Reds Notes: Friedl, Rotation, Moll
Reds fans received some disappointing news regarding the status of center fielder TJ Friedl yesterday, as Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer relayed yesterday that the 28-year-old will need another 7-10 days of light activities before beginning to ramp up his rehab of a fractured wrist suffered during Spring Training last month.
No timetable for Friedl’s return to action was announced at the time of his injury, though Wittenmyer indicates that Friedl was hoping to have been cleared for more activity at this point in the recovery process. Friedl is joined on the injured list by infielder Matt McLain, who is expected to miss much of the 2024 season after undergoing shoulder surgery in late March. Despite the lack of a clear timeline for Friedl’s return to action, it appears the club is hopeful he’ll be able to return sooner rather than later, as he has not yet been placed on the 60-day IL alongside McLain.
The losses of Friedl and McLain to open the season, along with Noelvi Marte‘s absence due to an 80-game suspension following a positive PED test, have tested Cincinnati’s once-impressive positional depth early in the 2024 campaign. Those losses have left the Reds with a somewhat middling offense so far this season, as their 102 wRC+ entering play today ranked middle-of-the-pack in both the majors (14th) and the NL (7th). While youngsters like Elly De La Cruz and Spencer Steer have gotten off to phenomenal starts this season, other key hitters such as Jeimer Candelario and Christian Encarnacion-Strand have struggled badly to this point in the young 2024 season.
That uneven offense has thrust the club’s rotation mix into the spotlight. The club’s 4.11 starting ERA through their first 13 games this season is also middle of the pack, but the rotation corps received a major reinforcement today when the club announced that southpaw Nick Lodolo had been activated from the injured list to start this afternoon’s game against the White Sox. Once a consensus top-40 prospect in the sport, the 26-year-old Lodolo delivered an excellent rookie season in 2022 but was limited to just 34 1/3 innings of 6.29 ERA baseball last year amid injury issues.
Fortunately for the Reds, it appears the left-hander is once again healthy as he dominated the White Sox to the tune of 5 2/3 scoreless innings where he allowed just one hit and one walk while racking up ten strikeouts. If Lodolo can continue to provide quality production for Cincinnati going forward, he’d join Frankie Montas and Andrew Abbott at the front of the club’s starting rotation. Right-handers Hunter Greene, Graham Ashcraft, and Nick Martinez are also in the club’s rotation mix for the time being, though it’s possible that one of that group could be pushed to the bullpen in the near future by Lodolo’s return. Martinez appears to be the most likely candidate for such a role, given his lengthy track record as a reliever and difficult start to the 2024 campaign.
That group of six appear to be unlikely to get further reinforcements in the near future, as club manager David Bell told reporters (including Charlie Goldsmith of the Cincinnati Enquirer) earlier this week that left-hander Brandon Williamson‘s target date for return isn’t until late next month. Williamson is currently nursing a shoulder strain but figures to be a quality depth option for the Cincinnati rotation once healthy after he pitched to a solid 4.46 ERA (102 ERA+) in 23 starts with the club last year.
Per Goldsmith, Bell indicated that the same late May timeline Williamson is on is also the expected track for lefty relief arm Alex Young. The 30-year-old hurler has been solid in middle relief the past two seasons, pitching to a 3.36 ERA with a 4.29 FIP in 88 appearances with the Reds, Giants, and Guardians the past two seasons. Young is joined on the shelf by fellow southpaw Sam Moll, though it appears the latter lefty is much closer to a return as the Reds announced this afternoon that he’s headed to Triple-A for a rehab assignment. Acquired from the A’s in exchange for right-hander Joe Boyle at the trade deadline last year, Moll was phenomenal with the Reds down the stretch as he pitched to a 0.73 ERA in 25 appearances. While Moll and Young are on the shelf, Cincinnati has relied on Brent Suter and Justin Wilson as their primary left-handed relief options.
