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Jose Urena Elects Free Agency

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Veteran righty José Ureña elected free agency, according to the MLB.com transaction log. He evidently went unclaimed on waivers after being designated for assignment by the Dodgers on Tuesday.

Ureña made two appearances after signing with L.A. on June 3. He tossed three innings of one-run ball, recording two strikeouts with one walk. Ureña has now suited up for three MLB teams this season. He has also logged time with the Mets and Blue Jays, managing 18 1/3 innings over a combined nine appearances. Ureña has punched out 10 against five walks while recording a 5.40 earned run average in that time.

The 33-year-old righty will again look for an opportunity to pitch in a swing capacity. While he has bounced around this year, Ureña held a spot on the Texas pitching staff throughout the ’24 season. He posted a 3.80 ERA while getting ground-balls at a 50% clip in 109 innings for the Rangers. Ureña has never had good strikeout and walk numbers, but his sinker averages 96-97 MPH and he’s capable of covering multiple innings.

Front Office Subscriber Chat Transcript

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Anthony Franco

  • Hey everyone, hope you're doing well!
  • Looking forward to another of these, let's get it going

Tony

  • What moved do you see the cards making at the deadline? They seem to think hesley will form down a QO but I think fedde would take it.  I would trade fedde and some mix of Gorman, Burleson and Scott/Siani

Gadzooks

  • There are 3 NL Central teams between 2.5 and 4 games of the last Wild Card spot; Milwaukee, St Louis, and Cincinnati. Who's most likely to be a seller come the Deadline?

Anthony Franco

  • Cards have hit the skids here a little bit, which makes sense since it felt they were playing above their level in May. I still lean towards them as soft sellers and think they should move the rentals
  • Definitely wouldn't QO Fedde (that'd be an easy accept) and probably wouldn't do it for Helsley either. Decent chance he'd accept and a $21M+ salary for a very good but not top-tier reliever is rich, especially for a team that pulled back spending over the winter
  • As for the broader division picture, I think Milwaukee will try to straddle the line (shop Hoskins while acquiring MLB talent elsewhere), though Civale was the most obvious candidate for that even before he asked out. Cincinnati doesn't have a ton of short-term pieces beyond Nick Martinez, who is good but expensive since he's playing on a QO salary. I think they'll be soft buyers as long as they're within five or six games of a Wild Card spot

Wandering Chief

  • Heyman suggests that the Braves are studying the shortstop and outfield markets. I can see a couple of outfield options - I love Durran - but I don't think there's an outfield market to study. What say you?

Sam

  • Let's say that you're Alex Anthopoulos and Braves ownership has told you that you must buy at the trade deadline and attempt to compete this year. What steps would you take to improve the Braves' roster?

Anthony Franco

  • Outfield has a little more than shortstop. I'd be really surprised if the Braves made a massive push for Duran when they're this far out of it. Taylor Ward might be available, Ryan O'Hearn could play some outfield (though there'll be a lot of completion for him). Maybe someone takes a flier on Chas McCormick when he comes back from an oblique injury
  • Braves need bullpen help too. I don't really agree that they should buy unless they really turn things on over the next six weeks, but they're a potential Bednar fit to stabilize the ninth

Bo Knows Deadlines

  • Obviously with the Blue Jays now leading the wild card chase in the AL Bichette isn't likely going anywhere but if the unthinkable happens and the Jays drop out of the running between now and the deadline what would a package for a Bo rental look like given the nice bounce back season he's current enjoying?

Anthony Franco

  • I think they could pull a 50 FV prospect (a back of the top 100 type) and a mid-level guy for a Bichette rental -- especially given the lack of alternatives at shortstop. They'd need to absolutely tank over the next month to do it though

Matt

  • Do you think Taylor Walls will be DFA’d when Kim gets activated? On a related note, how good of a defender do you have to be in order for teams to overlook the fact that you can’t hit? I’m flummoxed that he’s kept his roster spot for this long.

Anthony Franco

  • He'd feel redundant with Kim and Caballero. Still has options so it doesn't necessarily need to be a DFA. They could demote Mead instead, I guess. Not like either of them (or Morel for that matter) have done much
  • Plus glove at shortstop gets you a decent leash as long as you're not making any money and have options. Teams like that profile a lot less when you don't have any roster flexibility

RAGBRAI

  • Are the Brewers gambling a bit by letting Civali go? Or is the depth good enough to withstand an injury loss?

