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Ariel Pena

Minor MLB Transactions: 8/6/16

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Here are today’s minor moves from around the league.

  • The Brewers have announced the release of right-hander Ariel Pena, who was the last remaining piece in the organization from its 2012 trade with the Angels that sent Zack Greinke to Los Angeles. Milwaukee also received infielder Jean Segura and righty Johnny Hellweg in that deal. Pena threw 29 innings with the Brewers and logged a 5.59 ERA, 8.38 K/9 and 4.97 BB/9. The 27-year-old has struggled mightily at the Triple-A level in 2016, having recorded an 8.36 ERA and 7.65 BB/9 in 37 2/3 frames.
  • The Braves announced last night that they would selected the contract of righty Roberto Hernandez, who will start tonight against the Cardinals. (They cleared a roster space earlier today when they shipped reliever Hunter Cervenka to the Marlins.) The pitcher formerly known as Fausto Carmona has pitched for two Triple-A teams this year, combining for a 4.60 ERA, 6.2 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9. He hasn’t yet appeared in the big leagues in 2016, but he appeared in all of the previous ten seasons, pitching to a career 4.58 ERA, 5.5 K/9, 3.4 BB/9 and 56.5% ground ball rate.
  • The Pirates are expected to select the contract of Curtis Partch, MLB.com’s Adam Berry notes (Twitter links). Partch will take the roster spot of fellow hard-throwing righty Arquimedes Caminero, who was traded to the Mariners today. It’s possible Partch’s stay in the big leagues could be short, however, since the team intends to move starter Jeff Locke to the bullpen and will require an extra starter later this week. Partch has a 2.05 ERA, 9.9 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 for Triple-A Indianapolis this season. He also made one appearance with the Pirates, allowing three runs without retiring a batter.
  • The Red Sox have requested release waivers on lefty Tommy Layne, Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald tweets. Boston designated Layne for assignment this week to make room for Fernando Abad after Layne posted a 3.77 ERA, 7.9 K/9 and 4.4 BB/9 in 28 2/3 innings while struggling against lefties.

Minor MLB Transactions: 4/12/16

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Here are the day’s outright assignments and minor moves from around the league…

  • The Braves formally announced today that they have selected the contract of right-hander Jhoulys Chacin, who will start tonight’s game. Right-hander Joel De La Cruz was optioned to Triple-A to clear room on the 25-man roster, while left-hander Jesse Biddle was transferred to the 60-day disabled list in order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster. Chacin, 28, was a mainstay in the Rockies rotation from 2010-14, but he was released by Colorado last spring and ultimately signed minors deals with the Indians and D-backs. Chacin logged a 3.22 ERA in 128 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level and then had a nice run with the Diamondbacks’ big league club late in the year, turning in a 3.38 ERA in 26 2/3 innings.
  • Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel tweets that right-hander Ariel Pena has accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A from the Brewers after being designated for assignment last week. Pena, who had been outrighted once before, had the right to reject the assignment in favor of free agency but chose to remain in the Brewers organization. The Brewers originally acquired Pena along with Johnny Hellweg and Jean Segura in the trade that sent Zack Greinke to the Angels. The Brewers also announced (on Twitter) that they’ve released three players from their Dominican Summer League affiliate.

Minor MLB Transactions: 4/9/16

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Here are today’s minor moves from around the league.

