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Diamondbacks Claim Andrew Knizner

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The Diamondbacks have claimed catcher Andrew Knizner off waivers from the Rangers and optioned him to Triple-A Reno, per announcements from both clubs. The backstop was designated for assignment by Texas earlier this week. Arizona designated right-hander Luis Frías for assignment to open a 40-man spot.

Knizner, 29, was non-tendered by the Cardinals at the end of last year then signed with the Rangers, agreeing to a $1.825MM salary. He’s not considered a strong defender but put up a respectable .241/.288/.424 batting line with St. Louis last year while hitting ten home runs in 241 plate appearances. The resulting 92 wRC+ indicates he was 8% worse than the league average hitter but that’s not bad by backup catcher standards.

The Rangers were likely hoping for something in that ballpark but didn’t get it. They sent him to the plate 93 times this year as backup to Jonah Heim but Knizner slashed .167/.183/.211. He only hit one home run and drew walks at a tiny rate of 1.1%, a far drop from last year’s 5% clip, which was already subpar. Texas acquired Carson Kelly from the Tigers prior to the deadline and nudged Knizner off their roster.

For the Diamondbacks, there’s sense in putting in the claim and hoping for a bounceback. Most of their playing time behind the plate this year has gone to Gabriel Moreno and Tucker Barnhart but neither is on the active roster now. When Moreno was on the injured list earlier in the year due to a sprained left thumb, José Herrera was recalled to pair with Barnhart. When Moreno was ready to return, the club decided to keep Herrera, so Barnhart was designated for assignment and released last month. But Moreno went back on the IL again earlier this week, this time due to a left adductor strain.

Adrian Del Castillo was added to the roster to take Moreno’s place and pair with Herrera. The Snakes evidently feel okay riding with that duo for now, but sending Knizner to Reno gives them some extra depth and gives Knizner a chance for some regular plate appearances in a hitter-friendly setting.

The length of his optional assignment could have impacts for him personally. He came into this season with four years and 21 days of service time. A new year rolls over at 172 days, meaning he needs 151 days in the majors this year to hit the five-year mark. He added 123 days to that before the Rangers optioned him prior to his DFA, so he’s still shy of the line but could get over it if he’s recalled at some point for a few weeks.

Frías, now 26, has spent his entire professional career in the Diamondbacks’ organization. An international signing out of the Dominican Republic in 2015, he climbed his way through the minor league system and was added to the club’s 40-man roster in November of 2020, keeping him out of that year’s Rule 5 draft.

He has spent the past four years providing the Diamondbacks with an optionable relief arm. Players normally only have three option years but are sometimes granted a fourth. As MLBTR covered previously, a club is granted a fourth option on a player who has exhausted the first three but without playing five full seasons, with a “full” season defined as 90 active days either in the majors or minors. The shortened 2020 season reportedly does not count. It appears Frias didn’t play a “full” season until 2019, then 2020 didn’t count, so he only had four “full” seasons after 2023.

Over his four seasons being shuttled between the big leagues and the farm, he has thrown 57 2/3 major league innings with a 6.55 earned run average. His 18.1% strikeout rate, 15.6% walk rate and 41.7% ground ball rate are each a few ticks worse than league average.

In the minors, he’s racked up more strikeouts but with the control still being an issue. From the start of 2021 to the present, he has thrown 215 1/3 innings on the farm with a 4.43 ERA. He has struck out 28.5% of batters faced but given out walks at a 10% clip.

Frías will be out of options next year, so perhaps he was running out of time with the Diamondbacks. Since the trade deadline has passed, they will have to put him on waivers in the coming days. If another club puts in a claim, they could option him for the rest of the year but he would have less roster flexibility starting next year. He has between one and two years of service time and therefore has five extra years of club control still won’t be arbitration eligible this winter.