GBS42

  • Do you think the Brewers sending Civale to the White Sox was simply a matter of doing their best for the team and player while fulfilling his request, or was there some, "Well fine, enjoy your time with the hapless Southsiders!" Reminds me of the Cardinals spitefully trading Rolen to the Blue Jays, the last place he wanted to go. (It could have been worse for Civale, they could have seen him to the Rockies.)

Anthony Franco

  • Eh he asked his way out and I just don't think he's all that good to begin with. I was surprised they tendered him a contract for $8M in all honesty
  • Low-90s velocity with declining whiff rates, inconsistent durability history, escalating home run issues. I like him more as a swingman than as a fourth or fifth starter
  • As for the trade itself, definitely wouldn't have predicted it but I guess I get it. Vaughn wasn't getting another chance in Chicago. Sox can give Civale six or seven starts and try to get a 40 FV prospect for him at the deadline, which was less likely with Vaughn. I don't see a whole lot in it for the Brewers but it felt like they just wanted to get this over with before it became a distraction and maybe there's a 5-10% chance that a change of scenery gets something out of Vaughn

Rhys Hoskins

  • Can I find myself back in Philly? I would boost the offense, let Harper DH a bit if Schwarber plays some LF, and bring good vibes to friends and teammates alike.

Anthony Franco

  • Tough for me to see that one with the number of bat-first players they've got already
  • I kind of get the vision but you're putting a lot on Schwarber's plate defensively and more or less pulling the plug on Kepler, who hasn't been productive but is a guy they signed for $10M over the winter

Chris

  • Can you see Schwarber getting more than 90M this offseason?

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Braves Evaluating Shortstop, Outfield Markets

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The Braves have been among the most disappointing teams in MLB. They’re nine games under .500 entering this weekend’s series against the Rockies. They’d lost seven straight before taking two of three in Milwaukee.

On paper, that all points toward Atlanta as likely deadline sellers. Yet the Braves entered this season with a top 10 payroll in MLB and have made the playoffs in seven straight years. They’re not going to wave the white flag unless they feel it’s unavoidable. Jon Heyman of The New York Post wrote last night that the Braves are still positioned as buyers, reporting that the front office is looking for help in the outfield and at shortstop.

If the Braves were to buy, those would each be natural targets. Left field has been an issue since Jurickson Profar was suspended following a positive performance-enhancing drug test. Alex Verdugo is hitting .247/.301/.312 across 166 plate appearances — arguably even worse than last year’s .233/.291/.356 showing as a member of the Yankees. Eli White hasn’t been much better, running a .235/.275/.383 season line. White had carved out semi-regular playing time with a productive April, but he’s hitting .202/.231/.288 in 109 plate appearances dating back to the beginning of May.

While left field is the clearest weakness in the outfield, the Braves have gotten similarly poor production in center. Michael Harris II has had a dismal first half. He carries a .233/.261/.346 line through 275 trips to the plate. Harris is a productive baserunner and an elite defender, so he’s still providing some value, but the Braves need much more from him offensively. He entered this season with a .285/.325/.469 slash over his first three years. The track record and the defense should keep Harris on solid ground as an everyday player, but his down year has essentially placed the entire burden on Ronald Acuña Jr. to get any kind of offensive contributions from the outfield.

Profar has fewer than 20 games remaining on his suspension. He’ll return early next month, though that’ll be clouded with uncertainty about what they can expect from him. Even if he plays well, he wouldn’t be an option if the Braves make an improbable playoff push. Players cannot participate in the postseason during the year in which they were suspended for PED use.

Shortstop has been almost as much of a struggle. Opening Day starter Orlando Arcia is gone, having been released last month (and subsequently signing with Colorado). Nick Allen has taken the everyday role there. He’s an elite defensive infielder who provides very little at the plate. The 5’8″ infielder has yet to hit a home run and owns a .234/.309/.269 mark through 191 trips.

Allen’s all-glove profile would be easier to tolerate if they were getting more from their non-Acuña outfielders. Having multiple positions that don’t contribute offensively is a tougher sell. Atlanta’s .243/.317/.386 team batting line is middling, and they’ve been terrible this month (.216/.296/.360). They’d love to deepen the offense, but they’ve also seen their bullpen melt down far too often and have spotty rotation depth after losing AJ Smith-Shawver to Tommy John surgery. There are a lot of areas to address.

Of course, how aggressively they’ll do so depends in large part on the next six weeks. The front office’s impulse may be to add, but that’d be difficult to pursue if the team is still well below .500 and nine games out of a playoff spot in late July. At that point, they’d have little choice but to entertain offers on impending free agent DH Marcell Ozuna (with a case for listening on ace Chris Sale).

