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AL Roster Notes: Travis, Faria, Kinsler, Hahn

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Devon Travis has suffered a new bone bruise and cartilage damage in his surgically repaired right knee that has prompted the Blue Jays to place him on the 10-day disabled list, reports Shi Davidi of Sportsnet. The injury is rather mysterious, it seems as Travis felt fine when boarding a flight to Oakland on Sunday evening but was unable to bend his knee without discomfort when the plane landed. He’ll be examined by the same specialist that performed his offseason knee surgery in the near future, and manager John Gibbons acknowledged to Davidi and other reporters that Travis’ injury won’t be a quick one. There’s no timetable for the return of Travis, who has batted .259/.291/.438 with five homers, four steals and strong defense at second base through his first 50 games of the season.

Here are a few quick roster moves from around the American League.

  • The Rays will promote righty Jacob Faria to make his big-league debut Wednesday in a start against the White Sox, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes. The 23-year-old Faria has never been regarded as an upper-echelon prospect (he currently ranks ninth among Rays prospects, according to MLB.com), but he’s in the midst of a strong season at Triple-A Durham, with a 3.07 ERA, 3.4 BB/9 and an outstanding 12.9 K/9 in 58 2/3 innings thus far. MLB.com notes that he works in the low 90s, keeps the ball down and has a promising chanegup, although his breaking stuff is usable but below average. Having Faria start Wednesday will give Rays starters Jake Odorizzi, Alex Cobb and Erasmo Ramirez an extra day of rest.
  • The Tigers have announced that they’ve reinstated second baseman Ian Kinsler from the 10-day DL and optioned outfielder JaCoby Jones to Triple-A Toledo. They also announced that catcher James McCann, who suffered a hand laceration after being hit by a pitch late last month, would begin a rehab assignment with Toledo tonight. The Tigers placed Kinsler on the DL on May 27; it appears the hamstring strain that landed him there isn’t especially serious, because he’s back after the minimum time. The 34-year-old is off to a slow start this season, batting .234/.331/.365.
  • The Athletics have announced that they’ve reinstated righty Jesse Hahn (triceps strain) from the 10-day DL and optioned 1B/OF Matt Olson to Triple-A Nashville. Hahn will start tonight against the Blue Jays. Like Kinsler, Hahn spent the minimum required time on the DL. He even made one rehab start with Class A+ Stockton in his brief time on the shelf. The 27-year-old has a 3.81 ERA, 7.4 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 49 2/3 innings in the big leagues this season. Olson, once one of the Athletics’ top prospects, has collected just four plate appearances in two stints with the big club this year despite batting a terrific .285/.374/.575 in 206 plate appearances for Nashville.

Orioles Select Ruben Tejada’s Contract, Designate Paul Janish

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The Orioles have announced that they’ve selected Ruben Tejada’s contract and designated fellow infielder Paul Janish for assignment. The O’s just acquired Tejada from the Yankees over the weekend in a minor deal.

Tejada struggled in brief stints with the Cardinals and Giants last season but hit well for the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate in Scranton, batting .269/.365/.462. He’s still just 27 and built a decent track record over parts of six seasons with the Mets, posting a .330 OBP with defensive performances at shortstop that advanced metrics pegged as being about average until his last season there, when they sagged badly.

The Orioles selected Janish’s contract on May 21 after Ryan Flaherty hit the DL, and Janish has played sparingly since then. The light-hitting 34-year-old, once a bench fixture with the Reds and Braves, has collected fewer than 100 plate appearances in three seasons in the Orioles organization. He batted .255/.364/.378 in 34 games with Triple-A Norfolk earlier this season but has a career OPS of .651 at Triple-A and .570 in the Majors.

Central Notes: White Sox, McCutchen, Royals

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The White Sox’s rebuild compares favorably to where the cross-town Cubs were five years ago, Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune writes. The White Sox already have Tim Anderson, Carlos Rodon, Yoan Moncada, Luis Robert, Michael Kopech, Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez, all of whom could still be with the club several years from now. (The newly signed Robert, by the way, recently reported to the White Sox’ Dominican Summer League team.) Of course, the White Sox have already traded a number of key pieces, including Chris Sale and Adam Eaton, and they aren’t likely to perform as badly as the 2012 Cubs did, meaning they won’t have access to some of the draft picks the Cubs received (including the No. 2 overall pick in 2013, which netted them Kris Bryant). And obviously, a good start to a rebuild doesn’t always lead to the sort of success the Cubs have had. But the number of premium talents the White Sox already have in place would appear to put them in good position overall. Here’s more from the Central divisions.