Blue Jays Acquire Tommy Nance From Padres

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The Blue Jays announced that left-hander Génesis Cabrera has been placed on the paternity list with right-hander Tommy Nance selected to take his place on the active roster. The Blue Jays’ 40-man roster count was at 37 after their deadline dealings but now jumps to 38. Nance had been with the Padres on a minor league deal but the Jays acquired him for cash yesterday, per Keegan Matheson of MLB.com on X.

Though the trade deadline has passed, certain swaps are still allowed. MLBTR’s Steve Adams recently explored the different ways teams can still add to their rosters after the deadline and noted that trades are still allowed if the players involved have not been on a 40-man roster this year.

Nance, 33, signed a minor league deal with the Padres in December and had been with their Triple-A club all year until this trade. He has thrown 33 1/3 innings over his 26 appearances in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League with a 4.05 earned run average. He struck out 23.3% of batters faced, limited walks to a 5.3% clip and got batters to hit grounders at a 51% rate.

Despite that decent performance, he wasn’t likely to crack the San Diego bullpen, especially after they bolstered it at the deadline by trading for Jason Adam, Tanner Scott and Bryan Hoeing. The Toronto bullpen, on the other hand, is far more open. They traded Yimi García, Trevor Richards and Nate Pearson prior to the deadline. They also placed Jordan Romano on the injured list and now will be without Cabrera for at least a brief spell.

That will give Nance the opportunity to build upon his career numbers. He pitched for the 2021 Cubs and 2022 Marlins and currently has a 5.47 ERA in 72 1/3 innings. His 10.5% walk rate in that time was a tad high but his 26.9% strikeout rate and 50.5% ground ball rate were both a few ticks better than average. His .324 batting average on balls in play, 68% strand rate and 18.9% home run to fly ball ratio all helped put some more runs on the board. For what it’s worth, his 4.23 FIP and 3.48 SIERA suggest he may have deserved better than the ERA would indicate.

Nance was still with the Marlins last year but missed the first few months of the season with a shoulder strain. He was reinstated from the IL in August but then optioned to Triple-A, exhausting his final option season in the process. He was then returned to the IL due to an oblique strain, making it mostly a lost season for him. He was outrighted by the Marlins at season’s end, elected free agency and then signed his aforementioned deal with the Padres.

The righty is now out of options but has just over two years of major league service time. If he can hang onto his roster spot until the end of the season, he still won’t be arbitration eligible and can be cheaply retained into the future.

Germán Márquez Won’t Return In 2024

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Rockies right-hander Germán Márquez landed on the 15-day injured list last month due to elbow inflammation. Manager Bud Black tells Manny Randhawa of MLB.com that Márquez won’t be able to make it back to the mound this year. As Randhawa relayed on X, the righty’s ulnar collateral ligament is fine but he has a stress reaction in his elbow and won’t be able to throw for six to eight weeks. Since there’s just over seven weeks remaining in the regular season, he won’t be coming back this year.

2024 will ultimately go down as a mostly lost season for the righty. He underwent Tommy John surgery in May of last year and was able to come off the injured list in July. He made just one start, allowing three earned runs in four innings, before going back on the IL.

Today’s news is somewhat positive in the sense that the righty’s UCL is not affected and he can have a normal offseason in preparation for 2025. But it’s also less than ideal for him to be going into next year with just four innings thrown this year. Ideally, he would have had the last couple of months of the schedule to compile a decent workload to build off next year, but that won’t be possible now.

The Colorado rotation has been an issue this year, to put it mildly. The club’s starters have a collective 5.45 earned run average, worst in the majors. That’s not necessarily a surprise, between the usual challenges of pitching at Coors Field and the injury issues the club has had. In addition to Márquez, Antonio Senzatela has also missed the entire season thus far due to his own Tommy John surgery recovery. He’s slated to start a rehab assignment tonight. Kyle Freeland also missed a couple of months due to an elbow strain and has only made 12 starts this year.

With Márquez unable to come back this year, the group is unlikely to get back on track anytime soon. Just today, another domino fell as Ryan Feltner was placed on the 15-day injured list with a right shoulder strain, though it’s not yet known exactly how much time the club is expecting him to miss.

