set to expire after the 2024 campaign. The D-backs owe Bumgarner $14MM for the 2024 season but are off the hook beginning in 2025. They have just $21MM on the books in 2025: a $5MM salary for Corbin Carroll and a $16MM salary for Ketel Marte.

Cardinals Designate Taylor Motter For Assignment

By and | at

9:51am: The Cardinals have now formally announced the moves, specifying that Romero is hitting the injured list due to patellar tendinitis in his left knee.

9:25am: The Cardinals have designated infielder Taylor Motter for assignment, clearing an active roster spot for the recall of José Fermín from Triple-A Memphis. St. Louis also reinstated Matthew Liberatore from the 15-day injured list while placing JoJo Romero on the 15-day IL, retroactive to September 2. The team has yet to formally announce the moves via press release, but each is reflected on their transaction log at MLB.com. The Cards’ 40-man count drops to 39.

Motter has had three separate stints on the St. Louis roster. The 33-year-old has played in 29 games, his biggest MLB workload since 2017. Motter hasn’t produced much offensively, hitting .171/.232/.211 through 82 trips to the plate. As has been the case throughout his career, the bigger appeal has been in his defensive flexibility. Motter has gotten multiple starts at each of second base, third base and shortstop.

The Cards have waived him twice before. He’s gone unclaimed both times. If that’s the case yet again, he’d have the right to elect free agency. Motter would qualify for minor league free agency at the start of the offseason if he’s not on St. Louis’ major league roster in either case, so he could look to explore other opportunities a few weeks early.

Liberatore was only sidelined for a couple weeks by back tightness. The former first-round pick and top prospect is getting consistent rotation run as the Cards evaluate potential depth options for next year’s starting staff. Despite a slight velocity uptick and decent numbers in Triple-A, Liberatore has gotten hit hard in 50 MLB innings this season. He’s allowing 6.12 earned runs per nine with a well below-average 15.1% strikeout rate.

Romero has pitched his way into key innings for a St. Louis bullpen that subtracted a couple veterans at the deadline. While the 26-year-old has a solid but unspectacular 3.68 ERA over 36 2/3 frames, that run prevention mark belies excellent underlying numbers. Romero has fanned 28.6% of batters faced while generating grounders on nearly three-fifths of batted balls he allows. In the process, he has likely staked a claim to a high-leverage role in the 2024 relief corps.

As for the open spot on the 40-man roster, it could be ticketed for Rule 5 pick Wilking Rodriguez, who has missed the entire season thus far after undergoing shoulder surgery in early May. Rodriguez was given a timetable of four to six weeks to recover from that operation, and Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports that the Cards are hopeful of taking a look at him down the stretch in 2023. He’s currently on the 60-day injured list but is on a minor league rehab stint in Triple-A Memphis, where he’s pitched 1 2/3 innings with four strikeouts, no walks and just one unearned run allowed.

Even if Rodriguez is activated and spends the final few weeks of the season on the Major League roster, he won’t meet the requirements to shed his Rule 5 status. A player needs to spend at least 90 days on the active roster during his Rule 5 season to fulfill those requirements, so Rodriguez’s Rule 5 designation would carry over into the 2024 season until he reaches that mark. As it stands, he’s hardly a sure bet to remain on the 40-man roster throughout the offseason, but a strong showing in the final three to four weeks could go a long way in changing that perception.

The Opener: Ohtani, Eovaldi, MLBTR Chat

By | at

We’ve already had one morning roster move, and here are three additional things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. Ohtani to undergo testing:

On the heels of the two-way superstar’s agent discussing his client’s UCL injury with reporters, Shohei Ohtani exited yesterday’s game due to oblique discomfort. Manager Phil Nevin described Ohtani as “pretty sore” (as relayed by MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger) and while Sam Blum of The Athletic notes that the club did some preliminary testing last night, Nevin didn’t have enough information to share much of anything else.

With Ohtani already done pitching for the year and his agent indicating that some sort of elbow surgery is inevitable for him, even a relatively mild oblique strain could potentially see Ohtani’s season come to an end with so little time on the calendar remaining and an impending surgery looming. Even if Ohtani has suited up for the final time this season, he’s a strong candidate for the AL MVP award; in 599 trips to the plate this season, he’s slashed an incredible .304/.412/.654 — all while also posting a 3.14 ERA and 31.5% strikeout rate in 132 innings while on the mound.

2. Eovaldi to return:

Rangers right-hander Nathan Eovaldi is set to take the mound in Arlington for this evening’s game against the Astros. It will be Eovaldi’s first appearance in the big leagues since he went on the injured list with a forearm strain shortly after the All-Star break. The 33-year-old veteran’s return figures to be a massive boost to the Texas rotation, which added both lefty Jordan Montgomery and veteran ace Max Scherzer in his absence. In 19 starts prior to his injury this season, Eovaldi pitched like an ace in his own right, with a 2.69 ERA and 3.23 FIP in 123 2/3 innings of work. Eovaldi’s return could indicate the end of either right-hander Dane Dunning’s or lefty Andrew Heaney’s time in the rotation, though it’s also possible the Rangers could opt for a six-man rotation down the stretch in hopes of preserving the health of their veteran arms for a hopeful postseason run. Eovaldi himself could be on a pitch count early on; he’s been throwing bullpen sessions but is returning from a roughly six-week absence without making a minor league rehab appearance.

