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Minor MLB Transactions: 8/19/20

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The latest minor moves…

  • Before the second game of their doubleheader against the Cubs on Wednesday, the Cardinals selected right-hander Johan Oviedo from their alternate site and optioned Jesus Cruz. The 22-year-old Oviedo started the game and impressed in his major league debut, throwing five innings of two-run, four-strikeout ball with two hits and two walks allowed. Oviedo is in his fourth year in the St. Louis organization, and though he had a difficult time in his first season in Triple A last year (5.65 ERA, 5.1 BB/9 over 113 innings), he is regarded as a rather promising prospect. All of FanGraphs (No. 12), Baseball America (13) and MLB.com (13) place Oviedo among the Cardinals’ top 15 farmhands. FanGraphs wrote in the offseason that the 6-foot-6 Oviedo has mid-rotation potential, but it’ll depend on whether can improve his control. Not bad so far.

Alex Bregman Exits With Hamstring Injury

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9:50pm: Bregman left with hamstring discomfort and is day to day, Mark Berman of Fox 26 was among those to report.

8:41pm: Astros superstar third baseman Alex Bregman exited their game Wednesday with a potential leg or ankle injury, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle tweets. Bregman departed immediately after limping to second base on a double.

More on the severity of Bregman’s issue should be known soon, though it’s obvious losing him for any extended period would be yet another massive blow to an injury-riddled Houston club. The Astros lost one of their premier hitters, Yordan Alvarez, for the season because of a knee injury Wednesday. They’ve also been without reigning AL Cy Young winner Justin Verlander for almost all of the campaign on account of a forearm strain, and there’s no word on when he could return. Furthermore, Michael Brantley, Roberto Osuna, Aledmys Diaz, Brad Peacock and Jose Urquidy are also on the IL right now.

To the Astros’ credit, they have overcome their injury obstacles to begin the season 13-10, just one game back of wild-card position. Bregman has helped keep them afloat with a .272/.374/.500 line and four home runs in 108 plate appearances. Those aren’t the otherworldly, MVP-type numbers Bregman put up from 2018-19, but they’re still far above the league average.

Diamondbacks Select Matt Grace

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The Diamondbacks announced that they’ve selected left-hander Matt Grace from their alternate training site. In a corresponding move, they placed southpaw Andrew Chafin on the 10-day injured list with a left finger sprain.

Grace saw action with the Nationals in each season from 2015-19, though he didn’t take part in their run to the World Series last season. He made his final appearance with the Nats last Aug. 23, and the team designated him for assignment after that. The Diamondbacks then brought him in on a minor league deal in the offseason.

Grace struggled to a 6.36 ERA in 46 2/3 innings in his final season in Washington, but he did put up OK overall numbers during his time there. In all, he threw 176 1/3 frames of 4.29 ERA/4.04 FIP ball with 6.74 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 and a 53.4 percent groundball rate.

Chafin has been a quality reliever for the D-backs since his debut in 2014, but this season has not gone according to plan for the 30-year-old. He has already surrendered six earned runs on nine hits and four walks in 6 2/3 innings, and both lefties and righties have given him trouble so far.

Angels Move Julio Teheran To Bullpen

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Right-hander Julio Teheran was a key offseason acquisition for the Angels, but the right-hander has struggled out of their rotation so far. Manager Joe Maddon said Wednesday the Angels will move Teheran to their bullpen as a result, Maria Torres of the Los Angeles Times was among those to report. The Angels haven’t named a replacement, though Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register suggests it could be Jaime Barria or Matt Andriese.

The 29-year-old Teheran joined the Angels on a one-year, $9MM contract in free agency. At the time, he was coming off a long and respectable run as a workhorse in Atlanta, where he pitched from 2011-19. Teheran ended his Braves tenure with seven straight seasons of over 170 innings and a cumulative 3.67 ERA/4.23 FIP.

The production Teheran gave Atlanta would’ve been (and still would be) welcome for the Angels, who have struggled to find consistent rotation options in recent years. But Teheran, whose 2020 was delayed because of coronavirus concerns, has fallen flat in three starts, in which he combined for a mere eight innings. At the same time, he has already given up 11 earned runs on 13 hits, including six homers, with five walks against six strikeouts.