It’s theoretically possible to imagine the group being in better shape next year with with full and healthy seasons from Márquez, Senzatela and Freeland. The Rockies signed all three of those pitchers to extensions as they envisioned that trio as their rotation core. Márquez was in the final season of his deal last year when he went under the knife, but he and the club subsequently reunited on a second extension that goes through 2025.

The extended absence from Márquez complicates things somewhat. He only tossed 20 innings last year, meaning he’ll be going into 2025 with just 24 innings thrown in the previous two seasons. That could lead to tricky questions about how to handle his workload next year. He did toss 975 1/3 innings from 2017 to 2022 with a 4.38 ERA, tossing between 162 and 196 innings in each full season of that stretch as well as 81 2/3 frames in the shortened 2020 campaign, but it’s fair to wonder if his elbow will allow him to simply jump back to that level.

There are other questions to be answered as well. As mentioned, Senzatela will be rehabbing and could get some major league starts under his belt before the season ends. Freeland has been off the IL for about six weeks now and seems healthy apart from a blister he’s been dealing with lately, but he could finish with an ERA above 5.00 for the second straight season. Though to be fair, his .348 BABIP and 62.4% strand rate might be clouding things this year. His 4.13 FIP and 4.24 SIERA suggest a sunnier outlook.

Cal Quantrill figures to be in the mix since he has one more arbitration season left and wasn’t traded prior to the deadline. He has a 4.56 ERA over his 23 starts this year. Feltner is having a decent season and will be part of the calculus as well, as long as this shoulder injury doesn’t linger into next year. His even 5.00 ERA doesn’t look great but his .321 BABIP and and 62.9% strand rate are both on the unlucky side. His 20.1% strikeout rate is a bit low but his 7.3% walk rate and 45.4% ground ball rate are both solid, which is why he has a 4.30 FIP and 4.26 SIERA. Austin Gomber, like Quantrill, can be retained for one more arbitration season and is having decent campaign with a 4.66 ERA in 21 starts.

Though this year has been rough, the club arguably has six decent starters on hand for its 2025 rotation between Márquez, Senzatela, Freeland, Quantrill, Gomber and Feltner. Baseball rarely allows clubs to follow a script, however, and the picture will undoubtedly change between now and then. The latest on Márquez already puts a bit of a wrench in their plans, though ideally things will progress well after his upcoming shutdown period.

Jesus Luzardo Won’t Pitch Again In 2024

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Aug. 8: Luzardo tells Daniel Alvarez Montes of El Extra Base that he is indeed done for the 2024 season and has already set his sights on rehabbing and preparing for a full season in 2025.

Luzardo acknowledged some frustration and disappointment with how the 2024 season has progressed for him. He’s still riding a bike and performing various exercises to keep in shape, but there’s simply not enough time left on the calendar for him to get back on the mound this year.

Aug. 6: Marlins lefty Jesus Luzardo hasn’t pitched since June 16 due to a stress reaction in his lower back. The team never announced a formal timeline for his return, but Luzardo was moved to the 60-day injured list just a week after his initial IL placement, suggesting he’d be down for at least two months. It now seems his absence will extend even further, as the Marlins revealed yesterday that Luzardo’s no-throw period is expected to last another six weeks (X link via Isaac Azout of Fish On First).

Miami hasn’t said as much officially, but a six-week timeline simply to resume throwing all but eliminates the possibility of Luzardo making it back to the mound before the end of the season. Six weeks from yesterday would put Luzardo on about Sept. 16 before he even picks up a ball. The regular season ends just 13 days later, on Sept. 29.

If the back injury indeed proves season-ending, it’ll close the book on a frustrating year for the talented but inconsistent Luzardo. The 26-year-old southpaw pitched to a flat 5.00 ERA in a dozen starts spanning 66 2/3 innings. He missed time early with elbow tightness that led to concerns of another major arm injury — Luzardo had Tommy John surgery in high school — but he returned strong, posting a 3.98 ERA in 40 2/3 innings between IL stints. Half the damage against him (nine of his 18 earned runs in this stretch) came in one brutal June 4 outing against the Rays. His other six starts ranged from good to excellent.

