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Mets Interested In Danny Coulombe

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The Mets are interested in Twins left-hander Danny Coulombe, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post.

Coulombe is a 35-year-old lefty reliever. Though he made his major league debut over a decade ago, he’s currently in the best stretch of his career. Dating back to the start of the 2023 season, he has thrown 107 2/3 innings with a 2.09 earned run average. He has struck out 28.3% of opponents, limited walks to a 5.7% clip and induced ground balls on 44.5% of balls in play he’s allowed. He has recorded five saves and 41 holds in that time.

The first two years of that span were spent with the Orioles. The O’s could have retained him for 2025 but somewhat surprisingly turned down his $4MM club option. The Twins scooped him up with a one-year deal worth $3MM.

In hindsight, that looks like a misstep for Baltimore and a win for Minnesota. Coulombe has thrown 26 2/3 innings this year with a tiny 0.68 ERA. There’s surely some luck in there, as he has a massive 92% strand rate. But his 27.9% strikeout rate, 6.7% walk rate and 41.8% ground ball rate are all good figures. His 1.69 FIP and 2.90 SIERA suggest he would be posting good numbers even with more neutral favor from the baseball gods.

His fastball velocity is only 90.2 miles per hour this year but he’s never been a flamethrower. His career high in that department was 91.8 mph in 2023. He’s also mixing in a cutter, sinker, slider and knuckle curve to keep hitters off balance. He doesn’t have massive platoon splits. In fact, lefties have a slightly better line against him this year, with a .208/.240/.229 line compared to a .163/.241/.204 slash when Coulombe is facing a righty.

That kind of performance would look good in any bullpen but it’s especially attractive for the Mets. They had planned to have A.J. Minter and Danny Young as their lefty relievers this year but both required season-ending surgeries by early May.

The Mets have subsequently been cycling through fringe roster guys like Richard Lovelady, Génesis Cabrera, José Castillo and Colin Poche. Today, they reinstated Brooks Raley from the injured list and designated Lovelady for assignment. Raley has some good work on his track record but is 37 years old and is just returning from a lengthy Tommy John surgery layoff.

Adding another lefty ahead of the deadline makes plenty of sense, particularly when considering Coulombe’s fairly modest salary. The Mets are a third-time competitive balance tax payor above the top threshold, meaning they will pay a 110% tax on any money they add to the payroll.

Though Coulombe may make sense for the Mets, that doesn’t mean they can get him. The Twins, like several teams, are hovering around contention in such a way where buying or selling is a tough decision. They are currently 47-49, which puts them four games back of a playoff spot. FanGraphs still gives them a 23.3% shot at cracking the postseason, with Baseball Prospectus slightly more optimistic at 28.3%.

It’s possible that their results in the next few weeks could determine their deadline approach. They start a series in Colorado tonight, then head to Dodger stadium. After that, they return home to host the Nationals and then Red Sox.

If they lean to the sell side, trading Coulombe would make a lot of sense. He’s an impending free agent who will celebrate his 36th birthday in a few months. Perhaps even if they are buying, they could flip Coulombe while bringing in other pieces. However, doing so would subtract the most reliable lefty from the bullpen. The Twins have also occasionally given the ball to Joey Wentz, Kody Funderburk and Anthony Misiewicz this year but no one in that trio has an ERA below 6.92.

Coulombe’s modest salary is also surely valuable to the Twins. They clearly didn’t have a ton of payroll space this winter. They spent a combined $10.25MM on one-year deals for Coulombe, Harrison Bader and Ty France. With the franchise currently for sale, they probably don’t have the ability to take on much more salary at the deadline, which could push them towards keeping an affordable guy like Coulombe for the stretch run.

Photo courtesy of Daniel Kucin Jr., Imagn Images

Rangers Select Cody Freeman

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The Rangers announced that they have selected contract of infielder Cody Freeman. Infielder Sam Haggerty was placed on the 10-day injured list due to ankle inflammation, retroactive to July 15th. The club had an open 40-man spot after trading Dane Dunning yesterday. Kennedi Landry of MLB.com was among those to relay the moves prior to the official announcement.

