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White Sox Outright Nick Maton

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White Sox infielder Nick Maton has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Charlotte. Maton was designated for assignment on the weekend. He has the right to reject this assignment and elect free agency, though it’s not clear if he will exercise that right. Scott Merkin of MLB.com was among those to relay the news of the outright today.

Maton, 28, signed a minor league deal with the Sox in the offseason. He cracked the club’s Opening Day roster and got into 23 games. In his 61 plate appearances, he walked at a strong 14.8% pace but was also struck out at a 29.5% clip. He hit .173/.295/.327 for a wRC+ of 84. It’s possible he would have performed better in time, since his .219 batting average on balls in play is well below league average, but the Sox decided to move on.

He played a bit of first base, second base and left field but was primarily in the designated hitter slot. That seemed to be a bet on his minor league production. While he has hit just .202/.302/.354 in his big league career, he slashed .269/.382/.466 on the farm over 2023 and 2024 for a 124 wRC+. He then had a nice spring showing with the Sox this year, hitting .289/.357/.632. Unfortunately, it didn’t translate to the regular season, giving the club tepid production from the DH spot.

Maton is out of options, so he had to be removed from the 40-man roster entirely when the club grabbed Gage Workman from DFA limbo. As a player with a previous career outright, he can head to the open market and look for opportunities elsewhere if he so chooses.

If he sticks with the Sox, it’s possible that at-bats will open as the season rolls along. They are 7-21 and sure to be deadline sellers. Players like Andrew Benintendi, Luis Robert Jr., Andrew Vaughn and others will likely be traded this summer if they are playing well. That could open a path for Maton to return, though the Sox could also give playing time to prospects like Kyle Teel or Colson Montgomery.

Photo courtesy of Jesse Johnson, Imagn Images

Rangers Designate Daniel Robert For Assigment

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The Rangers announced that they have selected right-hander Dane Dunning and optioned right-hander Caleb Boushley, two moves that were reported earlier today. To open a 40-man spot for Dunning, right-hander Daniel Robert has been designated for assignment.

Robert, 30, was added to the club’s 40-man roster in July of last year. By the end of the season, he had made four appearances and logged 5 2/3 innings with two earned runs allowed. He has been on optional assignment for all of this year, so that is the totality of his big league experience to this point.

His work in the minors has been intriguing, though with some control issues. Dating back to the start of 2022, he has thrown 136 2/3 innings for Triple-A Round Rock. He has allowed 4.15 earned runs per nine innings with that club, who play in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. He had an 11.5% walk rate in that time but also punched out 28.7% of batters faced.

He’s been far better than that more recently. From the start of 2024 to the present, he has a 2.45 ERA in 55 Triple-A innings. His 31.7% strikeout rate is quite strong and he has only walked 7.8% of opponents.

Despite the strong minor league work, he has been nudged off the roster. Perhaps that’s because of his late-bloomer status. A two-way player in college who hardly pitched, his professional ascent was interrupted by the canceled 2020 season and a few injuries. When he made his major league debut in July of last year, he was on the cusp of his 30th birthday, which was in August.

Now that he’s been nudged off the roster, the Rangers will have one week to figure out his fate. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so any trade talks will have to come together in the next five days. Given his strong minor league numbers and the fact that he’s still optionable for the rest of this season and one additional year, it’s possible he’ll garner some interest from other clubs.

Photo courtesy of Joe Camporeale, Imagn Images

Rangers To Select Dane Dunning

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Right-hander Dane Dunning is going to be added to the Rangers’ roster, per Shawn McFarland of the Dallas Morning News. Fellow righty Caleb Boushley will be optioned to get Dunning onto the active roster but the club will need to make a corresponding move to open a 40-man roster spot. The club has not announced the moves yet.

Dunning, 30, was outrighted off the club’s 40-man roster just ahead of Opening Day. He had just wrapped up a tough spring showing, allowing 10 earned runs in 11 innings. He also had a pretty rough campaign in 2024. He posted a 5.31 ERA around some injured list stints last year. He had come into the season with a 4.16 career ERA, so that was a notable jump. Over the course of the season, he was bumped to the bullpen and also optioned to the minors for a while.

Since being outrighted, he’s been pitching out of the rotation for Triple-A Round Rock. He has a 5.40 ERA across five starts for that club, pitching in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. His 22.6% strikeout rate and 9.7% walk rate are both close to average but he has allowed four home runs, a rate of 17.4% per fly ball.

