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Cubs Select Christian Bethancourt

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The Cubs announced today that they have selected the contract of catcher Christian Bethancourt. He’ll take the roster spot of fellow backstop Tomás Nido, who has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a right knee sprain, retroactive to July 25. To open a 40-man roster spot, right-hander Ben Brown was transferred to the 60-day injured list.

Bethancourt, 32, began the year with the Marlins but struggled significantly with that club. He hit .159/.198/.268 through 88 plate appearances and was released by the end of June. The Cubs had just two catchers on their 40-man roster in Nido and Miguel Amaya, so they brought Bethancourt over on a minor league deal.

He hasn’t done much to inspire hope that he’s put his offensive woes behind him since then. In seven Triple-A games since signing that pact, he has a line of .192/.222/.192. That’s a tiny sample size but the combination of that with his work with the Marlins earlier this year is fairly bleak.

The Cubs will seemingly be hoping for a bounceback. As recently as 2022, Bethancourt hit .252/.283/.409 in the majors for a wRC+ of 100. But he slipped to .225/.254/.381 and a wRC+ of 74 last year and, as mentioned, has been awful this season.

Even if he doesn’t hit, Bethancourt is fairly well regarded for his work in controlling the running game, though his framing metrics aren’t that strong. The move will at least come with a minimal cost, as the Marlins are on the hook for the majority of his $2.05MM salary, with the Cubs only having to cover the prorated version of the league minimum salary for any time spent on the roster. That will be subtracted from what the Fish pay.

As for Brown, he landed on the 15-day injured list June 9. His ailment was initially listed as a neck strain though it was later reported to actually be a stress reaction in his neck. He’s now ineligible to return until 60 days from that initial IL placement, which would be early August. He has yet to begin a rehab assignment and will presumably need at least a week or two to ramp up whenever he’s cleared to do so. Taking that into consideration, this may not indicate any kind of setback in his recovery.

Tigers Place Riley Greene On Injured List

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The Tigers announced that outfielder Riley Greene has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a right hamstring strain. Infielder/outfielder Ryan Vilade has been recalled from Triple-A Toledo in a corresponding move.

At this point, it’s unclear how long Greene is expected to be out of action and the player himself couldn’t provide much clarity. “It’s Grade 1 or 2, whatever it is,” Greene said, per Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic on X. “It could have been worse. I’m glad it’s not. There’s really no timeline behind it. It’s based on how I’m feeling, and go from there.”

Even with that murky prognosis, it could be a notable development nonetheless as Greene has easily been the club’s best position player this year and the Tigers are one of many in-between teams that could impact Tuesday’s trade deadline.

In 101 games for Detroit this year, Greene has 17 home runs. His 25.5% strikeout rate is a bit on the high side but he’s also drawn walks in 11.9% of his plate appearances. His .264/.357/.485 batting line leads to a 136 wRC+, indicating he’s been 36% better than the league average hitter.

Greene’s glovework has also received strong reviews. He has played all three outfield slots, though mostly in left field. Thus far, he’s racked up nine Defensive Runs Saved and two Outs Above Average.

Combining his offensive and defensive contributions, Greene has been worth 2.9 wins above replacement this year, per the calculations of FanGraphs. No other position player on the Tigers has been worth more than 1.5 fWAR this year so Greene is essentially doubling all of his non-pitching teammates in that department.

The Tigers are one of many clubs within sight of a playoff spot but not necessarily with a great shot. They are 51-53 and currently 5.5 games back of an American League Wild Card spot. The Playoff Odds at FanGraphs give them an 8.8% chance of getting into the postseason while the PECOTA Standings at Baseball Prospectus have them a tad lower at 7.7%.

If they decide to sell between now and the deadline, they could make some very interesting players available. Jack Flaherty is viewed as the top rental starting pitcher on the market and the Tigers have other possible rentals in Carson Kelly, Mark Canha and Gio Urshela. They have 2025 club options on Andrew Chafin and Shelby Miller. Though Tarik Skubal has two years of club control remaining after this one, rival clubs are undoubtedly trying their best to get him out of Detroit.