  • Phillies outfield prospect Andrew Pullin has retired, reports Matt Gelb (Twitter). Pullin, 22, tied for the Florida State League lead with 14 home runs last season. A 2012 fifth round pick, Pullin had experience in parts of four professional seasons. No reason was cited for his retirement.
  • The Angels have optioned hard throwing reliever Cam Bedrosian to the minors, the club reports. In a corresponding move, A.J. Achter has been promoted to the major league roster. Achter, 27, is a soft-tossing righty with an extreme fly ball tendency. In 13 major league innings last season, he allowed four home runs. Achter does have good command with a history of solid strikeout rates. Bedrosian continues to struggle with commanding his 95 mph fastball. The club likely hopes a stint in the minors can help him to locate better.
  • Blue Jays starter Scott Copeland has reportedly been sold to a Korean team, tweets Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News. Copeland, 28, made his major league debut last season, pitching to a 6.46 ERA with 3.52 K/9 and 1.17 BB/9. He’s a command and control righty whose stuff works best in a Quad-A role.
  • The Brewers have announced that they’ve outrighted righty Ariel Pena to Triple-A Colorado Springs. Pena has three days to decide whether to accept the assignment. Pena opened the season in Milwaukee’s bullpen, but the Brewers designated him for assignment this week when they acquired Sam Freeman. Pena split the 2015 season between Colorado Springs and Milwaukee, posting a 4.28 ERA, 8.9 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9 in six outings (including five starts) with the big club.
  • The Dodgers will sign veteran lefty Sean Burnett to a minor-league deal with a May 1 opt-out date, FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal writes (Twitter links). As Rosenthal notes, the Dodgers only have one lefty (J.P. Howell) in their current bullpen. Burnett pitched well for the Nationals this spring, but ultimately exercised his opt-out and was released. He last appeared in the Majors in 2014, and it’s been since 2012, when he pitched 56 2/3 innings with a 2.38 ERA with Washington, since he’s been a significant contributor. Since then, he’s struggled with elbow trouble.
  • The Reds will select the contract of righty Tim Melville tomorrow so that he can make a spot start in place of Anthony DeSclafani, who’s dealing with an oblique injury, C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer writes. The Reds say that DeSclafani hasn’t had a setback, but isn’t quite ready to pitch. The Reds signed Melville to a minor-league deal in November after he posted a 4.63 ERA, 6.1 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9 for the Tigers’ Triple-A affiliate in Toledo.

Brewers Acquire Sam Freeman, Designate Ariel Pena

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The Brewers announced on Tuesday that they have acquired left-hander Sam Freeman from the Rangers in exchange for cash considerations. In order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for Freeman, the Brewers have designated right-hander Ariel Pena for assignment.

Freeman, 28, had been designated for assignment himself by the Rangers last week when Texas acquired backup catcher Bryan Holaday from the Tigers. Texas originally acquired Freeman from the Cardinals (also, in exchange for cash) one year and one day prior to his DFA. The former 32nd-round draft pick spent a good portion of the 2015 season in the Rangers’ bullpen, tallying 38 1/3 innings with a 3.05 ERA, 9.4 K/9, 5.4 BB/9 and a 48.5 percent ground-ball rate. Freeman throws fairly hard for a left-hander, averaging 93.8 mph on his heater throughout his career.

Control has been a problem for Freeman throughout his big league career, though, as he’s averaged 4.9 walks per nine innings pitched. Beyond that, he has a bizarre platoon split, having held right-handed batters to a .181/.280/.233 batting line in 232 plate appearances while surrendering a .279/.397/.419 line to opposing lefties. That said, he’ll give the Brewers another left-handed option in the bullpen after injuries have placed both Will Smith and Sean Nolin on the disabled list.

As for Pena, the 26-year-old stood as the last remaining piece from the Brewers’ trade of Zack Greinke to the Angels back in 2012. Milwaukee acquired Pena, right-hander Johnny Hellweg and shortstop Jean Segura in exchange for Greinke, but all three are now out of the organization (though Segura, of course, brought right-hander Chase Anderson and prospect Isan Diaz to the club this winter, so the trade, like most, has had a trickle-down effect of sorts). Pena rated among Baseball America’s Top 30 Brewers prospects from 2012-14, but he never experienced much success in the upper minors and struggled in 2015 (his MLB debut season) and in his lone appearance of the 2016 campaign. All told, Pena has a 5.59 ERA in 29 big league innings, and while he’s managed to whiff 27 batters in that time, he’s also issued 16 walks and hit two batters.

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