Of course, Teheran’s far from the only disappointment on an Angels club that hoped to contend this year but has instead gotten off to a dismal 8-16 start. They seem to be lining up as sellers heading into the Aug. 31 trade deadline, and with Teheran just a few months from another trip to free agency, the Angels could try to move him. That will be a tall order, though, unless he rebounds from their bullpen over a short period of time.

Twins Activate Rich Hill, Outright Cory Gearrin

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The Twins have activated left-hander Rich Hill from the injured list, the team announced. They also outrighted reliever Cory Gearrin to their alternate site after he cleared waivers and optioned righty Zack Littell.

Hill, who will start the Twins’ game against the Brewers on Wednesday, missed roughly three weeks with shoulder fatigue. While injuries have been a consistent problem during Hill’s late-career renaissance, he has offered front-line numbers with several teams when he has been able to take the mound. The 40-year-old has made just one start this season for the Twins, who signed him during the offseason, but it was an effective one, as he threw five innings of scoreless, two-hit, two-walk ball in a win over the Cardinals. He’ll rejoin a Twins rotation that has gotten superb production from Kenta Maeda and Randy Dobnak, while Jose Berrios and Jake Odorizzi have come out of the gates slowly.

The well-traveled Gearrin, 34, signed with the Twins on a minors pact in the offseason. He threw two scoreless innings for the team Aug. 9 before it designated him for assignment.

Rays Place Yonny Chirinos On Injured List

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The Rays have placed right-hander Yonny Chirinos on the injured list with strain in his pitching elbow, per Juan Toribio of MLB.com. The team recalled righty Aaron Slegers from its taxi squad to take Chirinos’ place.

It’s always troubling when a pitcher goes down with an arm injury, especially considering Chirinos just came from an IL stint by a triceps issue. Chirinos spent the minimum amount of time on the shelf then, but it’s unclear how long he’ll need to return from this injury.

Chirinos was a productive swingman for the Rays from 2018-19, a 44-appearance, 25-start span in which he combined for a 3.71 ERA/4.07 FIP with 7.63 K/9 and 2.14 BB/9 in 223 innings. He has only been able to throw 11 frames in three starts this year, but the bottom-line production (2.38 ERA, 7.94 K/9 and 3.18 BB/9) has been palatable again.

Including Chirinos, the Rays – known for thinking outside the box – have already used eight different pitchers to start games this season. The 15-9 club could get one of its “traditional” starters, the injured Charlie Morton, back this weekend.

Rockies Place David Dahl On IL, Recall Brendan Rodgers

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The Rockies have placed outfielder David Dahl on the 10-day injured list with lower back soreness and recalled infielder Brendan Rodgers from their alternate site, the team announced.

Injuries have been all too frequent for Dahl, who has dealt with a litany of health woes during his career. He missed the entire 2017 season and sat out a combined 147 regular-season games from 2018-19. Dahl did offer solid offensive production during that period, but his numbers have cratered in the early going this year. Eighty plate appearances into his season, Dahl has batted .189/.237/.243 (16 wRC+) without a home run. As a result, Garrett Hampson has taken over as the Rockies’ regular center fielder of late.

The 24-year-old Rodgers is back in the mix after an unproductive, injury-limited first look in the majors last season. Rodgers hit a homer-less .224/.272/.250 (25 wRC+) in 81 PA before undergoing right shoulder surgery. Still, to Rodgers’ credit, he had a huge season in the minors, joined the Rockies as one of the game’s best prospects and continues to rank high on various lists now. There may be an opening for Rodgers at second base, as Ryan McMahon and Chris Owings have given the Rockies little offense there.

Mariners Designate Dan Vogelbach, Outright Bryan Shaw

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The Mariners have designated first baseman/designated hitter Daniel Vogelbach for assignment and outrighted reliever Bryan Shaw to their alternate training site, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports. The club also recalled a pair of players – outfielder Braden Bishop and utilityman Sam Haggerty – and optioned reliever Art Warren to their alternate site.