The Tigers are playing the Twins this weekend, one of the clubs they are chasing in the playoff race. Perhaps their results this weekend will impact what kind of moves they make. Losing Greene figures to hurt their chances in those upcoming games and the ones to come after that, making this a potentially significant IL stint.

Pirates Designate Josh Fleming For Assignment

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The Pirates announced that infielder/outfielder Ji Hwan Bae has been recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis and right-hander Hunter Stratton has been reinstated from the 15-day injured list. They opened one roster spot yesterday by placing outfielder Bryan Reynolds on the bereavement list and opened another today by designating left-hander Josh Fleming for assignment.

Fleming, 28, signed with the Bucs in the offseason and now gets the DFA treatment for the second time this year. The first time resulted in him clearing waivers and accepting an outright assignment, which eventually led to his second stint in the big leagues this year.

He has logged 31 1/3 innings for the Pirates between those two stints, allowing 4.02 earned runs per nine. His 54.3% ground ball rate is quite strong but both his 12.3% strikeout rate and 10.1% walk are subpar.

Fleming is out of options and can’t be sent down to the minors without first being exposed to waivers. He was non-tendered by the Rays at the end of last year and signed a deal with the Bucs that pays him $850K in the majors and $240K in the minors. As a player with more than three years of major league service time, he has the right to reject outright assignments in favor of free agency. But since he’s south of the five-year service mark, doing so means forfeiting whatever money he’s still owed. That’s likely why he accepted his assignment the last time Pittsburgh sent him through waivers and why he may do so again.

His numbers this year are fairly similar to his time with Tampa. Overall, he has a 4.77 ERA in 254 2/3 innings. He has struck out just 14.6% of batters faced but has kept walks down to a 7.6% clip and kept balls in play on the ground at a 58.4% rate.

Perhaps some club will be interested in acquiring Fleming in the coming days. With the trade deadline on Tuesday, some teams will be opening holes on their rosters via trade and might need to fill some innings. Fleming could be retained via arbitration for three more years after this one but, as mentioned, he cleared waivers once already this year.

Rangers Among Clubs With Interest In Yandy Díaz

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Rays infielder Yandy Díaz has been on the restricted list for almost a week while attending to an undisclosed personal matter, but the Rays announced that they reinstated him today. They already had three vacancies on their 40-man roster, so this move brings their count to 38. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times relayed on X earlier that the club was hopeful of Díaz returning tonight. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported last night that the Rangers are interested in adding him to their lineup. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com says on X that the Astros, Mariners and Pirates are possible suitors, though it’s unclear if any of those clubs have engaged with the Rays.

Díaz, now 32, has been a fixture of the Rays for many years. He came to Tampa from Cleveland heading into 2019 as part of the three-team trade and quickly worked his way into being a regular for the Rays. From the start of 2019 to the present, he has drawn walks in 11.6% of his plate appearances while only striking out 14.5% of the time. His .288/.375/.439 batting line translates to a 133 wRC+, indicating he’s been 33% better than league average overall.

That offense is his best attribute. He’s not a burner on the basepaths and his third base defense was poorly regarded, though he’s been closer to average at first base and has been more or less permanently moved to that side of the diamond. But the 133 wRC+ that Díaz has put up from 2019 to the present is one of the top 15 marks in baseball among qualified hitters, highlighting that such consistently above-average production is hard to find.

Here in 2024, his season-long stats look mildly disappointing, a .273/.329/.396 line and 111 wRC+, but that’s mostly due to a brutal start that he has put behind him. He hit .211/.279/.276 through May 1 but his line of .302/.354/.453 since that time leads to a 134 wRC+, right in line with his overall track record.