Yankees Place Jon Berti On 10-Day IL, Designate Josh Maciejewski
In between games of New York’s double-header with the Guardians today, the Yankees announced a series of roster moves. Utilityman Jon Berti has been placed (retroactive to April 11) on the 10-day injured list due to a left groin strain, and left-hander Josh Maciejewski was also designated for assignment. Right-hander Ron Marinaccio and infielder Kevin Smith have been called up from Triple-A to take the two open roster spots, and in Smith’s case, his minors deal with the team was replaced with a new Major League contract before being selected. Left-hander Clayton Andrews was outrighted to Triple-A, while right-hander McKinley Moore was activated from the 15-day injured list and optioned to Triple-A.
Speaking with the YES Network (X link), manager Aaron Boone indicated that Berti’s injury occurred in his most recent at-bat, when Berti beat out an infield single in the ninth inning of Wednesday’s 5-2 New York loss to Miami. While the manager didn’t put a timeline on Berti’s potential return, Boone also didn’t think the issue was overly serious.
Berti was acquired as part of a three-team trade with the Marlins and Rays just prior to Opening Day, and the veteran has been splitting third base duties with Oswaldo Cabrera while DJ LeMahieu and Oswald Peraza have been sidelined with injuries. Cabrera is off to a scorching start at the plate, but Berti has slashed only .211/.250/.211 over his first 21 plate appearances in the pinstripes. While Smith can continue acting as a veteran counterpart to Cabrera, Boone said he has “a lot” of confidence that Cabrera can keep producing with a larger share of the playing time with Berti sidelined.
Maciejewski’s contract was selected from Triple-A earlier this week, and the 28-year-old officially became a big leaguer after throwing a perfect inning in last Monday’s 7-0 win over the Marlins. With his MLB debut behind him, Maciejewski now heads to the DFA wire as part of the roster churn at the back of the Yankees’ bullpen.
There’s a chance that a team in need of multi-inning bullpen help or even swingman help could put in a claim on Maciejewski, who has a 3.52 ERA over 294 1/3 innings (starting 31 of 101 games) in his minor league career. A 10th-round pick for the Yankees in the 2018 draft, Maciejewski has had limited success at the Triple-A level, with a 4.87 ERA in 61 frames with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
In selecting Maciejewski, the Yankees designated Andrews, and the southpaw will remain in the organization after clearing DFA waivers. Andrews made his Major League debut in the form of four appearances and 3 1/3 innings with the Brewers last season, and he joined the Yankees in a minor league trade in February after posting a 2.53 ERA over 57 innings for Milwaukee’s Triple-A affiliate in 2023. Control problems have limited Andrews’ effectiveness throughout his six minor league seasons, but Andrews has struggled badly in a small sample size this year — the lefty has a 14.73 ERA and six walks over just 3 2/3 innings at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Braves Sign Yuli Gurriel To Minor League Contract
The Braves have signed first baseman Yuli Gurriel to a minor league deal, according to reporter Francys Romero (links via X). After recently changing agencies, Gurriel is now represented by Gene Mato.
Atlanta saw plenty of Gurriel when he played with the Marlins last season, and the veteran hit .323/.382/.581 over 34 plate appearances against Braves pitching. Unfortunately for Gurriel, he didn’t come close to this production on the whole, as he batted .245/.304/.359 with four homers over 329 PA. It marks the second straight season of subpar offense for the 39-year-old, and his third in four years when considering his lackluster .658 OPS in 230 PA during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign.
Even with these recent results, Gurriel has still been an above-average (108 wRC+) hitter over his eight Major League seasons. The first seven of those years were spent in Houston, where Gurriel was part of the Astros core that won World Series titles in 2017 and 2022. Gurriel was also a huge part of the AL championship squad that lost to the Braves in the 2021 World Series, as he posted 15 homers and .319/.383/.462 slash line while also winning the AL batting title and a Gold Glove.
2021 now seems rather far in the rearview mirror given Gurriel’s struggles in the last two seasons, and it remains to be seen what he has left in the tank as he approaches his 40th birthday in June. Gurriel had already played 15 seasons in Cuba’s Serie Nacional (plus a brief stint in Japan with the Yokohama BayStars in 2014) before he even came to the big leagues on a five-year, $47.5MM contract with the Astros midway through the 2016 season.