Freeman, 24, will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game. The younger brother of Tyler Freeman of the Rockies, Cody was a fourth-round pick of the Rangers in 2019. Offensively, the younger Freeman provides a contact-forward approach. He has stepped to the plate 2,150 times in the minors with a 15.7% strikeout rate.

He has been at Triple-A for all of this year. In 350 plate appearances at that level, he has an 8.9% strikeout rate, 8% walk rate and 12 home runs. Even in the hitter-friendly context of the Pacific Coast League, his .315/.367/.494 slash line translates to a 113 wRC+.

Defensively, he is capable of bouncing around. This year, he has mostly been at third base but has also appeared in the middle infield. He has some work at first base and catcher on his track record but not in recent years.

Last month, FanGraphs gave him an honorable mention on their list of the top Ranger prospects in the “Contact-Driven Profiles” section. The quick mention of Freeman noted that he would have a future value of 40 on the 20-80 scale if he were a better defender.

Haggerty had been serving in a multi-positional bench role and Freeman will perhaps step up to do the same. As this is his first big league call, he has a full slate of options and can be easily sent back to the minors in the future, if needed.

Photo courtesy of Joe Camporeale, Imagn Images

Diamondbacks Sign Sergio Alcántara, Place Ketel Marte On Restricted List Due To Personal Matter

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The Diamondbacks announced a series of roster moves today, including the selection of right-hander Trevor Richards and the recall of catcher Adrian Del Castillo, moves which were reported earlier. They also signed infielder Sergio Alcántara to a major league deal. Right-hander Juan Morillo was optioned during the break, opening one active roster spot. Today, infielder Tristin English was optioned to the minors and second baseman Ketel Marte was placed on the restricted list. Marte opened one 40-man spot for Alcántara. To open another for Richards, catcher Gabriel Moreno was transferred to the 60-day injured list.

Per John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM Phoenix, Marte is “taking some personal days.” Bob Nightengale of USA Today relays that Marte’s home was burglarized while he was away for the All-Star break. Perhaps Marte will be back in just a few days. Regardless, it’s less than ideal for the Diamondbacks, given that their season feels like it’s hanging by a thread at the moment.

The Snakes have been bit really hard by the injury bug this year. They have 11 pitchers on the injured list, many of whom won’t be returning this season due to significant surgeries. Naturally, that has impacted their ability to win ball games. They are currently 47-50 and 5.5 games back of a playoff spot. General manager Mike Hazen has said he would like the team to play its way into buyer position but it has felt like they might be drifting towards sell mode. Losing Marte for any amount of time doesn’t help, given that he’s one of the best all-around players in the game.

Blaze Alexander is perhaps the favorite to take over at the keystone in the interim but Alcántara will give them a fresh body on the roster. He got into one game with the Giants this year, going hitless in four at-bats. He has otherwise been in Triple-A, producing a tepid line of .206/.319/.252. He shouldn’t be expected to provide much with the bat but can play the three infield spots to the left of first base.

Moreno’s transfer to the 60-day IL is also less than ideal for the D’Backs. He was placed on the 10-day IL June 20th due to a hairline fracture in his right index finger. This transfer means the club doesn’t expect him to be able to return in the next month or so. They have been using José Herrera and James McCann behind the plate but will now go with a three-catcher setup. Del Castillo has great minor league numbers on a rate basis but has only played 14 Triple-A games this year due to injuries. He was reinstated from the minor league IL on July 1st.

Now that he’s healthy, perhaps he’ll get a chance to get some big league playing time while Moreno isn’t a near-term option. Del Castillo hit .313/.368/.525 in his major league debut last year. He’s hitting .288/.386/.559 in Triple-A this year but, as mentioned, in a fairly limited sample. Herrera’s line this year is just .197/.302/.268. McCann has a monster .375/.516/.708 line but in just nine games, as he was just added to the roster recently. He slashed .224/.279/.352 over the previous four seasons.