The Rays don’t strictly have to move him but their behavior suggests he’s available. Going into 2023, he and the Rays signed an extension that runs through 2025 with a club option for 2026. He’ll make $10MM next year with the option valued at $12MM.

Tampa could certainly keep him but they have shown, both recently and in the past, that they are generally unafraid to move players nearing free agency. Although they are 52-51 this year and just four games out of a playoff spot, they have already traded Aaron Civale, Phil Maton and Randy Arozarena in recent weeks.

Some recent reporting suggested the Rays were more likely to trade arbitrations players than those signed to long-term deals, but that contradicts their past behavior. Players like Evan Longoria, Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Manuel Margot have all signed extensions and then been traded before those contracts ended, so there’s no real reason to believe the Rays won’t be open to trade offers on Díaz.

Doing so wouldn’t even be a signal that the club is giving up on 2024, as players like Isaac Paredes and Curtis Mead could fill in at first base. Jonathan Aranda is currently hurt but could be in the mix later. Infielders like Junior Caminero, Austin Shenton and Osleivis Basabe could be called up to fill in elsewhere around the infield. In the long term, Xavier Isaac is a first baseman and considered one of the top 50 prospects in the league, though he’s yet to reach Double-A.

For the Rangers, Rosenthal relays that they are looking for “either a left-handed hitting outfielder/DH or a platoon-neutral right-handed hitter.” Díaz is better against lefties but isn’t a liability without the platoon advantage. He has a 148 wRC+ against southpaws in his career and a 121 wRC+ against righties. It’s a far wider split of 151 and 99 this year, though in a much smaller sample size.

Texas hitters have a collective line of .237/.309/.378 against right-handed pitching, with that line leading to a 93 wRC+, putting them ahead of just seven clubs in that split. They have Nathaniel Lowe at first base but don’t really have a regular designated hitter and should be able to fit both him and Díaz into the same lineup.

The Rays and Mariners already lined up on one deal, sending the aforementioned Arozarena to Seattle as the M’s look for more offense. Díaz could further augment their lineup, especially with the struggling Ty France have been recently designated for assignment and leaving an opening at first base. They have plugged Tyler Locklear into that spot but he has only 40 major league plate appearances thus far.

The Astros also cut ties with a struggling first baseman, releasing José Abreu earlier this year. They have mostly used Jon Singleton to fill that hole but he’s hitting just .231/.319/.343 this year for a 93 wRC+.

The Pirates have a bit less of a dire need as they held onto their struggling first baseman and were rewarded with a bounceback. Rowdy Tellez was hitting .177/.239/.223 through the end of May but has a line of .328/.364/.588 since the calendar flipped to June. His season-long line is still subpar thanks to that early slump but the Pirates probably feel less inclined to replaced Tellez on the heels of his hot streak this summer. They have Andrew McCutchen in the designated hitter spot most days, which makes the lineup fit a bit less clean unless they plan on moving on from Tellez, who is a free agent at season’s end.

Both the Astros and Rangers are set to pay the competitive balance tax at season’s end, so they may have to consider the taxes involved in taking on the Díaz contract. The Astros are set to be a first-time payor and have a base rate of 20% but RosterResource has their CBT number at $256MM. Crossing over the $257MM second tier would increase their tax rate to 32% for spending beyond that line. Recent reporting suggested they are trying to move Rafael Montero’s contract to lessen their tax burden but doing so will be difficult given his poor results of late. RosterResource has the Rangers at $249MM but they are set to be a second-time payor and have a base tax rate of 30%.

Mets Designate Adrian Houser, Shintaro Fujinami For Assignment

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The Mets announced a series of roster moves Friday, designating righties Adrian Houser and Shintaro Fujinami for assignment in order to open roster space for the return of Kodai Senga and the recall of righty Eric Orze from Triple-A Syracuse. (Fujinami was technically reinstated from the injured list prior to his DFA.) The Mets also placed righty Dedniel Núñez on the 15-day injured list due to a right pronator strain.