There isn’t any risk for the Braves in giving Gurriel a minor league deal to see what he can still offer, though even if he does hit well at Triple-A, playing time figures to be scarce in Atlanta since Matt Olson and Marcell Ozuna have the first base and DH positions on lockdown. Gurriel played some second and third base earlier in his career, but again, Ozzie Albies and Austin Riley have those positions covered. With all these established starters and the Braves’ penchant for keeping those regulars on the field, Gurriel might be okay with being a little-used bench bat if it means being part of another contending team. Or, Gurriel’s time at Triple-A Gwinnett could essentially be an audition for another team, whether via a potential trade or maybe if Gurriel has an opt-out clause in his deal.
Rangers Place Brock Burke On 15-Day Injured List
The Rangers will be placing southpaw Brock Burke on the 15-day injured list due to a broken right hand, manager Bruce Bochy told reporters (including Jeff Wilson of Rangers Today). In corresponding moves, Texas selected the contract of right-hander Austin Pruitt, and moved infielder Justin Foscue to the 60-day injured list to create 40-man roster space.
The injury occurred in ignominious fashion, as Bochy said Burke broke his hand while punching a wall following his rough outing yesterday. Texas defeated Houston 12-8, though the Astros drew a lot closer after scoring five times in the seventh inning. Burke was charged with four of those runs over two-thirds of an inning of work, including a two-run homer off the bat of Kyle Tucker.
Burke now has a garish 15.00 ERA across three innings and five appearances this season, and he’ll face an extended absence while his non-pitching hand heals up. In a best case scenario, this might serve as a bit of a reset for Burke for just this season and really over two years as a whole, as his 2023 numbers declined after his breakout 2022 campaign. The advanced metrics behind his 1.97 ERA in 2022 suggested some regression was in order, and Burke ended up posting a 4.37 ERA over 59 2/3 innings last season. He couldn’t get on track in the postseason, as Burke allowed five runs over two-thirds of an inning (over two appearances) during the Rangers’ run to the World Series.
Even with Burke and Jose Leclerc struggling, Texas’ bullpen is pitching better overall than it did for much of last year’s regular season. David Robertson could now be getting closer duties since Leclerc has been temporarily demoted to lower-leverage work, and the trio of Jose Urena, Jacob Latz, and Kirby Yates have combined for 21 2/3 innings of scoreless ball.
Pruitt now joins this mix, pitching less than an hour’s drive from his hometown of Plano, Texas. Pruitt isn’t a hard thrower and he has had some problems keeping the ball in the park over his six MLB seasons, but the veteran reliever has posted some solid results. The righty quietly had a 2.98 ERA in 48 1/3 innings for the A’s in 2023, even if he enjoyed some good fortune in the form of a .264 BABIP and a 78% strand rate. The Rangers signed Pruitt to a minors deal after the Athletics non-tendered him, and Pruitt now looks to temporarily step into Burke’s multi-inning relief role.
Foscue was placed on the 10-day IL earlier this week due to a left oblique strain, and this rather quick shift to the 60-day IL indicates that Foscue’s strain is a more severe variety. It makes for a tough start to Foscue’s big league career, as he only just made his MLB debut on April 5 and played in two games before suffering the injury. Injuries to Nathaniel Lowe, Josh Jung, and now Foscue have left the Rangers a little thin around the infield, though Lowe is expected to start a rehab assignment this coming week as he plots his return from his own oblique strain.
White Sox Select Zach Remillard, Justin Anderson; Bryan Shaw Elects Free Agency
TODAY: Shaw has rejected the outright assignment and chosen free agency, the White Sox announced.
APRIL 12: The White Sox announced a series of roster moves today, selecting the contracts of infielder/outfielder Zach Remillard and right-hander Justin Anderson. To open active roster spots, outfielder Oscar Colás was optioned to Triple-A Charlotte while right-hander Bryan Shaw was designated for assignment. To open another 40-man spot, infielder Yoán Moncada was transferred to the 60-day injured list.