Photo courtesy of Dennis Lee, Imagn Images

Rockies Place Thairo Estrada On IL With Thumb Sprain

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The Rockies announced today that infielder Ezequiel Tovar has been reinstated from the 10-day injured list. In a corresponding move, fellow infielder Thairo Estrada goes the other way. He’s been placed on the 10-day IL due to a sprained left thumb, retroactive to July 11th.

It’s a notable development for Estrada and the Rockies, as he is one of the most obvious trade candidates this month. He’s a veteran playing for the worst team in the league, so all signs were pointing to him being on the block.

Unfortunately, his value was already low due to a previous injury. He signed a one-year, $3.25MM deal with the Rockies in the offseason but then broke his right wrist on a hit-by-pitch during spring training. Since he missed time in 2024 due to left wrist sprains, it was a less than ideal development for him.

He was reinstated from the IL at the end of May. Since then, he stepped to the plate 125 times with a .284/.312/.397 batting line. That looks okay at first glance but translates to an 83 wRC+ due to the favorable conditions of Coors Field.

Estrada had a strong three-run with the Giants from 2021 to 2023. He slashed .266/.320/.416 for a 105 wRC+ over those seasons, stealing 45 bases in the process. But he hit just .217/.247/.343 last year while battling those wrist issues. That got him bumped from the roster, which led to his deal with the Rockies.

If he had been able to bounce back to that 2021-23 form, he would have been an intriguing piece at this year’s deadline. Unfortunately, he’s now coming up on two years of being hurt and fairly ineffective. Given that the IL stint is backdated, he could come back in a week. But even in that best-case scenario, that doesn’t give him much time to change his trade value. He can be retained for 2026 via arbitration but is trending towards a non-tender.

Photo courtesy of Ron Chenoy, Imagn Images

Ryan Burr To Undergo Season-Ending Shoulder Surgery

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Blue Jays right-hander Ryan Burr will undergo season-ending surgery to address a capsule injury in his throwing shoulder. That was one of many updates that manager John Schneider provided about players on the roster. Shi Davidi of Sportsnet was among those to pass the info along.

Burr, now 31, had a solid showing with the Jays last year. He tossed 32 2/3 innings with a 4.10 earned run average. He struck out 33.6% of opponents and had a walk rate of 8.6%. If it weren’t for a .329 batting average on balls in play, he could have fared better, which is why FIP had him at 3.07 and SIERA at 2.66.

Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to build on that here in 2025. He started the year on the injured list due to shoulder inflammation. He eventually got healthy enough to be reinstated in early July. But after just two appearances, he was quickly placed on the 60-day IL with a rotator cuff strain.

He’ll stay on the IL for the rest of the year. He has passed three years of service time and will qualify for arbitration but the Jays may not tender him a contract. His results last year were good but he’s out of options will be coming off a lost season.

That wasn’t the only unfortunate news about the club’s bullpen depth. Right-hander Yimi García, who is on the 15-day IL due to a left ankle sprain, is experiencing ulnar nerve symptoms in his right elbow.

It’s a bit ominous, as elbow problems were a factor in his 2024 season. Right elbow ulnar neuritis sent him to the IL for about a month in June/July. He then returned to the IL in late August due to right elbow inflammation, after having been traded to the Mariners, and finished the season there.

The Jays nonetheless brought him back on a two-year, $15MM deal. He has tossed 21 innings with a 3.86 ERA this year, working around an IL stint for a right shoulder impingement, the recent ankle issue and now this elbow trouble.

With less than two weeks until the deadline, it’s possible these updates increase the motivation to add some fresh arms. Most contending clubs look for relief help ahead of the deadline and the unfortunate health developments could push the Jays farther in that direction.