Houser, now 31, was acquired from the Brewers in the offseason alongside outfielder Tyrone Taylor. David Stearns had just been installed as the Mets’ new president of baseball operations and was familiar with both players from his time in Milwaukee.

The righty was coming off five fairly solid seasons with the Brewers, primarily as a starter. From 2019 to 2023, Houser had made 120 appearances for Milwaukee with 97 of those being starts. In his 523 2/3 innings, he allowed 4.04 earned runs per nine. His 19.2% strikeout rate was subpar but his 9.1% walk rate was close to average and he kept the ball on the ground at a strong clip of 52.5%.

It was hoped that he could serve a similar back-end role in the rotation in Queens but that didn’t go according to plan. Houser made six starts through early May but had an 8.16 ERA in those and got bumped to the bullpen. Since losing his rotation spot, his results have looked similar to his old self. In his last 40 2/3 innings, he has a 4.20 ERA, 16.9% strikeout rate, 7% walk rate and 50.8% ground ball rate.

Despite his results evening out, he has been squeezed off the Mets’ roster, perhaps not coincidentally just before the trade deadline. The Mets started the season with Senga and David Peterson on the injured list but both are now back on the roster. Though Christian Scott is now on the IL with a sprain of his UCL, the rotation mix now includes Senga, Peterson, Sean Manaea, Luis Severino, Jose Quintana and Tylor Megill with José Buttó in the big league bullpen.

Houser was largely blocked from getting another rotation gig there but perhaps he could be of interest to another club in need of starting pitching. Houser won’t be as exciting as aces like Garrett Crochet or Tarik Skubal but there are clubs who arguably just need solid back-end innings, such as the Guardians, Astros, Padres, Atlanta or Houser’s former club in Milwaukee. He is making $5.05MM this year, with roughly $1.7MM still to be paid out. He’s on pace for free agency at season’s end.

Fujinami, 30, put up huge strikeout numbers in Japan but also with worrying control problems. Those trends continued last year, his first in North America, split between the Athletics and Orioles. In 79 innings, he struck out 23.2% of batters faced but also gave out walks at a 13.2% clip. His 7.18 ERA last year was gruesome but likely not indicative of his true talents as he only stranded 53.4% of runners, with his 4.61 FIP and 4.60 SIERA finishing in nicer shape.

The Mets took a shot on him by signing him to a one-year, $3.35MM deal in the offseason but he hasn’t yet pitched for them. He began the year on optional assignment, getting recalled in mid-May to be placed on the injured list with a shoulder strain. He began a rehab assignment a couple of weeks ago but the Mets evidently didn’t want to make room for him on their roster.

The results prior to hitting the IL were very bad, as Fujinami had a 14.09 ERA in 7 2/3 innings. Since starting his rehabbing assignment, things have been better, with a 3.12 ERA in 8 2/3 innings, but evidently not impressive enough for the Mets to want to hang on to him.

The club will now have until the trade deadline to explore trades of either player. Houser could perhaps entice clubs based on his track record while Fujinami has some theoretical upside via his potent but wild arsenal. If the Mets can unload either player, they would likely save more money than any other club would take on. As a third-time competitive balance tax payor, they are paying a 110% tax on all spending over the top tier. Though Fujinami is only owed about $1.16MM at this point, the Mets could save more than double that amount when factoring in the taxes.

Christian Yelich To Attempt Non-Surgical Rehab On Back

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Yesterday, the possibility was raised that Brewers outfielder/designated hitter Christian Yelich could be facing season-ending back surgery. That scenario seems to be off the table at the moment, with Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reporting on X that Yelich will attempt rest and rehab for now, but with surgery in the offseason still “a strong possibility.”

The Brewers placed their star and former MVP on the 10-day injured list yesterday with lower back inflammation. It was reported at the time that the 32-year-old would be seeing a spine specialist today with season-ending surgery a possibility, though it seems the specialist gave Yelich some hope of returning this season.