It was reported earlier this week that Moncada is going to miss three to six months due to an adductor strain. Colás was recalled to take his roster spot, but it seems that was just a temporary measure as the club figured out today’s slate of moves. Moncada’s injury left them slightly short-handed in terms of infielders, so they have optioned out Colás today and added another infielder.
Remillard, now 30, got to make his major league debut last year at the age of 29 after spending the better part of a decade in the minors. He hit .252/.295/.320 in his 160 plate appearances last year while stealing four bases and bouncing around the diamond. He played the three infield spots to the left of first base, as well as the outfield corners. He was designated for assignment in January but cleared waivers, sticking with the Sox in a non-roster capacity. Now he’ll get back to the majors, replacing an injured Moncada just as he did last year.
The Sox have been rotating Paul DeJong, Nicky Lopez and Braden Shewmake through the two middle infield spots so far this year. Lenyn Sosa was in a bench role but started at third with Moncada out of action on Wednesday and could perhaps continue taking that spot. If so, that would leave Remillard serving as the primary depth infielder, though his ability to also play some outfield gives the club a bit of extra flexibility.
Shaw, 36, is a veteran with well over a decade in the big leagues. He signed a minor league deal with the Sox in the offseason and cracked the Opening Day roster but his season didn’t get off to a great start. He has tossed four innings over five appearances thus far, allowing four earned runs on eight hits, striking out four but also walking four.
The Sox have decided to bump him off the roster in favor of some fresh blood in Anderson. The 31-year-old agreed to a minor league pact in November and had a decent Spring Training. He tossed eight innings with three earned runs allowed, striking out ten though also walking five. He reported to Triple-A to begin the season and has tossed 4 2/3 scoreless innings there so far this year, with five strikeouts and no walks.
Whenever Anderson gets into a game, it will be his first major league action in years. He pitched for the Angels in 2018 and 2019, with a 4.75 ERA in 102 1/3 innings, but hasn’t been in the show since. Tommy John surgery in the summer of 2020 wiped out that year and most of 2021 as well. In the Rangers’ system in 2022, he made three Triple-A appearances before going on the minor league IL and never returning. He was in the Royals’ system in 2023 but struggled, posting an ERA of 6.87 in 36 2/3 innings.
There were some positive signs last year, however, as he struck out 35.5% of batters faced. He also got better as he went along, with a 3.44 ERA in his last 11 outings and a tiny ERA of 0.63 in the last eight. That’s a very favorable framing for Anderson, but after so much missed time due to injury, it’s possible he was just getting back on track. Since he’s continued to post decent results since joining the Sox, it seems they want to give him a look against big league hitters.
Anderson still has a full slate of options and less than three years of big league service time, so he can be a long-term depth option for the Sox if he justifies his place on the 40-man roster. As for Shaw, the club will have a week to trade him or pass him through waivers. In the latter scenario, he has more than enough service time to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency.
Red Sox Place Romy Gonzalez, Isaiah Campbell On Injured List
The Red Sox announced that infielder Romy Gonzalez has been placed on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to April 11) due to a left wrist sprain. This move comes a day after another IL placement, as Boston sent right-hander Isaiah Campbell to the 15-day injured list Friday due to a right shoulder impingement. Infielder Bobby Dalbec was called up from Triple-A to replace Campbell, while righty Cooper Criswell was promoted today from Triple-A in Gonzalez’s spot.
As manager Alex Cora told The Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey and other reporters, Campbell kept his shoulder discomfort private but his attempts to pitch through the issue had disastrous consequences. Campbell allowed eight earned runs over two innings of work in relief appearances on Wednesday and Thursday, quickly halting what had been a positive start to Campbell’s Red Sox tenure. Acquired from the Mariners for Luis Urias back in November, Campbell had a 2.08 ERA over his first 4 1/3 innings and five appearances in a Boston uniform. The righty will now be sidelined for at least the next two weeks, and the severity of the impingement isn’t yet known.