The injury complicates the outlook of a pitcher who earlier this year looked like a surefire trade candidate. Even if Luzardo had been able to come back healthy for four to five starts late in the season, that might’ve been enough to showcase his health to potential offseason suitors. It’d hardly have been an ideal platform year, but other clubs could’ve felt reasonably confident they’d be getting a healthy version of the pitcher who from 2022-23 pitched 279 innings of 3.48 ERA ball while punching out nearly 29% of his opponents with a walk rate that sat a bit better than average.

Instead, teams eyeing Luzardo will have to factor in not only the early elbow issue but also the back injury that torpedoed his season. That previously referenced 2022-23 production is still alluring, as are the remaining two years of club control over Luzardo, but the health risk will be just as great a focus (if not greater).

Marlins president of baseball ops Peter Bendix and his staff will need to weigh offers this winter against what they think they could theoretically receive in a midseason deal. It’s possible, if not likely, that a healthy version of Luzardo in June/July could command more than the offseason version with significant health concerns — even though in the offseason Miami would be peddling two full seasons of club control as opposed to 1.5 seasons next summer. The Tigers went down a similar path with fellow lefty Matthew Boyd several years ago, fielding offers at multiple deadlines and through multiple offseasons while injuries continued to impact his stock. They ultimately wound up non-tendering Boyd in 2021 and losing the left-hander for nothing.

Holding Luzardo into the 2025 season could carry similar risk, but the front office also surely wants to avoid taking what’s perceived as a light package — only to see Luzardo bounce back with a healthy first half in 2025. It’s a fine line to walk and will be one of the most complex decisions for the Miami baseball operations staff this winter.

Front Office Subscriber Chat Transcript

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MLBTR's Steve Adams hosted a live chat today at 2:00pm CT, exclusively for Trade Rumors Front Office subscribers. Click the link below to read the transcript.

 

 

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Pirates Designate Edward Olivares For Assignment

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The Pirates announced Thursday that they’ve placed right-hander Colin Holderman on the 15-day IL with a right wrist sprain, selected the contract of righty Ben Heller from Triple-A Indianapolis and opened a spot on the 40-man roster by designating outfielder Edward Olivares for assignment.

Olivares, 28, was acquired from the Royals in the offseason when Kansas City needed to open a roster spot after signing right-hander Chris Stratton. Olivares had qualified for arbitration for the first time and he agreed avoid arbitration by accepting a $1.35MM salary from the Pirates.

Unfortunately, his tenure in Pittsburgh was a bit less than what the club was expecting. He had slashed .270/.322/.439 with the Royals over 2022 and 2023 for a combined wRC+ of 106 in that time but he hit .224/.291/.333 with the Pirates this year, with that production leading to a wRC+ of 75. He was optioned to Triple-A about a month ago and is hitting .245/.305/.321 at that level for a wRC+ of just 64.

He is in his final option season and will be out of options next year. Between that and his performance, it seems he was getting pushed out of the club’s plans. They fortified their outfield mix by acquiring Bryan De La Cruz and utility player Isiah Kiner-Falefa prior to the deadline.

With the trade deadline now in the past, the Pirates will have to put Olivares on waivers in the coming days. It’s possible that a club could view this year’s downturn as simply bad luck, as his batting average on balls in play is just .250 this year. That’s a drop from the .306 BABIP he had over the two prior seasons and this year’s .290 league average. His 8.2% walk rate this year was actually a noticeable increase from the 5.7% rate he had in the two preceding campaigns. His exit velocity and hard hit rate are down a bit but not drastically so. His speed and arm strength are above average but he’s received poor defensive grades overall.