The lower back has been an ongoing problem for Yelich, as he went on the IL due to issues in that part of his body in 2014, 2015, 2021 and now again in 2024. “I’ve dealt with it a lot during my career,” Yelich said yesterday, per Adam McCalvy of MLB.com on X. “I feel like it’s kind of affected me in a negative way at times. I’ve been able to play at a high level but it’s one of those things that’s held be back a little, so that’s where it’s frustrating. What are you going to do? But also, though, there’s a potential that I can finally get on the other side of this, finally, when all is said and done. We’ll see. It remains to be seen, I guess.”

Based on those words from Yelich, it seems as though there’s some belief that the surgery could put the issue behind him for good. Even if that is the case, it’s understandable why he would try to delay it, at least for a few months. The Brewers are currently 59-43 and have a six-game lead over the Cardinals in the National League Central. Given the club’s circumstances, it’s understandable that he would want to pursue a chance of coming back for the stretch run and then the playoffs.

Even when not 100% healthy, he’s often the best player on the field when he’s out there. He won National League MVP in 2018 and was roughly as good in 2019. Over those two seasons, he hit 80 home runs and slashed .327/.415/.631 for a wRC+ of 170. He also stole 52 bases and played all three outfield positions. He racked up a massive 14.2 wins above replacement in that two-year stretch, per FanGraphs.

He then had a bit of a dip in 2020 and 2021, hitting .234/.360/.392 in that time for a 106 wRC+, but he’s been on an upward trend since then. His wRC+ jumped to 111 in 2022 and 122 last year, before getting all the way to 155 here in 2024. He’s hit 11 home runs and is drawing walks in 12.7% of his plate appearances, leading to a .315/.406/.504 batting line. He’s swiped 21 bags as well.

Getting that kind of production back in the lineup later in the year will obviously be a priority for the Brewers. For now, they have an outfield mix consisting of Sal Frelick, Jackson Chourio, Garrett Mitchell and Blake Perkins. The designated hitter slot can be shared between Rhys Hoskins, Gary Sánchez and others.

Even if he is able to return this year, it’s still possible he’ll have to go under the knife later. Whether that impacts his offseason or his 2025 campaign remains to be seen. His deal with the Brewers runs through 2028 with a mutual option for 2029.

Garrett Crochet Hoping To Stay In Rotation, Desires Extension Before Pitching In October

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Garrett Crochet of the White Sox has had a very unusual trajectory which makes him one of the more unique trade candidates. Per reports from Jon Heyman of the New York Post as well as Patrick Mooney, Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic, Crochet would prefer to stay in a starting role through the end of the year but clubs have concerns about how he will hold up down the stretch. As he pushes his workload into uncharted personal territory, he reportedly desires a contract extension before pitching in October.

This is a situation that has been a long time coming, given the strange combination of Crochet’s elite 2024 campaign and lack of previous track record. Back in 2018, he tossed 63 2/3 innings of college ball in Tennessee, then added another 65 innings the year after. In 2020, he missed some time due to shoulder soreness and then tossed just 3 1/3 innings before the pandemic shutdown.

The Sox then selected him 11th overall in that summer’s draft. There were no minor league games that year due to the pandemic, but they called him up the majors and he pitched six innings down the stretch. With his limited workload, they kept him in a relief role in 2021 and he tossed 54 1/3 innings that year. Then Tommy John surgery wiped out his 2022 season and limited him to just 25 innings in 2023: 12 2/3 in the majors plus 12 1/3 minor league frames from his rehab assignment.

That left Crochet coming into 2024 with 217 1/3 innings of official game action on his arm over the six-year period from 2018 to 2023. The 65 innings from his second college season were his personal high for one year and his biggest workload as a professional was the 54 1/3 relief innings from 2021. Ignoring the college years altogether and he only had 85 1/3 innings as a professional, majors and minors combined, coming into this year. He only logged 25 totals innings over the past two years.