While Campbell worked out of the bullpen, Criswell will act as a spot starter in today’s game against the Angels, filling in after Nick Pivetta went on the 15-day IL earlier this week. Today’s start will mark Criswell’s Boston debut after signing a one-year, $1MM free agent deal with the club after the Rays non-tendered the right-hander in November. There’s some full-circle significance in facing Los Angeles since the Angels drafted Criswell in the 13th round in 2018, and he made his MLB debut in a Halos uniform in 2021. After tossing 4 2/3 innings in cup-of-coffee fashion over the 2021 and 2022 seasons, Criswell got a longer look with Tampa last season and posted a 5.73 ERA over 33 innings, often working as a bulk pitcher behind an opener.
Gonzalez is another offseason acquisition, picked up from the White Sox on a waiver claim in January. Gonzalez played in two games with Boston before hurting his wrist in a fall during Wednesday’s game. X-rays were negative on Gonzalez’s wrist, but an IL stint has been deemed necessary to give the infielder some time to fully heal up.
Dalbec’s addition can shore up the infield mix to some extent, but Gonzalez is now the fourth infield option on Boston’s injured list, joining Trevor Story, Vaughn Grissom, and utilityman Rob Refsnyder. Story will miss the entire season in the wake of shoulder surgery, while Grissom (hamstring strain) and Refsnyder (broken toe) have started minor league rehab assignments. Grissom and Refsnyder are tentatively on pace to be activated off the IL in late April, though Grissom’s timeline is a little uncertain since injuries prevented from playing whatsoever during Spring Training.
The impact of so many missing infielders is evident in Boston’s glovework, as McCaffrey notes that the defense has essentially fallen apart since Story was sidelined. The Red Sox are near the bottom of the league in Outs Above Average (-5) and Defensive Runs Saved (-7), and their 16 errors is tied for the most in baseball.
Three of those errors came in yesterday’s 7-0 loss to the Angels, and the lineup was also missing Rafael Devers. Due to nagging soreness in his left shoulder, Devers has missed Boston’s last two games and will also sit out of today’s contest.
“I’ve been feeling it since Spring Training,” Devers told MLB.com and other media yesterday. “But every time I was swinging, I was feeling it a little bit more and more. So for me, I think like two or three days [off] could be enough. I hope it doesn’t keep bothering me after these two or three days, but that’s something I can’t control. That’s why I’m just trying to keep working to get stronger, to get my shoulder back in a good way.”
It’s safe to say that Devers’ shoulder has contributed to the third baseman’s slow start, as Devers is hitting just .184/.326/.395 over his first 46 plate appearances. This relative lack of production has contributed to the lineup’s inconsistency, as the Red Sox have had trouble scoring runs despite hot starts from Tyler O’Neill and Jarren Duran.
Marlins Designate Matt Andriese For Assignment
The Marlins announced that right-hander Matt Andriese has been designated for assignment. Calvin Faucher has been called up from Triple-A Jacksonville to take his fellow right’s spot on the 26-man roster.
Signed to a minor league deal during the offseason, Andriese had that contract selected on April 4, resulting in his first taste of Major League action since the 2021 campaign. Andriese had a 5.40 ERA over five innings and three appearances with Miami, eating some innings in a mop-up capacity while also allowing two homers in this brief sample size.
The home run ball was often an issue for Andriese during his seven-year run in the bigs from 2015-21, as he had a 14.5% homer rate over 509 innings with five different clubs. Andriese’s 2022 campaign was spent in Japan with the Yomiuri Giants, and he returned to North America last season on a minor league deal with the Dodgers, posting a 6.05 ERA across 93 2/3 innings for Triple-A Oklahoma City without ever getting a call-up.