Cole Ragans To Go For Second Opinion On Injured Shoulder

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It seems the Royals will be without Cole Ragans for a while. Manager Matt Quatraro tells Anne Rogers of MLB.com that the lefty will go for a second opinion on his ailing shoulder next week. Kansas City placed Ragans on the 15-day injured list with a rotator cuff strain yesterday. Quatraro indicated that the team does not expect the issue will require surgery but suggested that Ragans will be shut down from throwing for a decent amount of time.

It’s the second injured list stint of the season for the All-Star lefty. Ragans missed a few weeks between late May and early June with a groin strain. He returned for one start and was tagged for five runs in three innings against St. Louis on June 5. Ragans didn’t feel right during his between-starts routine, leading to the testing that revealed the rotator cuff strain. He’ll surely miss more time with this injury than he did for the groin.

The Royals will operate with a five-man starting staff comprising Seth Lugo, Kris Bubic, Michael Wacha, Michael Lorenzen and rookie Noah Cameron. It’s still a good group overall, but it’s obviously far better when Ragans is at full strength. He finished fourth in Cy Young balloting while recording 223 strikeouts over 32 starts a season ago. While he was on an even better strikeout pace this season, an unsustainably high .382 average on balls in play had led to an earned run average north of 5.00.

Kansas City will have a better idea of Ragans’ timetable next week. It’s hard to envision him returning before the All-Star Break. The front office is unlikely to pour many resources into the rotation even if Ragans is out into or beyond the end of July.

A top three of Lugo, Bubic and Wacha remains excellent. Cameron pitched well over his first five MLB starts before the Yankees knocked him around on Tuesday. Lorenzen has been up-and-down but is generally a serviceable fifth starter. Kyle Wright has made four rehab starts and might not be far away from his team debut; he could work in long relief or push Lorenzen or Cameron for the final rotation spot. Improving a punchless bottom half of the lineup figures to be the top priority if the Royals — who have dropped below .500 after being swept by the Yankees — remain close enough to contention to add.

Angels To Promote Christian Moore

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The Angels are calling up second base prospect Christian Moore, as first reported by @kat_wrld and confirmed by multiple outlets. The Halos optioned rookie outfielder Matthew Lugo during today’s off day, according to the MLB.com transaction log. They will need to make a 40-man roster move tomorrow.

This kind of aggressive promotion for top prospects is par for the course for the Angels. They skew extremely towards the college side in the draft and push their most talented minor leaguers as quickly as any organization. Each of the Halos’ past three first-round picks (Zach Neto, Nolan Schanuel and Moore) were college hitters who were in the majors within the opening half of their first full professional season. Neto was drafted in 2022 and promoted the following April. Schanuel went from Florida Atlantic to the big leagues within two months during the ’23 season.

While Moore took the longest of the three, he’s now slated for his MLB debut around 11 months after being selected. A Tennessee product, he impressed amateur scouts by hitting .375 with 34 homers during his junior season with the Vols. Evaluators have had concerns about his defense, but he has a chance to provide rare power from an up-the-middle position.

The Halos almost immediately pushed Moore to Double-A, where he hit .322 with five homers in 23 games during his draft year. That established him as the top offensive player in a weak Halos farm system. He ranked among the sport’s top 100 talents over the winter at each of Baseball America, MLB Pipeline and ESPN.

Moore returned to Double-A to open this season. He got out to a rough start in a pitcher-friendly environment. The righty hitter only managed one homer while striking out at a 27.4% clip through 146 plate appearances. The Angels nevertheless moved him to Triple-A Salt Lake on May 13. Moore has thrived in the much more favorable Pacific Coast League, collecting four homers while hitting .350 in 20 games. He has posted consecutive multi-hit games with a home run in each of his two most recent outings.

It’s a tiny sample, but it was enough to convince the ever-aggressive Halos front office to bring him up. There’s a relatively low bar to clear to upgrade the second base position. Chris Taylor went on the injured list on Tuesday with a broken left hand. Luis Rengifo has mostly been filling in at third base for the injured Yoán Moncada. The Halos have given Scott Kingery three of the past four starts at second base. He has had a monster season in Salt Lake but has played seven MLB games since the start of the 2022 campaign.

The Angels have hung around .500 through the season’s first few months. They’ve been outscored by 50 runs, but they’re coming off a sweep of the A’s that pulled them back into second place in the AL West. They’ll hope for Moore to provide an offensive spark. He joins Jac Caglianone, Nick Kurtz and Cam Smith as members of last year’s first round to reach the big leagues. He’s the second member of the Halos’ 2024 class to get there. Second-rounder Ryan Johnson broke camp in the bullpen before being optioned to High-A last month.