Despite all of that, the Sox stretched him out as a starter this year and the results have been better than anyone could have reasonably hoped. Through 21 starts, he has logged 111 1/3 innings, a higher tally than his entire professional workload coming into the season. He has allowed 3.07 earned runs per nine innings with a 35.4% strikeout rate, 5.6% walk rate and 46.1% ground ball rate.

Despite the fairly limited number of innings, Crochet has actually been nudging towards free agency due to all that time spent on the injured list. He crossed three years of service last year and qualified for arbitration. But due to all the missed time, he only got his salary bumped to $800K, just barely over this year’s $740K league minimum. He’ll be able to raise his salary via two more arbitration passes before he’s slated for the open market after the 2026 season.

Normally, a 25-year-old having a breakout as a bonafide ace wouldn’t be available on the trade market, but the circumstances of the Sox might allow it to happen. They are awful this year, with a record of 27-77, easily the worst in baseball this season and in the running for one of the worst ever. It will take a lot of work to get them back to contention and it may not happen within their window of control over Crochet.

Signing him to an extension would be a possibility but his quick call-up means that he’s on track to hit free agency after his age-27 season. That puts him on a path for a massive free agent payday if he stays healthy for the next few years, so he may not want to give that up easily.

All of these factors have made Crochet seemingly available and in plenty of trade rumors. He has already been connected to the Padres and Dodgers with plenty of other clubs presumably interested as well given his performance, affordability and availability.

But hanging over all of this has been the question of what an acquiring team could expect from Crochet down the stretch. Given that he’s ventured so far beyond his previous workloads, would he be able to continue starting for the rest of the year? Would he need to be moved to a relief role or shut down completely? The two extra years of cheap control are obviously still appealing but teams would naturally have questions about what remains in 2024.

From Crochet’s perspective, it’s understandable that he may want the security of having an extension in place before the postseason arrives. Any club acquiring him would be hoping for him to be playing a key role through a World Series run, either as a starter or a reliever. Since he’s already missed significant time due to Tommy John surgery and is currently pushing his arm to places it’s never been before, it’s fair that he’s thinking about a safety net. Crochet reportedly wants to keep starting, believing that to be the best option for his long-term health. If any club wants to shift him to a relief or hybrid role, he would want to be given an extension first.

He wouldn’t really have the ability to simply decide to shut himself down, but at the same time, a theoretical club acquiring him would have some overlapping interest with Crochet. Trading for Crochet is already a long-term proposition with his two extra years of control, so any club acquiring him would naturally want to keep him happy and healthy for at least that amount of time. Given his obvious talents, keeping him around for longer via an extension would have appeal as well.

But negotiating contract extensions can be tricky business and accomplishing something like that in short order during an ongoing pennant race would be a challenge. That might be especially true in Crochet’s case, as all the unique circumstances of his career might make it difficult to align on value.

Perhaps all of these complications reduce the chances of a trade coming together in the next few days. The White Sox don’t necessarily need to trade him now, given the extra two years of club control. An offseason trade could perhaps even lead to a larger market of suitors, as the Sox wouldn’t be limited only to those currently contending. Waiting until the offseason would come with some risk of Crochet getting hurt between now and then and they would also be marketing two postseason runs instead of three, but the workload/extension concerns might be a thing of the past if he can finish the season healthy.

Taken all together, there are plenty of moving parts here and it should lead to White Sox general manager Chris Getz spending plenty of time on the phone in the next few days. The circumstances around Crochet are fairly unprecedented, meaning there’s no real blueprint for what’s to come.

Orioles Release Jonathan Heasley

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July 25: The Orioles announced that Heasley has been released. Per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com on X, Heasley hasn’t pitched lately due to right shoulder inflammation. Since injured players can’t be put on outright waivers, the O’s have gone the release route instead.