This continues a rapid fall from grace for Vogelbach, who seemed to be amid a breakout season just over 12 months ago. He began the 2019 campaign as a .238/.375/.505 hitter with 21 home runs in the first half. That production earned Vogelbach an All-Star nod, but his numbers have fallen off a cliff since he earned that honor. Vogelbach only managed a .162/.286/.341 line with nine homers in the second half of the season, and and although he did end up with 30 HRs in 558 plate appearances, his .208/.341/.439 showing was a significant letdown considering how the first few months of his year went.

Vogelbach and the Mariners no doubt hoped he’d rebound from 2019’s disastrous finish, but he has instead gotten worse this season. The 27-year-old took 64 PA prior to his designation and batted a ghastly .094/.250/.226 (40 wRC+) with two long balls. His .132 isolated power number represents a .100-point drop-off from last season’s mark. As such, Vogelbach began losing DH time recently to Tim Lopes, who also hasn’t offered much production.

Seattle will now have a week to trade, release or outright Vogelbach, who is out of minor league options. However, he is on a minimum salary this season and comes with four years of arbitration eligibility. He’s slated to make his first trip through the arb process during the upcoming offseason.

Shaw, meanwhile, had the option of declining his outright, but he’ll remain with the M’s organization. He was blown up for 12 earned runs on 13 hits and six walks in six innings before Seattle designated him Aug. 15.

White Sox Add Jake Burger To 60-Man Player Pool

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The White Sox have added third baseman Jake Burger to their 60-man player pool, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports. He’ll join their alternate training site.

This is an important step for Burger, a recent first-round pick (No. 11 in 2017) whom injuries have ravaged during his professional career. Burger tore his left Achilles twice in 2018 and didn’t play at all that year. He also missed all of last season because of heel problems. Considering those serious issues, it’s encouraging that the 24-year-old is managing to work his way back yet again.

When Burger was actually healthy enough to play in the minors during his draft year, he logged a .263/.336/.412 line with five home runs in 217 plate appearances between rookie ball and Single-A. Baseball America then ranked Burger as the White Sox’s seventh-best prospect heading into 2018, making note of his impressive power and writing that “his leadership-oriented makeup is legendary.”

Health Notes: Francona, Rays, Hamels, Phils, Grandal

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Indians manager Terry Francona will miss their series against the Pirates to undergo surgery for gastrointestinal problems, Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com relays. Bench coach Sandy Alomar is managing the team during Francona’s absence. This is the second procedure Francona has undergone in the past month to address the issue. MLBTR wishes him a speedy recovery and hopes to see him back in the Cleveland dugout as quickly as possible.

  • Injured Rays right-hander Charlie Morton came out of an “intense bullpen session” unscathed, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes. It’s possible Morton will return this weekend after heading to the injured list Aug. 10 with shoulder inflammation. That continued a disappointing opening to the season for Morton, who struggled through his first four starts. Meanwhile, reliever Oliver Drake will begin a throwing program as he works back from the right biceps tendinitis that forced him to the IL on Aug. 9. However, there’s no word on a potential return date.
  • Braves manager Brian Snitker stated Tuesday that left-hander Cole Hamels is still “a little ways” from throwing off a mound, Mark Bowman of MLB.com tweets. The Braves remain hopeful Hamels will pitch this year, but time’s obviously of the essence with the regular season due to end in late September. Hamels was a headline-grabbing offseason signing for the Braves, but the triceps injury he has dealt with may stop the pending free agent from ever pitching for them.
  • Phillies center fielder Roman Quinn received clearance to come off the COVID-19 injured list Tuesday, Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer was among those to report. Quinn went to the IL this past weekend after experiencing mild symptoms, though he didn’t test positive for the virus then. His latest test came back negative, enabling him to rejoin the team.
  • The White Sox are hopeful that catcher Yasmani Grandal will return “by the end of the week,” according to manager Rick Renteria (via Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times). Grandal exited the team’s game Monday with a stiff back.

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