If some team does put in a claim, Olivares can be optioned for the rest of this year and then retained beyond this season via arbitration. But as mentioned, he will be out of options by next year. If he clears waivers in the coming days, he will have the right to elect free agency as a player with more than three years of service time. But since he is below the five-year mark, heading to the open market would mean forfeiting what’s left of this year’s salary. With roughly $375K still to be paid out, he would likely accept an outright assignment and stick with the Bucs in a non-roster capacity.

As for Heller, this is the second time this year the Pirates have selected him to the roster. The last time resulted in him being designated for assignment and outrighted after allowing 11 earned runs in two innings. His time in the minors has gone far better as he has a 3.55 earned run average in 33 Triple-A innings pitched this year while striking out 40.7% of batters faced. He’s out of options but can be retained via arbitration beyond this season if he manages to hold onto his roster spot.

Several Veterans Who Could Be Available On Waivers This Month

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Now that the trade deadline has come and gone, it's harder for contending clubs to upgrade their respective rosters. There are still a few ways to do so, as MLBTR's Steve Adams recently laid out, but most of those methods involve adding guys not currently rostered who are naturally depth pieces at best.

To add a solid, usable big leaguer, the best remaining path is waivers. The old August waiver trade system ended in 2019, but many veteran players found themselves on waivers last August anyway, which started with the Angels.

The Halos fell out of contention in August and their priority shifted from winning to ducking under the competitive balance tax. Since trades were no longer possible, they put a whole bunch of guys on waivers and just hoped that other clubs would take them, the baseball equivalent of putting a "for free" box by the curb. Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo López, Randal Grichuk, Matt Moore, Hunter Renfroe, Dominic Leone and Tyler Anderson were put on waivers and then other clubs followed suit, though to a less significant degree. The Yankees had no hope of avoiding the CBT but were slipping in the standings and had no use for an impending free agent like Harrison Bader. It was a similar situation with the Mets and Carlos Carrasco. The Tigers and White Sox weren't going to be CBT payors but made José Cisnero and Mike Clevinger available, simply hoping to cut costs.

Because the waiver priority order goes in reverse order of standings, the clubs best positioned to benefit were those just on the fringes of contention. The teams buried in the standings would have no motivation to grab such players and take on salary while the teams at the top of the standings would get last dibs in the waiver process. The Guardians claimed Giolito, López and Moore while the Reds grabbed Bader and Renfroe.

It doesn't seem like this trend will stop here in 2024. This year, Kevin Kiermaier, Ty France and Josh Bell have already been on waivers at some point. All three players cleared and were ultimately traded prior to the deadline, with some money changing hands in each of those deals. Others will surely follow them in the weeks to come, but clubs won't be able to work out trades involving cash considerations. The claiming club will have to take on all that's left of the contract from the waiving club.

Logically, these players will be available on waivers before the end of August. Players acquired after that time are not postseason eligible, which limits the attraction, though it could still happen. After the Guards fell from contention, they put Moore back on waivers just a few weeks after claiming him, and the Marlins nabbed him at that time. He made four scoreless appearances for Miami, helping them squeak into the playoffs, but wasn't eligible to join the club in the postseason.

So who could be available this time around? The most likely players are those making a notable salary on a club that could fall back in the playoff race, particularly one with CBT concerns. But an underwater contract won't be terribly appealing, so the player should still have some utility that makes it at least vaguely justifiable for the claiming club to take on some money. Many of these will require the team to really perform poorly in the next few weeks, making them long-shot possibilities, but let's take a look at some of the most interesting guys who could plausibly fit the bill.

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The Opener: deGrom, Ryan, Hays

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It’s already been an eventful morning with an early Braves DFA and a major shakeup in Chicago. Here are three more things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day:

1. deGrom to face hitters:

Two-time Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom made just six starts in a Rangers uniform last year before undergoing Tommy John surgery, but the 36-year-old hurler is poised to take in major step in his rehab today. Per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News, deGrom is scheduled to throw a bullpen session before facing minor league hitters for a 20-pitch simulated inning of work. It’s his first time facing hitters since going under the knife, but Grant suggests that if today’s session goes well the veteran right-hander could begin a rehab assignment in fairly short order. Long regarded as perhaps the best pitcher in all of baseball when healthy enough to take the mound, deGrom has a phenomenal 2.08 ERA, 2.11 FIP, and 35.6% strikeout rate since the start of the 2018 season but has been limited to just 32 starts since the start of the 2021 campaign by a number of injuries.

