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Rockies Designate Jorge Alfaro For Assignment, Activate Kris Bryant

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The Rockies announced they have designated catcher Jorge Alfaro for assignment. The move clears a spot on the active and 40-man rosters for left-hander Ty Blach, who was selected onto the MLB club. Colorado also placed reliever Matt Carasiti on the 15-day injured list due to inflammation in his throwing shoulder and reinstated Kris Bryant from the 10-day IL.

Alfaro spent a little over two weeks on the Colorado roster. The Rockies signed the veteran backstop to a minor league deal on June 10 and selected his contract five days later. Colorado has run a three-catcher system since then, keeping Austin Wynns and Alfaro on the bench behind Elias Díaz. Alfaro picked up 32 plate appearances, slumping to a .161/.188/.387 line with 12 strikeouts and zero walks.

Colorado will stick with Díaz and Wynns as the MLB tandem. Brian Serven is also on the 40-man roster and on optional assignment to Triple-A Albuquerque. Colorado will trade Alfaro or put him on waivers within the next week. If he clears waivers, he’ll have the ability to head back to free agency based on his MLB service time.

That seems the likeliest outcome. Alfaro hasn’t had much major league success of late, hitting .239/.279/.360 with a 34.2% strikeout rate through 717 plate appearances since the start of 2020. The Colombian-born backstop has had an excellent season in Triple-A, though, putting up a .323/.366/.524 line between the Red Sox’s and Rockies’ top affiliates.

Bryant returns to the MLB roster, which the club had suggested yesterday. The former MVP is hitting second and back in right field tonight against Detroit righty Michael Lorenzen. He missed a month with a left heel contusion, the second straight season he’s been bothered by a foot issue. Bryant is hitting .263/.346/.374 in his second season in Denver.

Blach returns to the big leagues two months after clearing waivers. The 32-year-old made six relief appearances in April, allowing 13 runs in 11 innings. He has pitched reasonably well in Albuquerque, working to a 4.40 ERA over 30 2/3 innings in an extraordinarily tough environment for pitchers. Blach doesn’t throw hard or miss many bats; he’s a control specialist who induced grounders at a quality 54.6% clip for the Isotopes this season. He’ll offer skipper Bud Black a long relief option for the middle innings.

Angels To Select Victor Mederos

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The Angels are promoting Victor Mederos to the majors, reports Robert Murray of FanSided (on Twitter). The right-hander is not on the 40-man roster, so the Halos will have to officially select his contract and make corresponding active and 40-man roster transactions.

It’s another bold promotion for the Angels. The Halos haven’t been afraid to aggressively call on prospects they feel are ready for an MLB look. They made Chase Silseth the first player from the 2021 draft to reach the big leagues last May. Infielder Zach Neto earned the 2022 honors when the Angels called him up this April; reliever Ben Joyce followed a month thereafter. Mederos joins his now-teammates as the only players from last year’s draft to yet get to the bigs.

Mederos was a sixth-round pick out of Oklahoma State. He’d been a high-profile high school pitcher who began his college days at Miami. He never found consistent success at the amateur level, dropping him into the middle rounds on draft day. Baseball America nevertheless ranked him 29th among Anaheim prospects over the offseason, praising his mid-90s fastball and potential plus slider.

The 22-year-old has spent this season at Double-A Rocket City. He’s made 12 starts, allowing a 5.98 ERA across 55 2/3 innings. While he has allowed over two homers per nine innings and is walking 10% of opponents, he’s striking hitters out at a strong 28.3% clip. The front office evidently feels his arsenal will play against MLB hitters in spite of the middling minor league numbers.

Mederos has started all 18 of his professional appearances. Prospect evaluators have pointed to a likely bullpen future because of spotty command. It seems likely he’ll break in at the MLB level as a multi-inning reliever. The Angels’ bullpen ranks eighth in the majors with a 3.69 ERA.

Hyun Jin Ryu To Begin Rehab Assignment

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Blue Jays left-hander Hyun Jin Ryu will begin a rehab assignment on July 4, reports Scott Mitchell of TSN. Mitchell adds that Ryu is apparently in great shape, having lost about 30 pounds.

The lefty underwent Tommy John surgery in June of last year and has long maintained he’s targeting a return in July of this year. He’ll likely need a few weeks of rehab to build back up to a starter’s workload but the July target still seems within reach. Rehab assignments for pitchers come with a 30-day maximum length.

The return of Ryu figures to be a key storyline for the Jays in the coming weeks. General manager Ross Atkins spoke this week about how the rotation was an “obvious area” for the club to address at the upcoming deadline but that the club would “balance” that against the status of Ryu and Alek Manoah.