Moore meets the eligibility for the Prospect Promotion Incentive. He’d earn a full year of service time if he manages a long shot top two finish in Rookie of the Year balloting. (The Angels would not receive a pick in that scenario.) Moore would otherwise remain under club control for at least a full six seasons after this one. That timeline could be delayed if he requires any more time in the minors after his first look at MLB pitching.

Image courtesy of Imagn Images.

Guardians Release Cody Bolton

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The Guardians released right-hander Cody Bolton, according to the MLB.com transaction log. Cleveland had designated him for assignment a week ago when they needed a 40-man roster spot to activate David Fry from the injured list.

Bolton has spent the past month on the injured list with Triple-A Columbus. The Guardians could have taken him off the 40-man roster by placing him on the MLB 60-day IL, but that would have required paying him the prorated $760K minimum salary until he was healthy. They opted to designate him for assignment instead. Teams cannot place injured players on outright waivers, so the DFA made a release a formality.

The Guardians acquired Bolton from the Mariners in a cash trade in April. The 26-year-old made one appearance in a Cleveland uniform. He tossed two innings and allowed three runs on four hits. He’d otherwise been in Triple-A, where he threw four frames of two-run ball with five strikeouts. Bolton has also logged some MLB action with the Pirates and Mariners and carries a 5.79 ERA over 42 career innings.

There aren’t any specifics on Bolton’s injury. In situations like this, teams will often try to re-sign the released player to a minor league contract. That’d keep him in the organization without costing them a 40-man roster spot or an MLB salary. Cleveland could look to go that route with Bolton, but he’ll have the option to explore other opportunities if he’d like in free agency.

Cardinals Sign Zach Plesac To Minor League Deal

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Zach Plesac is back in affiliated ball. The Cardinals announced that they’ve signed the righty to a minor league deal and assigned him to Triple-A Memphis. Plesac had spent the past couple months pitching in the Atlantic League for the Long Island Ducks.

Plesac pitched well in the independent ranks. He turned in a 2.84 ERA with a 22% strikeout rate over seven starts. His stuff was sharp enough for the Cardinals to view him as a viable depth starter. Plesac needed to pitch his way back to affiliated ball after a rough 2024 season with the Angels. He only made three MLB starts and was blitzed for 11 runs across 12 innings. Things didn’t go much better in Triple-A, where he allowed a 5.69 ERA through 99 2/3 frames spanning 18 appearances.

It has been a while since Plesac was an effective starter. He was brilliant for Cleveland during the shortened 2020 season, turning in a 2.28 ERA over eight outings. That came against a generally weak slate of lineups with teams playing a limited schedule, though, and the former 12th-round pick wasn’t able to build off it. He owns a 4.86 ERA in 58 MLB appearances since that season.

St. Louis has had the best rotation health of any team this year. They’ve only used six starters. Sonny Gray, Miles Mikolas, Matthew Liberatore, Andre Pallante and Erick Fedde have each taken all 12 turns. Steven Matz briefly joined the group when they used a six-man rotation to navigate a busy part of the schedule. He started twice and is now back in the bullpen.

They have another hectic stretch coming up, as they only have one off day (on June 16) for the remainder of the month. That could lead them to go back to a six-man rotation. Liberatore also left yesterday’s outing a little early with general fatigue, though there’s no indication it’ll impact his ability to make his next start. John Denton of MLB.com suggested this week that pitching prospect Michael McGreevy could be recalled as soon as this Sunday to fill out the staff — presumably with Matz staying in the bullpen. If that’s how things play out, Plesac can backfill the Triple-A rotation.

Ryan Mountcastle To Miss 8-12 Weeks

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The Orioles will be without first baseman Ryan Mountcastle for 8-12 weeks after imaging revealed a Grade 2 strain of his right hamstring, interim manager Tony Mansolino told reporters (including MLB.com’s Jake Rill). Baltimore placed him on the 10-day injured list and recalled Coby Mayo last week. Mountcastle’s injury is significant enough that he’ll eventually be moved to the 60-day IL when the team needs to create a 40-man roster spot.

A Grade 2 strain is viewed of “moderate” severity and involves a partial muscle tear. It’s the biggest blow in what has been a frustrating season for the 28-year-old infielder. Mountcastle has hit .246/.280/.348 with only two home runs across 200 plate appearances. Those would be career-worst numbers across the board. Mountcastle has been a slightly better than average hitter for most of his five-year MLB career. Last season’s .271/.308/.425 showing is more representative of his overall body of work.