  • Andrew McCutchen’s struggles this season could potentially leave the Pirates with a decision about whether to exercise his $14.5MM 2018 option (which comes with a $1M buyout), Travis Sawchik of FanGraphs writes. That call wouldn’t have seemed like a difficult one even after McCutchen’s lackluster 2016 season, but after a modest .232/.313/.419 start in 2017, it perhaps seems possible now. The Pirates could also consider dealing him at the deadline after keeping him over the winter. McCutchen did recently make a mechanical adjustment and is batting .394/.500/.727 over the past two weeks, and he could change his outlook entirely with more of that kind of hitting. Of course, the evidence that he can continue to hit so well after over a year of mediocre work at the plate is still a bit limited, and as Sawchik suggests, the Pirates are running out of time to figure out what to do with him.
  • The Royals have announced that they’ve recalled righty Jake Junis from Triple-A Omaha and optioned fellow righty Seth Maness to Omaha. Junis will start tonight against the Astros; the Royals’ rotation has struggled lately with injuries to Danny Duffy and Nate Karns, and will now lean on Junis, who has a strong 2.34 ERA, 12.1 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9 in 42 1/3 innings in Omaha thus far this season. (Junis has also already made three appearances in the big leagues, striking out six but walking seven over 6 2/3 innings.) Maness briefly pitched for Omaha earlier this season while he was returning from injury, but this will be the first time he’s been optioned to Triple-A since the Cardinals first selected his contract in 2013. He’s allowed five runs, four earned, while striking out four and walking two in 9 2/3 innings with the Royals this season.

Rosenthal’s Latest: CBA, Cardinals, Marlins, Torres, Orioles

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Here are highlights of the latest notes column from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

  • Some teams pursued free agents last winter with the idea that the new CBA would allow them to have 26-man rosters in 2017. That plan, along with a related move to reduce September roster expansion to 28 players, did not wind up in the CBA, but owners and the union are open-minded to the possibility of revising it next winter, although such a change to the current CBA would likely only take place along with the addition of pace-of-play rules.
  • It would make sense for the Cardinals to discuss a trade with the Marlins involving outfielder Marcell Ozuna, Rosenthal writes. The Cardinals would get a middle-of-the-order hitter who is controllable through 2019. The Marlins, meanwhile, want to add prospects and it’s doubtful they can extend Ozuna, who is represented by Scott Boras. (Rosenthal recently reported that the Marlins would consider trading Ozuna.) Rosenthal also argues that the Marlins’ best path forward right now is to rebuild. Past attempts to win now have resulted in the team giving up too many small pieces of their future (including players like Andrew Heaney and Josh Naylor) in recent trades.
  • Top Yankees infield prospect Gleyber Torres has limited experience in the high minors, but he might be promoted to replace Chase Headley (who’s batting just .228/.300/.348 over 203 plate appearances this season) at third base in the near future, since the first-place Yankees could see Torres as a better option than dealing prospects to acquire a veteran third baseman.
  • Outfielder Howie Kendrick and reliever Pat Neshek have performed well for the Phillies this season and could provide the team with good trade value, perhaps along with Joaquin Benoit, once Benoit returns from a DL stint caused by a knee strain.
  • A source tells Rosenthal the Orioles want lefty relief help, although he notes that Double-A lefty Tanner Scott could become an option at some point. Scott, a sixth-round pick in 2014, has a 1.64 ERA and 11.7 K/9 in 33 innings thus far this season, although he might need to work on his 6.0 BB/9 so far before making it to the Majors. The O’s currently have Donnie Hart and Richard Bleier pitching as lefties out of their bullpen; another lefty reliever, Zach Britton, is out for an extended period with a forearm strain, although he doesn’t pitch in a typical lefty role anyway.

Alfredo Simon Signs With Long Island Ducks

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The Atlantic League’s Long Island Ducks have announced that they’ve signed and activated righty Alfredo Simon (as SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo noted on Twitter). Simon is a client of MVP Sports Group.

The 36-year-old Simon had three successful seasons with the Reds from 2012 through 2014, but struggled in 2015 after heading to Detroit for Eugenio Suarez and a prospect, and was even worse after returning to Cincinnati last season. Simon finished 2016 with a 9.36 ERA, 6.0 K/9 and 4.8 BB/9 over 58 2/3 innings mostly spent in the Reds’ rotation, then had arthroscopic shoulder surgery.

Simon was eligible for free agency last offseason but did not sign, which perhaps isn’t surprising given his 2016 struggles and injury issues. Simon also seemingly has personal baggage — he was accused but ultimately acquitted of involuntary manslaughter in the Dominican Republic in 2011 and settled a civil suit over sexual assault allegations in 2015, although these issues did not seem to have much effect on his ability to find employment before his performance nosedived.