Manoah is in a very different situation to Ryu, as he doesn’t have an injury but merely suffered immense struggles to start the season. After posting a 2.24 ERA last year and finishing third in Cy Young voting, he was shelled for a disastrous 6.36 ERA through 13 starts this year and optioned down to the lower levels of the Jays’ system. He was recently tagged for 11 earned runs in 2 2/3 innings in a Complex League start.

With Manoah getting bumped from the rotation, the Jays are down to four regular starters in Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt, José Berríos and Yusei Kikuchi. Thankfully, all four of those hurlers have been pitching well to varying degrees, with Bassitt’s 4.06 ERA the highest of the bunch, and the club has been able to buttress that group with the occasional bullpen game featuring Bowden Francis and Trevor Richards in bulk roles.

That group has helped the club stay afloat in the tight American League race, as their 45-37 record gives them possession of the final Wild Card spot for the moment. However, they are only half a game up on the Astros with the Angels and other clubs not too far behind. Going into the postseason run with a shorthanded rotation would obviously be less than ideal.

If Ryu can get back into peak form, that would be a tremendous boost for the Jays, but that’s not a guarantee for a 36-year-old coming off a long layoff. He signed a four-year, $80MM deal with the Jays after 2019 and was brilliant in the first season. He posted a 2.69 ERA in the shortened 2020 season and finished third in Cy Young voting that year. His ERA climbed to 4.37 the year after, but still had strong peripherals and a 4.02 FIP. His ERA climbed even further to 5.67 last year before the surgery, but that was in just seven starts and his diminished velocity suggests the elbow may have already been hampering him.

The trade deadline is on August 1 this year, giving the Jays roughly a month to evaluate their overall rotation picture and decide how aggressively to pursue starting pitching upgrades. That will make the progress of Ryu and Manoah an interesting storyline to watch in the weeks to come. It will also be important for Ryu from a personal perspective, as he’s now in the final season of his contract and slated to return to the open market in a few months.

NL Central Notes: Lodolo, Lively, Holderman

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Reds left-hander Nick Lodolo got some good news, per Charlie Goldsmith of the Cincinnati Enquirer. The southpaw has been in a walking boot due to a tibia stress reaction in his left leg but the boot is now off and he’s been cleared to ramp up.

That’s not to say that he’s close to a return, as Goldsmith says Lodolo is on a similar timeline to righty Hunter Greene, who isn’t expected back until August. But it’s at least a good sign that things are progressing.

The Reds have surged to the top of the National League Central, currently tied with the Brewers at 43-38. But that’s mostly been fueled by their offense and in spite of a rickety rotation. Lodolo and Greene are two of six starters currently on the injured list, which has obviously had a negative effect on the results. The Reds’ starters have a collective 5.91 ERA this year, better than just the Athletics and Rockies.

Lodolo struggled to a 6.29 ERA this year before landing on the IL but had a much stronger 3.66 mark in his debut last year. Getting him and Greene healthy could give the club a huge boost for the stretch run as they try to take advantage of their surprising return to contention.

Some other notes from around the division…

  • Sticking with the Reds, their rotation could get another reinforcement, even earlier than the returns of Lodolo and Greene. Goldsmith relays that right-hander Ben Lively could be back before the All-Star break to make a start. The right-hander returned to the majors this year after a few years in Korea and has been doing well. He posted a 4.11 ERA through 46 innings before landing on the IL due to a right pectoral muscle strain. He struck out 23.1% of opponents against a 6.7% walk rate while getting grounders at a 38.8% clip. The All-Star break is just over a week away, so it seems he’ll be able to come back shortly and get at least one more outing under his belt prior to the layoff. The club’s rotation currently consists of Graham Ashcraft, Levi Stoudt, Brandon Williamson, Andrew Abbott and Luke Weaver but Abbott is the only one out of those with an ERA below 5.82.
  • The Pirates got an important arm back today, with right-hander Colin Holderman reinstated from the injured list. He missed the past two weeks with right wrist inflammation. Fellow righty Cody Bolton was optioned in a corresponding move. Holderman has emerged as a key piece of the club’s bullpen, posting a 4.01 ERA over 26 appearances this year. He’s struck out 25.7% of hitters while walking just 6.4% of them and getting grounders at a 48.6% clip. He’s lived up to his name by securing 12 holds and one save, indicating he’s moved up into higher leverage work. The Bucs have alternated hot and cold all year and are currently riding a three-game win streak to get their record to 38-42. Despite that subpar mark, they’re only 4.5 games off the lead with no one running away with the division. Each game will take on magnified importance with the trade deadline now just a month away and having Holderman back is a nice little boost for Pittsburgh.