Should Andriese clear waivers, Miami could opt to keep him around at Triple-A as bullpen depth, even if his lack of minor league options makes him an imperfect candidate to be shuffled back and forth between the majors and minors. Andriese can also refuse an outright assignment to Triple-A in order to become a free agent, as he has previously been outrighted off a 40-man roster earlier in his career. Given his rather long path back to the Show, it seems possible that Andriese might prefer the relative stability of remaining in the Marlins organization rather than again testing the open market.
Blue Jays Recall Yariel Rodriguez
TODAY: The Blue Jays have officially announced Rodríguez’s promotion, and right-hander Paolo Espino was optioned to Triple-A in the corresponding move.
APRIL 12: Rodríguez will get the start, manager John Schneider told reporters (including Keegan Matheson of MLB.com). Francis will be kicked to the bullpen.
APRIL 11: The Blue Jays are set to promote offseason signee Yariel Rodríguez, reports Francys Romero (X link). The Cuban-born righty will officially be recalled on Saturday, according to the report.
Rodríguez already occupies a spot on the Toronto 40-man roster. The Jays signed him to a five-year, $32MM free agent pact late in the winter. The 27-year-old might have been in consideration for the final rotation spot after Alek Manoah suffered a shoulder injury early in camp. Yet Rodríguez was slightly delayed in his own right by back spasms. He only made two Spring Training appearances as a result, tossing five innings of one-run ball.
The Jays tabbed Bowden Francis to step into Manoah’s vacated rotation spot. They optioned Rodríguez to Triple-A Buffalo to continue building his arm strength. He has pitched twice for the Bisons, working 6 1/3 scoreless frames while fanning 10 and issuing three walks. He has thrown 55 and 47 pitches in his respective appearances.
It’s fair to assume the Jays aren’t going to rely on Rodríguez to go 100+ pitches in his major league debut. He should be able to contribute in some form of multi-inning capacity out of the gate, though. That could take the form of long relief or a slightly abbreviated start. Rodríguez last pitched on Monday, so he’ll be on five days rest by the weekend.
The corresponding move isn’t clear, but the Jays currently list Francis as their probable starter for Saturday’s matchup with the Rockies. Francis’ first two major league starts have not gone well. The righty has been blitzed for 12 runs on as many hits in only 8 1/3 innings. He still has a minor league option remaining, so the Jays could send him to Buffalo if they wanted to swap Rodríguez into his place in the rotation. Alternatively, they could deploy Francis and Rodríguez in some form of tandem start, perhaps letting them each face the lineup twice without stretching their pitch counts too far.
However the Jays deploy Rodríguez, they’ll surely keep an eye on his innings tally as the season rolls along. His only competitive action in 2023 came during the World Baseball Classic. After that tournament, Rodríguez sat out the season as he waited for MLB to officially declare him a free agent. He pitched exclusively as a reliever with the Chunichi Dragons of Nippon Professional Baseball two years ago, tossing 54 2/3 frames of 1.15 ERA ball. Rodríguez threw 94 2/3 innings between the Dragons and their minor league team in 2021. The heaviest workload of his career came in 2018, when he worked 133 1/3 innings as a 21-year-old in Cuba.
Twins Place Carlos Correa On 10-Day IL, Designate Michael Tonkin
The Twins announced a set of roster moves prior to their double-header with the Tigers, including the expected news that Carlos Correa has been placed on the 10-day injured list. Right-hander Michael Tonkin has also been designated for assignment, and the Twins have filled those two open roster spots by calling catcher Jair Camargo up from Triple-A, and selecting the contract of right-hander Matt Bowman. In addition, right-hander Simeon Woods Richardson was also called up as the extra 27th man for the double-header.
Correa suffered a right oblique strain in yesterday’s game, and while he told MLB.com’s Do-Hyoung Park and other reporters today that MRI results hadn’t yet come back, an IL stint seemed inevitable. The question now facing Correa and the Twins is just how much time the shortstop will miss, as oblique injuries have a tendency to linger unless Correa lucked out with a very low-level strain. It seems likely that Correa will miss more than just 10 days, and since third baseman Royce Lewis is also out with a quad strain, Minnesota is suddenly rather short-handed in the infield. Utilitymen Willi Castro and Kyle Farmer were already handling the bulk of third base duties, and since one of them will now be moved over to shortstop, Jose Miranda or Austin Martin could get more looks in the infield.