Simon will presumably try to use his stint with the Ducks as a possible springboard to a return to the big leagues. He’ll join a Ducks roster that currently includes former Major Leaguers like Jordan Pacheco, Lew Ford, Marc Krauss, Eury De La Rosa and Chin-hui Tsao, among others.

NL East Notes: Colon, Raburn, Mets

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Bartolo Colon could lose his spot in the Braves’ rotation after an ugly start Monday, writes David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Colon, who turned 44 late last month, allowed eight earned runs against the Phillies yesterday and now sports a 6.99 ERA, 5.9 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 after signing a one-year, $12.5MM deal with Atlanta last offseason. “Haven’t made a decision yet about the next one. We’ll just see,” Braves manager Brian Snitker says of the possibility Colon could miss his next start. Colon says he would be willing to pitch out of the bullpen if necessary, though he has only made nine relief appearances in his 20-year big-league career. Here’s more from the NL East.

  • Ryan Raburn returned to the big leagues with the Nationals Monday after an exhausting day of travel, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post writes. Raburn bused from Rochester to Pawtucket with the Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs Sunday, then received news that the Nats were promoting him to the Majors. He then took a cab to Boston to catch a flight to join the team in Los Angeles. The Nats acquired Raburn from the White Sox in a minor deal late last month, and a spot opened quickly for him after Jayson Werth injured his foot. “We’re left-handed strong off the bench. So we needed some right-handed production,” says manager Dusty Baker. “He was the perfect guy for us. He kind of fell in our lap.” Raburn struggled with Colorado in 2016, but had a good run in Triple-A this season leading up to his promotion, batting .274/.389/.443 in 131 plate appearances.
  • Jay Bruce and Neil Walker are eligible for free agency after the season but have interest in coming back to the Mets, Newsday’s Steven Marcus writes. Walker, though, acknowledges the possibility he could depart after extension talks fell through in the spring. “I’m going to have hopefully a lot of options. We’ll see,” he says. “We obviously almost got something done here in spring training and that didn’t happen. I’m not disappointed in the team, but I’m disappointed kind of in the process of things. I guess that’s business.” Last month, FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reported Walker and the Mets were unlikely to discuss an extension again before the second baseman became eligible for free agency. Walker is in the midst of a characteristically solid .263/.332/.449 season thus far.

Latest On The Potential Sale Of The Marlins

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The Marlins are negotiating with the Jeb Bush/Derek Jeter and Tagg Romney/Tom Glavine/Dave Stewart groups and intend to sell the team to one of those groups “in the coming weeks,” Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes in a detailed report about the status of the sale. (We encourage you to give it a click; especially for stories like these that revolve around events that take place entirely away from the baseball field, firsthand reporting is crucial.) Other recent stories about the sale have characterized negotiations as fraught, suggesting either that potential owners have backed away after examining the team’s financials, or that the Bush/Jeter group in particular did not have the capital necessary to complete the deal. According to Jackson, though, current owner Jeffrey Loria remains “fully committed” to selling the team, and the team is “optimistic” a deal will happen.

The Bush/Jeter group is currently a “slight favorite,” Jackson writes, although the Romney/Glavine/Stewart group is still a real possibility. Both groups have told the Marlins that they and their investors have enough money to make the deal (contrary, perhaps, to a recent report suggesting the Jeter/Bush group did not have the necessary funds to make a $1.3B bid), although neither group’s investors have formally submitted partnership agreements that are required by the league.

Jackson explains that, according to a source close to Bush, the Bush/Jeter group has a number of verbal agreements with investors that would give it the money necessary to buy the team. The winning bid might require $800MM-$850MM in equity (with the rest of the sale total being financed through debt), plus an additional $200MM or so to pay to run the team (presumably meaning paying for player salaries and other significant expenses in the period shortly after the sale). The Romney/Glavine/Stewart bid was slightly higher than the Bush/Jeter bid, Jackson writes, although a source tells him that other factors make the two bids approximately the same.

Jackson also adds that Joe Molloy, briefly a managing general partner of the Yankees and formerly George Steinbrenner’s son-in-law, has also been trying to get involved in the bidding for the Marlins. His group has not yet made a bid, however. Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross never made any bid to buy the Marlins, contrary to a previous report, Jackson writes.

5 Key Stories: 5/20/17 – 5/26/17

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Here are the biggest stories from this week at MLBTR.

Matt AdamsBraves acquire Matt Adams from Cardinals. The Braves made a trade to add a first baseman this week, getting Matt Adams and cash from St. Louis for minor-league infielder Juan Yepez. The move gives Atlanta a slugger (albeit one with limitations, since Adams needs to be platooned) to help compensate for the loss of Freddie Freeman, who’s expected to miss more than two months with a fractured wrist. In the wake of the trade, the Braves also parted ways with veteran first baseman James Loney, who they’d signed only days before.