There were unfortunate updates about Bowden Francis and Anthony Santander as well. Francis is on the IL with a shoulder impingement and will be shut down for ten days due to feeling “a bit cranky” in that shoulder. Santander is on the IL due to a left shoulder subluxation. He is still not swinging a bat and is set for further evaluation.

Though those are unfortunate updates, they may not have too much of an impact on the deadline. Francis posted a 6.05 ERA before hitting the IL, so the Jays probably weren’t going to be relying on him too heavily for the stretch run. Getting peak Santander back would be a nice boost for the lineup but the Jays have been getting good results from George Springer as the primary designated hitter and have a fairly crowded outfield mix consisting of Addison Barger, Nathan Lukes, Myles Straw, Joey Loperfido and Davis Schneider, with Daulton Varsho on a rehab assignment and on pace to rejoin the club soon.

Image courtesy of Dan Hamilton, Imagn Images

Orioles Re-Sign Corbin Martin To Major League Deal

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The Orioles announced that they have re-signed right-hander Corbin Martin to a major league deal. The O’s already had vacancies on their 40-man and active rosters, so no corresponding moves were necessary.

Martin was on the Baltimore roster as of a few days ago. On Sunday, he was designated for assignment to open an active roster roster spot for left-hander Grant Wolfram. Later that same day, just before gametime, Scott Blewett hit the IL with right elbow discomfort. Catcher David Bañuelos was recalled to take Blewett’s spot on the roster, presumably because he was with the club in a taxi squad capacity. Bañuelos was outrighted to Triple-A during the All-Star break. Martin cleared waivers and elected free agency but has quickly been re-signed, effectively taking the bullpen spot of Blewett.

Though he spent over a week on Baltimore’s roster, he only got to make one appearance. He tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings back on July 2nd but then wasn’t used between that game and his DFA. Since he’s out of options, his grip on a roster spot is likely tenuous. However, the Orioles might sell some bullpen pieces prior to the deadline, with Seranthony Domínguez, Gregory Soto and Andrew Kittredge seeming like good candidates to be on the move. A trade of Félix Bautista is less likely but the O’s are at least listening to offers.

For now, he gets a major league job and will try to build on his season. Prior to getting called up at the start of July, he had tossed 32 1/3 Triple-A innings with a 5.29 earned run average. That probably disguises his performance a bit as his .306 batting average on balls in play, 68.4% strand rate and 17.9% home run to fly ball rate were all a bit to the unfortunate side. Meanwhile, he struck out 23% of batters faced with a 10.4% walk rate and 44.9% ground ball rate.

It wouldn’t be a surprise if he’s bumped off the roster again in the next few days but a greater path to innings could open up if the O’s pull the trigger on some trades. Perhaps he could hang on the roster into August or re-sign another time if he is bumped off again.

Photo courtesy of Jerome Miron, Imagn Images

Derek Law To Undergo Season-Ending Flexor Tendon Surgery

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Nationals right-hander Derek Law tells reporters, including Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com and Spencer Nusbaum of The Washington Post, that he has a partial tear of his flexor tendon. He will undergo surgery which comes with a recovery time of nine to ten months.

Law, now 34, had a good season with the Nats in 2024. He tossed 90 innings over 75 appearances with a 2.60 earned run average. His 20.8% strikeout rate was a tad below average but his 6.6% walk rate and 48.5% ground ball rate were both strong numbers. A flexor strain put him on the IL on August 17th but he was reinstated two weeks later.

The Nats clearly didn’t think the flexor muscle was an issue going into 2025, as they tendered him a contract. He and the Nats avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $2.75MM salary for this year, the largest salary of the journeyman’s career. He began the campaign on the 15-day IL due to a flexor strain. He started a rehab assignment in June, though that lasted only four appearances. He was transferred to the 60-day IL in early July.