Nationals Promote Jose A. Ferrer For Major League Debut

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June 30: The Nationals have made this official, announcing the recall of Ferrer. Lefty Patrick Corbin was placed on the bereavement list in a corresponding move.

June 29: The Nationals are going to promote left-handed pitcher Jose A. Ferrer, reports Héctor Gómez of Z101 Digital. Ferrer, who will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game, is already on the 40-man roster but will require a corresponding move to get on the active roster. That move may not come until tomorrow because the Nats are off today.

Ferrer, 23, was signed by the Nats out of the Dominican Republic for $100K back in 2017. The reliever got some professional experience in Rookie ball in the next couple of years, though the minor leagues were then canceled by the pandemic in 2020. In 2021, he tossed 35 2/3 innings in the Complex League with a 2.78 ERA.

2022 proved to be a big breakout year for him, as he finally made it to full-season ball. He began the year in Single-A and eventually moved up to High-A and Double-A. He threw 65 1/3 innings between those three levels with a combined 2.48 ERA. He struck out 30.5% of opponents while walking just 4.3%. He was selected to appear in the Futures Game along the way.

The Nationals added him to their 40-man roster in November to prevent him from being selected in the Rule 5 draft. He’s spent all of this year in Triple-A thus far, logging 40 innings over 34 appearances. He has a 3.83 ERA but his peripherals have dipped since last year. He’s struck out just 18.4% of opponents while walking 11.2%, though he’s continued to get grounders on roughly half of the balls in play he’s allowed. Ferrer was recently ranked the club’s #18 prospect at Baseball America, #28 at FanGraphs and got the #20 spot from Keith Law of The Athletic coming into the year.

The Nats haven’t had much left-handed relief to speak of this season. The only southpaws to pitch out of the club’s bullpen this year have been Anthony Banda and Joe La Sorsa. Banda posted a 6.43 ERA over seven innings before getting outrighted off the roster. La Sorsa was just claimed off waivers from the Rays three weeks back and was in the minors on optional assignment until a week ago. That should give Ferrer an opening to establish himself in the club’s bullpen mix going forward.

Angels Outright Kevin Padlo

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The Angels have sent infielder Kevin Padlo outright to Triple-A Salt Lake, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He had been designated for assignment a week ago in order to make room on the roster for Mike Moustakas.

Padlo, 26, signed a minor league deal with the Halos this winter. He hit .266/.383/.532 through 149 plate appearances in the minors for a 116 wRC+. That showing got him added to the club’s roster just over a week ago as they were dealing with injuries to Gio Urshela, Zach Neto and Anthony Rendon. With Padlo’s ability to play the three non-shortstop infield positions, he could have provided them with valuable versatility in covering for those injuries.

However, the Angels quickly pivoted to players with more major league experience, acquiring both Moustakas and Eduardo Escobar in quick succession. Padlo was bumped off the roster less than a week after being selected, garnering just eight plate appearances in three games.

That brings his total major league experience to 26 games, as he also got brief looks in the past two years with the Rays, Mariners, Giants and Pirates. He’s hit just .111/.158/.167 in those sporadic stints in the big leagues but has continually drawn interest based on his versatility and minor league track record. He has a combined .250/.340/.477 line in Triple-A over four different seasons.

The fact that he has been outrighted means that he cleared waivers. As a player with a previous career outright, he has the right to reject this assignment and elect free agency, though it’s not yet clear whether he has chosen to do so.

Follow NBA Free Agency At Hoops Rumors

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NBA free agency kicks off this evening at 5:o0 p.m. CT, and our sister site Hoops Rumors (@HoopsRumors on Twitter) has all the latest news, rumors and transactions for each of the league’s 30 teams.

We’ve already seen quite a bit of trade activity in the weeks leading up to free agency, including blockbuster deals involving former All-Stars like Chris Paul, Bradley Beal and Kristaps Porzingis, as well as the 2021/22 Defensive Player of the Year, Marcus Smart. Young veterans on pricey multiyear contracts (Jordan Poole, John Collins) have also changed teams.

There were several surprises yesterday, including 10-time All-Star and former league MVP James Harden exercising his $35.6MM player option with the Sixers. However, instead of staying with Philadelphia, he’s working alongside the club to find a new team via trade, which would mark his fourth team in four years.