2. Ryan exits with injury:

Twins right-hander Joe Ryan looked quite good through two innings of work against the Cubs yesterday, striking out two while allowing nothing outside of a solo home run to Chicago rookie Michael Busch. Unfortunately, those two innings would be his only work of the game as he uncorked a high splitter way out of the zone and called to the dugout, exiting shortly thereafter due to what the team later referred to as triceps tightness. After the game, manager Rocco Baldelli spoke to reporters (including Dan Hayes of The Athletic) regarding the issue but provided little in terms of concrete details regarding the injury.

Baldelli suggested that the club would know more about the severity of the issue in a few days, but it was likely that the right-hander would miss “at least some time.” Any absence of any significance would be a frustrating development for a Twins club that has already had its starting pitching depth tested by the losses of Anthony DeSclafani (before the season began) and Chris Paddack (who recently returned to the IL for a second time this season). Louie Varland appears to be the most likely candidate to a step into a rotation role in Ryan’s stead, though the 26-year-old has struggled at both the major and minor league levels this year and seems unlikely to provide production close to what Ryan has offered this year: a 3.60 ERA and 3.44 FIP in 23 starts.

3. Hays to undergo further evaluation:

Newly-acquired Phillies outfielder Austin Hays is just ten games into his tenure with the club but may be headed for the shelf after exiting yesterday’s game with what the club announced as hamstring tightness when he pulled up while running to first base in the third inning. Manager Rob Thomson told reporters (including Alex Coffey of The Philadelphia Inquirer) that the club was not yet sure how serious the issue is and that he’ll be evaluated further today.

The addition of Hays, who the club acquired from the Orioles ahead of the deadline in exchange for Seranthony Dominguez and Cristian Pache, added a right-handed bat to the club’s outfield corps who could mix and match with Brandon Marsh and Johan Rojas in left and center field. The 28-year-old is hitting a roughly league-average .256/.310/.395 in 73 games between Baltimore and Philadelphia this year, and if he misses time his absence will likely open the door for Weston Wilson to get additional playing time going forward.

Adbert Alzolay To Undergo Tommy John Surgery

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Cubs right-hander Adbert Alzolay will undergo Tommy John surgery, per manager Craig Counsell. Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times relayed the news on X. It was reported last week that the righty would be going under the knife but the specific nature of the procedure had not yet been determined. He’ll miss the remainder of this season and could miss all of 2025 as well.

It’s obviously an unfortunate blow for Alzolay and the Cubs. The righty seemed to unlock something last year after moving from a starting role to a full-time relief role. He tossed 64 innings over 58 appearances for the Cubs last year, allowing 2.67 earned runs per nine. He struck out 26.5% of batters faced, limited walks to a 5.1% clip and kept the ball on the ground 42.2% of the time. He even secured the closer’s job, nabbing 22 saves last year.

He did miss about two weeks in September with a right forearm strain, which now looks in hindsight like it was an omen of what was to come in 2024. He made 18 appearances to start this year but with less effectiveness. He only struck out 17.3% of batters faced and had an ERA of 4.67. The Cubs put him on the IL on May 13, announcing that he had a right forearm strain. The next day, they told reporters that imaging confirmed Alzolay had a right flexor strain, per Lee on X.

There was still some hope of him returning, as he started a rehab assignment in July. But he made just three appearances there before it was reported that he would require some type of surgery, which was a vague update until today’s developments.

Now that he’s slated for the worst-case scenario of Tommy John surgery, Alzolay’s entire 2025 season is in jeopardy. Pitchers usually require 14 months or more to come back from such a significant operation, a timeline that will make it possible he won’t see official game action until 2026. He’s currently 29 years old but will turn 31 in March of 2026.