July 24: The Orioles announced that they have selected the contract of pitching prospect Chayce McDermott, a move that was reported last night. In corresponding moves, they optioned right-hander Bryan Baker and designated right-hander Jonathan Heasley for assignment.

Heasley, 27, was acquired from the Royals in an offseason trade. He has spent most of this season on optional assignment, making just four appearances at the big league level. He allowed ten earned runs in 5 1/3 major league innings, giving him an unsightly 16.88 earned run average. But that’s a tiny sample size and a very wonky one at that, as he allowed a .421 batting average on balls in play and stranded just 26.8% of baserunners, both of which are far to the unlucky side.

His Triple-A work has been far better this year, as he has 30 2/3 innings at that level with a 2.64 ERA, 21.8% strikeout rate, 6.5% walk rate. and 40.9% ground ball rate. Though that’s a decent performance, his time on the O’s roster may have been nearing an end regardless. He’s in his final option season and will therefore be out of options next year.

That would make it harder for the O’s to keep him around in the long term. Though his major league struggles earlier this year were brief, they added to a fairly unimpressive track record in the bigs. He now has a 5.89 ERA in 139 major league innings dating back to his 2021 debut.

Baltimore will now have a week to trade Heasley or pass him through waivers, though the waiver process itself takes 48 hours, leaving five days to explore any possible trade interest. He had a bit of prospect pedigree a few years ago, with Baseball America ranking him #13 in the Royals’ system going into 2022. That was on the heels of Heasley tossing 105 1/3 Double-A innings in 2021 with a 3.33 ERA, 27.7% strikeout rate and 7.9% walk rate.

But he then posted a 6.11 ERA at the Triple-A level over 2022 and 2023 and got squeezed off Kansas City’s roster. He’s been better at the higher levels of the minors this year but still hasn’t found success in the majors. If any club acquires him, they would have the rest of this year to send him to the minors. He also has plenty of potential club control with his service time count just over the one-year mark.

Dodgers Designate Yohan Ramírez For Assignment

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The Dodgers announced that they have reinstated Clayton Kershaw from the 60-day injured list, a move that manager Dave Roberts announced last week. To open a 40-man roster spot for him, right-hander Yohan Ramírez has been designated for assignment.

Ramírez, 29, came to the Dodgers from the Mets two months ago in a cash deal. He has since tossed 29 1/3 innings for the Dodgers with a 5.52 earned run average. He probably deserved a bit better than the ERA would indicate, as his .337 batting average on balls in play and 63.3% strand rate are both on the unlucky side. His 20.1% strikeout rate is a bit below par but his 8.2% walk rate and 45.3% ground ball rate are close to average. His 4.47 FIP and 3.95 SIERA each point to him actually being a bit better than his ERA would suggest.

Since the righty is out of options, he has bounced around the league this year, as he also spent time with the Orioles and Mets. Between the three clubs, he has 43 2/3 innings with a 22.1% strikeout rate, 8.5% walk rate, 44.4% ground ball rate, 5.98 ERA, 4.17 FIP and 3.76 SIERA.

It’s now possible that he will end up on his fourth team of the year. The Dodgers will have a week to work out a trade or pass him through waivers, but the waiver process takes 48 hours. That means they have just five days to explore trade talks and the trade deadline is also just five days away at this point.

There figures to be plenty of roster turnover in the coming days thanks to the deadline, with plenty of relievers sure to change hands. It’s possible that some rebuilding clubs will wind up with holes in their bullpens soon and may be interested in grabbing Ramírez to help fill things in for the final few months of the season. Though he is out of options, he can be controlled via arbitration for three seasons beyond this one.

Dodgers, Yankees Interested In Rich Hill

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44-year-old left-hander Rich Hill appears to be sticking to his plan for a midseason signing. Per Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe on X, the free agent is on the mound and has interest from the Yankees and Dodgers.