While this free agent class may not have as much top-end talent as some previous years, it’s deep with quality players and features several highly accomplished veterans, including Kyrie Irving, Draymond Green, Khris Middleton and Fred VanVleet, among others. One of the hot names on the market is Nuggets guard/forward Bruce Brown, who helped Denver win its first championship earlier this month.

For the latest updates on those stories and more, check out Hoops Rumors today! There will be a whirlwind of activity over the next couple of weeks as teams reshape their rosters for next season, and we’ll be covering it all. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter – @HoopsRumors.

Braves Select Charlie Culberson

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The Braves announced that they have recalled right-hander Michael Soroka to start tonight’s game. This will be his first start in front of Atlanta fans since 2019, with the 2020 season being played in empty stadiums because of the pandemic. He then missed 2021 and 2022 entirely before making two road starts this year.

His roster spot was already opened by the club optioning left-hander Jared Shuster to Triple-A yesterday. Additionally, they selected infielder Charlie Culberson to the roster, optioning catcher Chadwick Tromp to Triple-A in a corresponding move. To open a 40-man roster spot for Culberson, left-hander Dylan Lee was transferred to the 60-day injured list.

It’s been a strange season for Culberson, who signed a minor league deal with Atlanta in March. He was selected to the big league roster in mid-May and spent a month on the bench without getting into a single game. He was then designated for assignment, became a free agent and re-signed with the club on another minor league deal. He’s now back on the roster less than two weeks after being designated for assignment.

It seems he’s mostly around in a “break glass in case of emergency” type of role. He’s played every infield position and the outfield corners in his career, as well as a few mop-up pitching appearances. That means he could be called upon when some other player suffers an injury or needs time off. That didn’t happen in the month that he was on the roster but could theoretically happen at any point going forward. Given his versatility, he’s a good fit for such a role. He’s hit .247/.292/.385 in his career but slashed just .204/.234/.255 in Triple-A this year before getting called up.

As for Lee, he’s been on the injured list since mid-May due to shoulder inflammation. He’ll now be ineligible to return until 60 days from that initial IL placement, which would be mid-July. He’s recently been throwing bullpen sessions but has yet to embark on a rehab assignment. Since he’s probably a few weeks away from a return anyway, this transaction seems to be a mere formality that doesn’t indicate any sort of setback.

Soroka made two starts for the big league club earlier this year but allowed nine earned runs in 9 2/3 innings. He’s been much better in the minors, with a 3.31 ERA in 11 Triple-A starts this year. He’s probably not a long-term solution in the rotation since he hardly pitched at all in the 2020-2022 period due to injuries and has already tallied 64 innings this year. The club has an off-day next week and the All-Star break is the week after that.

Spencer Strider, Charlie Morton and Bryce Elder have three rotation spots spoken for but the club has rotated various pitchers through the other two with Max Fried and Kyle Wright on the injured list. Soroka, Shuster, Kolby Allard, AJ Smith-Shawver and Dylan Dodd have all received starts this year and each has options. That will allow the club to continually weave them on and off the big league club as they see fit until they get their injured guys back or perhaps make a move at the upcoming deadline.

Astros Open To Trading Outfielder

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The upcoming trade deadline seems slated to be different than those of the past. Due to the expanded playoffs and weak Central divisions, there’s a small number of teams that are truly out of contention and in traditional seller position. That could lead to more trades with contenders on both ends and the Astros are exploring that possibility, looking to move an outfielder to help out elsewhere, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.

“We’re exploring trading major-league player for major-league player with teams that are contending that make sense,” general manager Dana Brown tells Rosenthal. “We have a lot of outfielders right now. If we could move an outfield piece for something that could fill another need, we probably would be interested in doing that. Player for player? Yeah. We have to get creative to open up the market. We’re definitely exploring that.”

The 2023 Astros aren’t quite as dominant as in previous seasons but they are still firmly in the postseason chase. Their 44-37 record has them just half a game behind the Blue Jays for the final Wild Card spot and Brown is adamant that they won’t be stripping the roster down to the studs. “I can’t see any scenario where we sell,” he says.

However, it does seem as though the club is willing to consider subtracting one of its outfielders in order to address other needs. Brown has been fairly open in recent weeks about how the club would ideally like to add a versatile left-handed bat or perhaps some pitching help. Traditionally, they might have been able to achieve those goals by dealing prospects. But since their theoretical trading partners could be contenders this year, the Astros may have to move a big leaguer.