He reached arbitration for the first time coming into this year and is making a salary of $2.11MM. Given how much time he has missed, the Cubs could retain him around that price for 2025 but likely wouldn’t get anything for that investment except the right to hold onto Alzolay’s rights for the 2026 campaign, the last before he’s slated for free agency. Teams and players in this situation will sometimes work out an extension to cover the rehab period and the pitcher’s planned return to the mound, so perhaps the Cubs will talk to Alzolay’s reps this winter about such an arrangement.

In the meantime, the club’s bullpen figures to be in flux, for this year and next. Héctor Neris is handling the closing duties this year but isn’t a guarantee to come back in 2025 as his one-year deal has a $9MM club option that converts to a player option if he makes 60 appearances this year. He’s currently at 42. Mark Leiter Jr. is leading the team in holds but he was traded to the Yankees prior to the deadline. Yency Almonte and Porter Hodge are tied for second in that category but Almonte is done for the year due to shoulder surgery. Tyson Miller and Drew Smyly are next on that list but Smyly is likely headed for the open market as his deal has a 2025 mutual option and those are almost never picked up by both sides.

Orioles To Sign J.D. Davis To Minor League Deal

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The Orioles are signing infielder J.D. Davis, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post on X. It’s a minor league deal for Davis, per Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner on X. The veteran was released by the Yankees last week.

Davis 31, came into 2024 on a solid five-year run of being an above-average bat at the major league level. But this season has been an unusual one in a few different ways, which have largely been disappointing for him.

He and the Giants went to an arbitration hearing in the winter, which he won, though it turned out to be a hollow victory. The arbiter sided with him and his reps, opting for their $6.9MM salary as opposed to the $6.5MM figure the team sought. However, under the collective bargaining agreement, arb salaries are only guaranteed if the sides avoid a hearing.

The Giants then took advantage of the weak free agent market, signing both Matt Chapman and Blake Snell after they lingered in free agency into the month of March. The Chapman deal nudged Davis off his perch as the club’s regular third baseman, so they released him. Since his salary wasn’t guaranteed, the Giants only had to pay him 30 days’ termination pay, roughly $1.1MM.

Davis then went out into the aforementioned tepid free agent market and had to settle for a $2.5MM guarantee from the Athletics, far less than what he was slated to earn in San Francisco. With Oakland, he missed a couple of weeks while on the injured list with a right adductor strain and didn’t get into much of a groove around that IL stint. He hit .236/304/.366 for a wRC+ of 96 and was designated for assignment in June.

The Yankees then acquired him but didn’t give him much playing time. He was on the roster for over a month but battled an illness and only got into seven games, hitting .105/.227/.158 in those. He was designated for assignment just prior to the trade deadline but the Yanks couldn’t find a taker. Since he has more than five years of major league service time, he could have rejected an outright assignment while retaining the remainder of his salary. The Yankees skipped that formality by releasing him.

It’s undoubtedly been a rough year but it’s a sensible flier for the O’s to take, especially on a minor league deal. Davis had a robust slash of .268/.352/.443 from 2019 to 2023 for a wRC+ of 120, indicating he was 20% better than the league average hitter in that time period. Since the Yankees released him, they are paying what’s left of his contact. If the O’s select him to the roster at any point, they will only have to pay him the prorated major league minimum salary, with that amount subtracted from what the Yankees pay.

Baltimore recently placed both Jorge Mateo and Jordan Westburg on the injured list, subtracting two pieces of their infield mix. Prospect Coby Mayo is up covering third base now but has six strikeouts and no hits through his first 12 plate appearances. Ramón Urías is there as well but he isn’t having a strong season, hitting .238/.310/.370 for a wRC+ of 96 with -3 Defensive Runs Saved and -6 Outs Above Average.

If Davis can get into good form and Mayo keeps struggling, the veteran could be a low cost fix to the problem for the O’s. Davis will presumably report to Triple-A Norfolk in the coming days and get some regular at-bats, something that he’s had difficulty finding this year.

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