With the news of this surgery, it will go down as a lost season for Law. He has passed six years of service time and will become a free agent at season’s end. His market should be modest, given his age, track record and this procedure. Given the expected timeline, he will still be rehabbing when the 2026 campaign begins. He could perhaps hold a showcase for interested clubs once he is healthy but will likely be limited to minor league offers.

Law has pitched for the Giants, Blue Jays, Twins, Tigers, Reds and Nationals over his career. He has logged 346 innings with a 3.69 ERA, 21.1% strikeout rate, 9.2% walk rate and 45.8% ground ball rate.

Photo courtesy of Rafael Suanes, Imagn Images

Mets Reinstate Brooks Raley, Designate Richard Lovelady For Assignment

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The Mets announced that left-hander Brooks Raley has been reinstated from the 60-day injured list. Fellow lefty Richard Lovelady has been designated for assignment as the corresponding move.

Raley, 37, has been a solid lefty reliever for a few years now. He was working as a starter in Korea from 2015 to 2019 but returned to affiliated ball after that. He spent time with the Reds, Astros and Rays before coming to the Mets for the 2023 season.

His first season as a Met was a good one. He pitched 54 2/3 innings with a 2.80 earned run average. His 10.6% walk rate was a bit high but he punched out 25.8% of opponents and got grounders at a 43% clip. That was impressive enough that the Mets picked up his $6.5MM club option for 2024. Unfortunately, he made just eight appearances last year. He landed on the injured list due to elbow inflammation and eventually required Tommy John surgery.

He remained unsigned throughout this offseason but re-signed with the Mets in late April, a one-year deal with a $1.85MM guarantee. That comes in the form of a $1.5MM salary this year followed by a $300K buyout on a $4.75MM club option for 2026. There are also bonuses in the deal, including a $250K roster bonus that he unlocked by being added to the active roster today.

The Mets came into the year with A.J. Minter and Danny Young as their lefty relief contingent. Shortly after the Raley deal was agreed to, both Minter and Young hit the IL. Minter required season-ending lat surgery while Young required Tommy John surgery.

As Raley has been rehabbing, the Mets have cycled through a number of stopgap lefties, including Lovelady, Génesis Cabrera, José Castillo and Colin Poche. Ideally, Raley can get back to his pre-surgery form and give the club a reliable southpaw out of the ’pen. For what it’s worth, he just threw nine scoreless innings in the minors during his rehab assignment, with a 36.1% strikeout rate, 2.8% walk rate and 52.6% ground ball rate. Regardless of how he performs over the next few weeks, the Mets will likely look to add another lefty or two prior to the deadline.

Lovelady, 30, is out of options and has been been on the fringes of a few rosters this year. He started with the Blue Jays but made just two appearances for them before getting designated for assignment. He elected free agency and landed a minor league deal with the Twins, though he opted out of that in mid-June.

Since then, he has twice signed with the Mets. After the first signing, he made one appearance before being designated for assignment and electing free agency. He re-signed a few days later and the second stint lasted a bit longer, allowing him to make five appearances.

On the whole, he has a 10.80 ERA this year, though it’s a small sample of 8 1/3 innings and most of the damage came in his second outing of the season. During his stint with the Twins, he tossed 20 2/3 Triple-A innings with a 1.31 ERA, 26.5% strikeout rate, 8.4% walk rate and 60.4% ground ball rate. Based on his recent track record, it’s possible he will again clear waivers and elect free agency in the coming days.

Photo courtesy of Wendell Cruz, Imagn Images

Orioles Sign First-Round Pick Ike Irish

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The Orioles announced that they have signed their first-round pick from this year’s draft Ike Irish. Jim Callis of MLB.com reports that the signing bonus was just over $4.4MM, right around slot value for the 19th overall pick.

Irish spent the past three years with Auburn. He was primarily a catcher in his earlier years with the Tigers but spent more time in right field this year. That was due to a fractured scapula he suffered when he was hit by a pitch, but there were already questions about his ability to stick at the position even before that happened.