White Sox sign Luis Robert. The White Sox struck a deal this week with top Cuban outfield prospect Luis Robert, agreeing to a minor-league contract that will earn him $26MM. The Cardinals also contended for Robert’s services, but Robert picked Chicago, perhaps in part because of a video presentation that featured fellow countrymen Jose Abreu and Yoan Moncada, as well as Spanish-speaking manager Rick Renteria.

Padres marketing Brad Hand. It is perhaps little surprise that the Padres would consider trading a veteran reliever, but the news this week suggests that lefty Brad Hand could be headed out of San Diego sooner rather than later. Several teams have reportedly had preliminary talks with the Padres about Hand, and interest appears strong. Hand has quietly pieced together an excellent resume in San Diego, where he whiffed a remarkable 111 batters while pitching purely in relief last season and is off to another strong start in 2017.

Anibal Sanchez, C.J. Cron head to minors. Two struggling veterans headed to Triple-A this week, as the Tigers sent righty Anibal Sanchez to Toledo and the Angels shipped first baseman C.J. Cron to Salt Lake. Sanchez was off to a poor beginning to the season while pitching in the bullpen, with 26 runs allowed in 21 innings, and wanted to reestablish himself as a starter. Cron, meanwhile, was batting just .232/.281/.305 after returning from a foot injury.

David Price to make 2017 debut. After missing nearly two months with an elbow injury, David Price is set to make his first start of the 2017 season this coming Monday. That’s good news for a Red Sox team that has struggled to find consistent starting pitching beyond Chris Sale, Eduardo Rodriguez and Rick Porcello. The team promoted lefty Brian Johnson to start today.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Cardinals Select John Brebbia’s Contract, Designate Miguel Socolovich

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The Cardinals have announced that they’ve selected the contract of righty reliever John Brebbia from Triple-A Memphis. To clear space on their 40-man roster, they’ve designated fellow righty Miguel Socolovich for assignment.

[Related: Updated St. Louis Cardinals Depth Chart]

The 27-year-old Brebbia spent time in the Yankees system and in independent ball before the Cardinals selected him in the minor-league portion of the Rule 5 Draft prior to the 2016 season. He mostly struggled at Double-A and Triple-A in 2016, although he posted solid peripherals. This year, he has fared well in Triple-A, posting a 1.69 ERA, 9.8 K/9 and a strong 1.7 BB/9. He has never pitched in the Majors.

The 30-year-old Socolovich shuttled back and forth between Memphis and St. Louis in 2015 and 2016 and generally did quite well in his big-league opportunities, but the Cardinals never cleared a more regular place for him in their bullpen, and removed him from their roster after he allowed 20 runs, 18 earned, in 18 2/3 innings this year. He was also out of options, so the Cardinals couldn’t simply send him back to Triple-A. Given his solid Triple-A record and his big-league performances this year, and the fact that his salary is near the league minimum, he could be a waiver claim for a team in need of relief help.

Rangers Claim Peter O’Brien

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The Rangers have claimed 1B/OF Peter O’Brien from the Reds, the two clubs have announced. To clear space on their 40-man roster, the Rangers have moved righty Tyson Ross to the 60-day DL. They’ve optioned O’Brien to Triple-A Round Rock.

O’Brien’s stay in the Reds organization was brief — they claimed him from the Royals less than two weeks ago. Cincinnati designated him for assignment when they claimed Jake Buchanan from the Cubs earlier this week.

O’Brien will be 27 later this summer and has struggled in Triple-A this season, posting a .168/.252/.304 line there this season. He also hasn’t fared well in brief trials at the big-league level, batting .176/.228/.446 in 79 plate appearances spanning two years with the Diamondbacks. It is, however, fairly easy to see why he continues to generate interest on the waiver wire — he hit 24 or more minor-league home runs for four straight seasons from 2013 to 2016.

Perhaps unsurprisingly given O’Brien’s recent struggles, though, he has never controlled the strike zone very well, culminating in a 147-strikeout season in Triple-A Reno last year in which he walked only 23 times. The Rangers already have a faintly similar player in slugger Joey Gallo, although O’Brien looks far more like a journeyman than whatever Gallo will turn out to be — he’s significantly older, and his power is perhaps less jaw-dropping than Gallo’s. (He’s also right-handed, whereas Gallo bats lefty.) In any case, the Rangers can stash O’Brien at Triple-A for awhile to see if he makes any progress developing a more well-rounded offensive approach to complement his power.

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