With Michael Brantley and Yordan Alvarez on the injured list, the club has been using an outfield mix of Kyle Tucker, Chas McCormick, Jake Meyers and Corey Julks. With Brantley and Alvarez working their way back to health, it’s possible that someone in that group gets squeezed off the roster and onto the trade block.

Tucker is one of the best players in the league and wouldn’t be going anywhere, especially because he’s the only left-handed hitter in the regular lineup. Since Brown has been quite open about how the club would love to get more left-handed, it would make more sense to consider moving one of the other three, who are each right-handed.

McCormick, 28, debuted with the club in 2021 and has appeared in 270 major league games so far. He’s struck out 28.5% of his plate appearances but also walked at a 9.6% rate and hit 35 home runs. His .249/.327/.428 batting line amounts to a wRC+ of 112, indicating he’s been 12% above league average. He’s also stolen 15 bases and received positive grades for his glovework. He’s accrued 14 Defensive Runs Saved in his career, 21 Outs Above Average and a 7.2 mark from Ultimate Zone Rating. He’s played all three outfield spots but most of his work has been in center.

Competent center fielders are always in demand and McCormick’s above-average offense would only enhance his appeal. He’s also cheap, coming into this season with exactly two years of service time. He will get to the three-year mark at season’s end and have three years of arbitration control beyond this campaign. Rosenthal reports that the Yankees had previous interest in him but never got close to a deal.

Meyers, 27, also debuted in 2021 but hasn’t been able to hit at McCormick’s level. Meyers has a 29.8% strikeout rate and 7.2% walk rate, with his .237/.305/.380 batting line amounting to a wRC+ of just 92. But like McCormick, his outfield defense is graded well, primarily in center field. Overall, he’s racked up 12 DRS, 18 OAA and a 6.4 UZR. He’ll finish this year with less than three years of service time, giving him an extra year before he reaches arbitration and three more seasons of control beyond that.

Julks, 27, just debuted this year, cracking the Opening Day roster. He’s hit .265/.307/.398 through his first 225 plate appearances for a wRC+ of 95. He’s only played the corners but has been considered slightly above average there. He’s also stolen 12 bases already this year. Since he just debuted, he isn’t slated for arbitration until after 2025 or free agency until after 2028.

These players will each have varying degrees of interest depending on which club the Astros are talking to. Lining up a trade of this nature may be challenging because it will require the other team to have an outfield need but also an ability to part with something else that Houston wants. That might be a tricky tightrope to walk but it seems as though just about every contending club might have to give it a try this year.

The Opener: Marlins/Braves, Carroll, Bryant

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As we move into July this weekend, three stories to watch around the game:

1. NL East showdown:

The Marlins finished off a three-game sweep of the Red Sox yesterday, riding 6 1/3 scoreless innings from Jesús Luzardo to an eventual 2-0 victory. The Fish have taken five straight to move a season-high 14 games above .500. They remain in possession of the top Wild Card spot in the National League and four games clear of the Phillies, the closest non-playoff team.

Miami carries that strong form to Atlanta, where they’ll take on a Braves club riding a five-game win streak of their own. Atlanta is six games up on the Marlins and a strong favorite to take the NL East. Miami hasn’t shown any signs of fading yet, though, setting the stage for an interesting three-game set. Miami will turn to Bryan Hoeing in game one; Atlanta hasn’t yet announced a starter but is generally expected to recall Mike Soroka after optioning Jared Shuster to Triple-A.

2. Carroll day-to-day:

D-Backs outfielder Corbin Carroll left yesterday’s loss to the Rays due to soreness in his right shoulder. The NL Rookie of the Year frontrunner lost most of the 2021 minor league season after undergoing surgery on the same shoulder. Testing postgame fortunately did not reveal any structural or strength issues and Carroll is listed as day-to-day (link via Steve Gilbert of MLB.com). The first-time All-Star acknowledged the soreness initially “shook (him) up pretty good,” so the early results are certainly a relief. Carroll is already among the best players in the league, hitting .290/.366/.559 with 17 home runs as a 22-year-old.

3. Bryant to return?

The Rockies have been without Kris Bryant since May 30 due a left heel contusion. Plantar fasciitis in the same foot had wrecked the majority of his first season in Colorado. It seems he’s on the verge of a return, as manager Bud Black told reporters he was likely to be reinstated from the 10-day injured list for this weekend’s series against the Tigers (relayed by Patrick Lyons of DNVR). The former MVP only needed one rehab outing with Triple-A Albuquerque before feeling equipped to jump back into MLB action. He’s hitting .263/.346/.374 over 50 games on the year.

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