Through a plan of his own devising, Hill has set himself up to be a unique entry into the market. Way back in August of 2022, he told Rob Bradford of WEEI that he was considering only playing in the second half of the 2023 season. The idea would have both off-field and on-field implications, as Hill could spend more time with his family and then theoretically have more impact for a club by preparing his body for a three-month sprint as opposed to a six- or seven-month grind. He would also have the freedom to target a contending club and increase his chances of playing for a World Series ring.

Hill didn’t follow through on his plan last year, as he agreed to an $8MM deal with the Pirates at the end of December. He spent the first few months of the season in Pittsburgh and then was flipped to San Diego at the deadline, though the Padres fell out of contention down the stretch and ultimately missed the playoffs.

The idea of a midseason signing was clearly still on his mind, however, as he mentioned the idea again in October to Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Back in May, he told Ian Browne of MLB.com that he was still committed to the plan, saying that he turned down some offseason offers but was keeping himself ready to be signed when he decided it was time.

With the trade deadline now less than a week away, Hill is an intriguing wild card in the market. If any team is frustrated by the lack of sellers or simply put off by the asking prices for starting pitching, they could perhaps reach out to Hill. Or if Hill remains unsigned after the deadline, he could market himself to whichever clubs came up short in pursuing rotation upgrades via trade. Though he appears to be doing prep work on his own, he will presumably need some kind of ramp-up period even after signing.

Assuming he gets back on a major league mound for someone, he will be looking to continue what has already been a unique career. He struggled badly in 2009 and then hardly pitched in the majors at all from 2010 to 2014. Then he came roaring back with four excellent starts for the Red Sox in 2015 and amazingly had the best run of his career in his late 30s. From 2016 to 2020, his age-36 to age-40 seasons, he had a 3.01 earned run average in 476 innings. He paired a 28.3% strikeout rate with an 8.2% walk rate.

He’s naturally slipped a bit as he has pushed into his 40s, an age when most pitchers aren’t even still in the league, but the results have still been passable. He had a 4.04 ERA in 283 innings over 2021 and 2022, but then his ERA jumped to 5.41 last year.

If Hill can get any kind of a boost from his unusual trajectory this year, he could be a key pickup for the stretch run. For the Dodgers, they have had plenty of issues in their rotation this year. Both Emmet Sheehan and Dustin May are out for the year after undergoing season-ending surgeries. Yoshinobu Yamamoto is on the 60-day injured list due to a rotator cuff strain and can’t return until mid-August at the earliest. Bobby Miller is in the minors after posting an 8.07 ERA earlier this year. Walker Buehler also struggled before landing on the IL with a hip injury.

The club reinstated Tyler Glasnow from his own IL stint yesterday and will do the same with Clayton Kershaw today, but the rotation behind those two consists of rookies Gavin Stone, River Ryan and Justin Wrobleski. They could get Yamamoto, Buehler and/or Miller back later in the year but adding Hill would be sensible. The Dodgers are apparently more focused on an “impact” addition at the deadline as opposed to marginal upgrades, but adding Hill could be done in conjunction with their pursuits of guys like Garrett Crochet of the White Sox.

As for the Yankees, their rotation looks good on paper but has been struggling lately. Despite having Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes, Carlos Rodón, Marcus Stroman and Luis Gil, their rotation has a collective ERA of 5.11 since the start of June, which is better than just the Marlins and the Rockies in that time. Gil hardly pitched in the past two years due to Tommy John surgery but is already up to 107 1/3 innings here in 2024, so adding another starter and bumping him to a relief role or the minors would make sense. Clarke Schmidt is on the IL and could return to that mix later but has yet to begin a rehab assignment.

Both clubs are set to be third-time payors of the competitive balance tax and each is slated to finish 2024 above the fourth and final CBT tier in 2024. That means they would each be looking at a 110% tax rate for any money they give to Hill or anyone else at this point.

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