This very likely takes him off the board as a trade candidate. Even a return at the short end of the timeline would be after the July 31 deadline. Injured players can be traded, but Baltimore would be hard-pressed to find interest between the rough first couple months and the extended absence. Mountcastle is playing on a $6.787MM salary and will surpass the five-year service threshold. He’ll be eligible for arbitration once more next winter, but a projected $7MM+ sum figures to make him a non-tender candidate. That’d be particularly true if the recovery carries towards the back end of the timeline and keeps him out into September.

Ryan O’Hearn has outperformed Mountcastle this season and had already taken the first base job. Mayo has been playing regularly between first base and designated hitter for the past week. The O’s activated Ramón Laureano from the injured list this afternoon. He’s in tonight at DH against A’s lefty JP Sears. Baltimore should also welcome Jordan Westburg and Gary Sánchez back relatively soon. Both players are on rehab stints at Triple-A Norfolk.

Astros, Cooper Hummel Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Astros are bringing back outfielder/first baseman Cooper Hummel on a minor league deal, reports Ari Alexander of KPRC 2. The Gaeta Sports Management client will head to Triple-A Sugar Land after electing free agency from the Orioles yesterday.

Hummel spent most of the 2024 season in the Houston organization. The Astros grabbed him off waivers from the Giants in early April. They quickly outrighted him off the roster but would later reselect his contract. Hummel didn’t get much MLB action, appearing in six games and going 0-8 with two strikeouts. He hit well in the minors, though, running a .277/.419/.454 slash line across 442 trips to the plate. He walked at a massive 17.9% clip while hitting 10 homers and stealing 15 bases.

The switch-hitting Hummel remained on the roster throughout the winter and Spring Training. He’s out of options and the Astros decided not to have him break camp. They had no choice but to place him on waivers as a result. Hummel signed a minor league deal with the Yankees and was limited to 10 Triple-A games by injury. He went on to sign a pair of MLB contracts with the Orioles but was only on the active roster for a combined four days and took one at-bat.

Hummel figures to have a little more stability in a familiar setting in Sugar Land. This is the second reunion signing in as many days for the Astros. They brought back veteran catcher Omar Narváez, who finished last year with their Triple-A team, on a minor league deal last night.

Dodgers Re-Sign Chris Stratton

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The Dodgers announced that they’ve re-signed veteran reliever Chris Stratton to a major league deal. He had been designated for assignment on Monday. Stratton went unclaimed on waivers, elected free agency, and immediately returned on a fresh contract. Fellow righty Ryan Loutos was designated for assignment to open space on the active and 40-man rosters. Additionally, catcher Chuckie Robinson went unclaimed on waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Oklahoma City after being DFA on Tuesday, according to the MLB.com transaction log.

Stratton’s first stint as a Dodger lasted a week. He signed an MLB deal on May 25 and was DFA on June 2. He made two intervening appearances, giving up two runs while striking out five over three innings. Stratton had been released by Kansas City midway through May after allowing an earned run average approaching 8.00 across 17 appearances. That followed up a rough first year with the Royals, as Stratton posted a 5.55 ERA across 58 1/3 frames last year.

The 34-year-old owns a 6.09 ERA in 71 outings over the past two seasons. He’d been a capable middle reliever for the few years before that. Stratton worked 82 2/3 innings of 3.92 ball between the Cardinals and Rangers two seasons ago. His velocity has tapered off since then. Stratton averaged north of 93 MPH on his fastball a couple years back but is down to 91 this season.

He’ll return as a fresh arm in the middle innings who doesn’t cost the Dodgers anything financially. The Royals are on the hook for what remains of his $4.5MM salary. Los Angeles only pays him the prorated portion of the $760K minimum for whatever time he spends in the big leagues — the same amount they’d have paid Loutos.

Loutos, 26, landed with the Dodgers via DFA trade with St. Louis in early May. He has spent the majority of the past month in Triple-A, only twice appearing in the big leagues. Loutos gave up three runs in two innings to the Mets in mop-up work on Wednesday. He has allowed five runs in 5 1/3 major league innings. He has posted a 2.41 ERA over 18 2/3 Triple-A frames this year.

Robinson was dropped from the 40-man roster this week when the Dodgers signed José Ureña. They had just claimed him from the Angels. The 30-year-old catcher has a previous career outright, so he can either report to OKC or elect free agency and seek out other opportunities.

Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reported that Stratton was re-signing. Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic was first on the Loutos DFA.

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