Camargo is perhaps something of an unusual call-up in this context, as the Twins already have Ryan Jeffers and Christian Vazquez handling catching duties. However, if Miranda gets more time at third base, that opens up some DH at-bats to allow Jeffers and Vazquez in the lineup at the same time, with Camargo providing depth behind the plate.
When and if Camargo does get into a game, it will mark the 24-year-old’s Major League debut. An international signing for the Dodgers in 2015, he started his pro career at age 16, and has toiled away in the minors before getting his first crack at the Show. Camargo made it to Triple-A for the first time in 2023, and to date has hit .260/.328/.499 with 23 homers over 415 plate appearances at the top rung of the minor league ladder. Baseball America ranked Camargo as the 26th-best prospect in Minnesota’s farm system, citing his power, hard contact, and an above-average throwing arm as pluses. However, Camargo’s defense as a whole is average at best, and he has posted some hefty strikeout rates across his minor league career.
Tonkin finds himself back on the DFA wire just over a week after the Mets initially designated the righty. The Twins acquired Tonkin in a trade earlier this week, and he allowed two runs over two relief innings in yesterday’s 8-2 loss to Detroit. This could potentially mark Tonkin’s only appearance in his second career stint with Minnesota, unless he clears waivers and accepts an outright assignment. Since electing free agency would mean giving up what remains of his $1MM guaranteed salary from the Mets, Tonkin might decide to simply bide his time at Triple-A Saint Paul.
Speaking of guaranteed salaries, Bowman’s selection to the active roster means that the veteran reliever has now locked in $925K for 2024, as per the terms of the minors contract he signed with the Twins in January. Bowman posted a 4.02 ERA over 181 1/3 innings for the Cardinals and Reds from 2016-19 before an extended Tommy John rehab kept him from pitching at any level for the next three seasons. He finally returned to action with the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate last year, and completed the comeback by tossing four innings over three MLB games for New York in September.
Bowman provides Minnesota’s pen with a fresh arm for at least today’s double-header, and perhaps for a longer stint given how seven Twins relievers are still on the injured list. Caleb Thielbar and Josh Staumont have begun Triple-A rehab assignments, while closer Jhoan Duran has started to throw bullpen sessions as he worked his way back from an oblique strain.
Tony Kemp Elects Free Agency
Veteran infielder/outfielder Tony Kemp has elected to become a free agent after clearing outright waivers, the Orioles announced. Kemp was designated for assignment earlier this week, and he has enough MLB service time to request a return to the open market rather than accept an outright assignment to Triple-A.
Kemp could now be joining his third team in less than two months. The Reds inked Kemp to a minor league deal in February but then released him on March 19, so the 32-year-old a bit of an early start ahead of the wave of players cut loose at the end of spring camps. The Orioles ended up signing Kemp to a guaranteed deal worth $1MM, making for a decent payday for what ended up as five games for Kemp in a Baltimore uniform. A new team that signs Kemp would only owe him the prorated minimum salary for his time on a big league roster, while the O’s are on the hook for whatever remains of the $1MM.
Apart from two innings at shortstop, Kemp has played exclusively as a second baseman and left fielder over the last five seasons. Kemp has hit .238/.329/.342 over 1498 plate appearances in that same span, though even that modest production is largely carried by a solid 2021 campaign. Since Opening Day 2022, Kemp has hit only .222/.304/.318 in 987 PA with the Athletics and Orioles.
Despite this lack of recent production, Kemp’s versatility, left-handed bat, and reputation as a clubhouse leader earned him some attention from multiple teams this past offseason, so it seems likely that he’ll land elsewhere in pretty short order. Speculatively speaking, a return to Cincinnati might make sense, given how the Reds’ once-vaunted position-player depth has continued to take hits since Kemp was released.