There appear to be less questions about the bat. He slashed .350/.435/.625 across his three seasons at Auburn, with a .364/.469/.710 line this year. He also has some experience with a wood bat, having played in the Cape Cod League in 2023 and 2024 with a combined .307/.414/.396 line.

Keith Law of The Athletic ranked Irish fifth in the class. MLB Pipeline and ESPN both had him at #11 and Baseball America at #13. All outlets praise his left-handed swing, which can produce hard contact to all fields, though his future power potential is a bit less certain.

As mentioned, it’s a question whether or not Irish should be behind the plate or if he should be moved to right field or perhaps first base. For what it’s worth, the Orioles announced him as a catcher, so it seems the door is still open for him to be a backstop.

The Orioles have Adley Rutschman behind the plate, though he’s only controlled through the 2027 season. Samuel Basallo is at Triple-A and is considered one of the top prospects in the league, though there’s a chance he ends up at first base in the long run.

Photo courtesy of Mickey Welsh, Imagn Images

Trade Deadline Outlook: Boston Red Sox

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MLBTR’s team-by-team look at the upcoming deadline continues with the Red Sox. There has been a lot of drama in Boston this year and it hasn't always been smooth sailing. However, a ten-game win streak just before the break has catapulted them into buyer position. The question now is how aggressive they will be in adding to the club ahead of the deadline. With a glut of outfielders, would they be willing to use that surplus to bolster another area of the roster?

Record: 53-45 (55.9% playoff probability, per FanGraphs)

For other entrants in this series, see this post.

Buy Mode

Potential needs: pitching, first base, backup catcher

The Sox have one elite pillar in their rotation, but it's questionable after that. Even that pillar comes with some degree of uncertainty. Garrett Crochet leads the club in starts and innings pitched, by a healthy margin in both cases. He has a 2.23 earned run average over 129 1/3 innings pitched.

Can he keep it up the rest of the way? In the early parts of his career, he was either hurt or working as a reliever. A move to the rotation last year worked out brilliantly, though the White Sox backed off his workload in the second half. He had 101 1/3 innings pitched through the end of June but then just 44 2/3 innings the rest of the way, finishing at 146 frames. Whether he can get that into the 200 range and still be effective in the postseason is something of an open question.

Even with Boston counting on Crochet to fill one playoff rotation spot, they would need more. Are Lucas Giolito and Brayan Bello viable candidates? Giolito has been trending in a positive direction lately. He missed all of 2024 due to elbow surgery and then a hamstring strain put him on the shelf for the first month of 2025. Through his first seven starts, he had a 6.42 ERA, 18% strikeout rate and 7.3% walk rate. In his most recent six outings: 0.70 ERA, 25.5% strikeout rate and 6.9% walk rate.

The Sox will have to decide if that's small sample noise or Giolito getting on track after years of struggles. From 2019 to 2021, he posted a 3.47 ERA with a 30.7% strikeout rate. But over 2022 and 2023, he had a 4.89 ERA and 25.5% strikeout rate. It would be great if he's back to his old self, but six starts is still a pretty small sample size.

It's a somewhat similar situation for Bello, who missed the first few weeks of the season due to a shoulder strain. Through eight starts, he had a 3.83 ERA, 16.1% strikeout rate and 12.2% walk rate. But in his seven most recent appearances, he has a 2.61 ERA, 19.7% strikeout rate and 5.8% walk rate.

The options beyond those three are not inspiring. Walker Buehler has a 6.12 ERA on the year. Tanner Houck had an 8.04 ERA before a flexor pronator strain sent him to the injured list. Richard Fitts has some passable numbers but just 12 big league starts under his belt. Hunter Dobbins and Kutter Crawford are done for the year. Kyle Harrison isn't doing especially well in the minors. Patrick Sandoval could be a factor later in the season, but he's still a question mark for now. He had UCL surgery just over a year ago and has yet to begin a rehab assignment.

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