3. MLBTR Chat:

The end of the season is fast approaching, and the league’s 30 clubs are all pushing full steam ahead into the stretch run. While some teams are already looking ahead to 2024, many are focused on the current pennant chase, with more than half the league still boasting 20% or higher playoff odds, per Fangraphs. If you’re curious how your team will hold up over the season’s final month or what their plan for the future is, MLBTR’s Steve Adams is hosting a live chat with readers at 1pm CT today. You can click here to ask a question in advance, join in live once the chat begins, or read the transcript once the chat is complete.

Balelo: “Inevitable” That Ohtani Will Undergo Some Kind Of Elbow Procedure

By | at

Two weeks ago, the Angels announced that Shohei Ohtani was done pitching for the season after imaging revealed a tear in the UCL of his throwing elbow. Ohtani has yet to address that injury with that media, but his agent, CAA’s Nez Balelo, met with reporters this evening.

Balelo called it “inevitable” that Ohtani will need to undergo some type of procedure (relayed by Dylan Hernández of the Los Angeles Times). Whether that’ll be a full Tommy John surgery or something less invasive (e.g. an internal brace repair) is still to be determined.

According to Balelo, the tear is in a different area than the injury that necessitated Ohtani’s October 2018 Tommy John surgery. He called it a “best case scenario” given the situation (via Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times). Balelo made clear that Ohtani plans to be in the lineup as a designated hitter next season. He stressed that “there’s not a question in (Ohtani’s) mind” he’ll eventually be able to return to pitching as well, though that timetable remains uncertain pending their decision on the specific treatment necessary (relayed by Alden González of ESPN).

Shortly after the UCL tear was discovered, Halos’ general manager Perry Minasian told reporters that Ohtani and CAA declined the team’s offer to undergo imaging after the two-way star reported finger cramping in early August. While that could be interpreted as a shot at Ohtani or his representation, Balelo said they had no issue with the Angels going public with that information (via Sam Blum of the Athletic). He confirmed that Ohtani declined imaging at the time.

Ohtani has continued hitting since the injury, raking at a .300/.500/.500 clip in 43 plate appearances. It seems he’ll continue as the DH, at least until the plan to address his elbow is finalized. The AL MVP favorite is up to an astounding .304/.412/.654 batting line and is tied with Matt Olson for the major league lead with 44 home runs.

Even with uncertainty about his short-term outlook on the mound, Ohtani stands as the clear top player in the upcoming free agent class. If he prioritizes the overall guarantee, the 29-year-old seems likely to eclipse the $360MM record which Aaron Judge established last winter. Teams will obviously closely monitor his arm health to assess the likelihood he’ll be able to recapture his top-of-the-rotation form whenever he’s healthy enough to again begin throwing.

Reds Outright Alan Busenitz

By | at

The Reds have sent reliever Alan Busenitz outright to Triple-A Louisville, according to the transaction tracker at MLB.com. He was designated for assignment on Friday when Cincinnati activated Tejay Antone from the injured list.

Busenitz has gotten into five games for the Reds this year. He has tossed five innings of two-run ball with three strikeouts and one unintentional walk. That brief look marked Busneitz’s first MLB action in five years. The right-hander worked to a 4.58 ERA through 57 innings for the 2017-18 Twins. Beginning in 2019, he pitched in Japan with the Rakuten Golden Eagles, posting a 2.83 ERA through 155 2/3 NPB innings.

The Reds brought Busenitz back to the affiliated ranks this season on a minor league pact. He has spent the bulk of the year in Louisville, throwing 43 2/3 innings over 40 outings. He owns a 4.53 ERA with a below-average 20.9% strikeout percentage and elevated 10.7% walk rate for the Bats.

Busenitz will try to pitch his way back into consideration for Cincinnati down the stretch. He’ll be a minor league free agent this offseason if the Reds don’t add him back onto the 40-man roster.

Chris Paddack Expected To Begin Rehab Assignment This Week

By | at

Twins right-hander Chris Paddack is in line to begin a rehab stint on Wednesday, tweets Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com. He’ll go three innings in his first game action in 16 months.

Paddack underwent the second Tommy John surgery of his career last May. He began working off a mound 13 months later and has gradually built his throwing program since that point. The Twins have maintained throughout that process that they hoped to get him back for the stretch run.

Last week, Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribune wrote that Paddack was targeting a bullpen return. That’s not surprising, as a relief role would reduce the amount of time Paddack needs to spend rehabbing as he builds toward a less demanding job. It’s also arguably more beneficial for the Twins generally. Minnesota’s rotation has been among the league’s best, while the bullpen is roughly league average.

Acquired from the Padres on Opening Day 2022, Paddack was limited to five starts during his first season with Minnesota. He has 66 MLB appearances (65 starts) over parts of four campaigns, pitching to a 4.20 ERA through 330 1/3 innings. His production dipped over his three years in San Diego, but he’d run an impressive 20:2 strikeout-to-walk ratio in his limited time with the Twins before the elbow procedure.

In other injury news, manager Rocco Baldelli told reporters that Byron Buxton was staying with the team for treatment on his right knee (relayed by Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press). Buxton had started a rehab stint last Wednesday as he works back from a hamstring strain. Knee concerns have bothered him all year, with the Twins keeping him at designated hitter as a result.

Buxton saw his first game action in center field during a brief rehab stint with Triple-A St. Paul before reporting the renewed knee soreness. Baldelli left open the possibility of again trying Buxton in center field once he’s ready to get back to game action.

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top