He’s likely ticketed for a long relief role with the big league club. The Rangers have Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi, Tyler Mahle, Patrick Corbin and Jack Leiter making up their current rotation. The team has completed six contests in a 13-game stretch without an off-day, leading to heavy bullpen usage. Of their eight relievers, all of them have pitched at least twice in the past six days. Luke Jackson, Chris Martin and Robert Garcia have each pitched in three of the past four days.

With the staff fairly gassed, Dunning will provide manager Bruce Bochy with a guy who could potentially take a few innings of mop-up duty. Dunning tossed 5 1/3 innings in his most recent outing, which was on Thursday. He still has an option remaining, so he can be optioned back down to Round Rock whenever the need for a fresh arm arises again.

Photo courtesy of William Purnell, Imagn Images

Diamondbacks Notes: Lawlar, Marte, Infield

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Diamondbacks prospect Jordan Lawlar is doing everything he can to push for a major league promotion, as he’s currently mashing in Triple-A. Assuming he eventually cements himself in the majors, the question will be what position he plays.

He came up as a shortstop prospect but the Diamondbacks don’t have much need at that position. Geraldo Perdomo took over regular shortstop duties in 2022. The Diamondbacks are evidently pleased with him there as they recently signed him to an extension that runs through 2029 with a club option for 2030. They could move Perdomo to second or third base, where he has some experience. However, his bat has only been around league average in recent years, as his speed and defense at short are his primary ways of providing value.

That has made it seem like Lawlar would eventually move to second or third. He has always had tremendous offensive numbers in the minors, so his bat should play elsewhere. The Snakes have had Ketel Marte as their regular second baseman for years and he’s signed well into the future as well, which seemingly made third base Lawlar’s best path. However, Bob Nightengale of USA Today says that some scouts think Lawlar will take over at second and bump Marte to first.

There hasn’t been any reporting to suggest that the Snakes do plan on moving Marte to first, but perhaps their usage of Lawlar this year is a tell. With Triple-A Reno, he has 123 innings at second base so far. He has just 36 innings at third base this year and just 95 in his entire minor league career. He has hundreds of innings at shortstop over the years but just 54 in 2025.

It would be an interesting pivot if the club is making it. The Diamondbacks acquired Eugenio Suárez ahead of 2024 to cover the third base position. He was going into the final season of his contract, so it seemed possible that he was simply a stopgap until Lawlar was ready. Suárez struggled badly in the first half of last year but Lawlar spent most of 2024 injured, dealing with thumb and hamstring injuries. He only got into 23 minor league games last year, giving Suárez a chance to get back on track. Suárez destroyed baseballs enough in the second half that the club picked up their $15MM option on him for 2025, instead of going for the $2MM buyout.

Coming into 2025, it was still fair to expect that Suárez would eventually give way to Lawlar. Suárez turns 34 in July and will be a free agent at season’s end. That could still be the plan but the fact that Lawlar is playing a lot of second base is interesting. Marte has had some injury absences in his career and is currently on the injured list with a hamstring strain. He is 31 years old and the club recently extended him through 2031, which would be his age-37 season. Perhaps they believe that moving him to first base would be the best thing for his long-term health.

Right now, Josh Naylor and Pavin Smith are sharing first base and designated hitter duties. Naylor is an impending free agent, so that could provide an opening for Marte to slide into as soon as next year.

This is all still fairly speculative but it’s a notable position for the Snakes to be in. It’s possible that they are simply moving Lawlar around to different positions, experimenting to see how things go. If he seems viable at multiple spots, that will give them more choice for how to proceed next offseason, with both first and third base set to be vacated going into the winter. Another factor could be that LuJames Groover is also one of the club’s top ten prospects and is currently hitting well at Double-A while playing third base regularly.

However it plays out defensively, Lawlar is generating a lot of excitement with his bat. He’s currently sporting a line of .356/.451/.644 with Reno this year. He won’t be able to maintain a .457 batting average on balls in play forever but he has five home runs and a 13% walk rate. He also has 12 stolen bases in 13 attempts through 26 games.

Photo courtesy of Michael Chow, Imagn Images

Blue Jays Claim Casey Lawrence

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The Blue Jays have claimed right-hander Casey Lawrence off waivers from the Mariners, according to announcements from both clubs. The righty had been designated for assignment by Seattle over the weekend. The Jays opened a 40-man roster spot yesterday by transferring Ryan Burr to the 60-day injured list. Lawrence is out of options so the Jays will need to open an active roster spot once he reports to the club.

Lawrence, 37, is a veteran swingman who has bounced between the Jays, Mariners and Cardinals in his big league career. He has often served as a multi-inning reliever, soaking up innings to save an overworked pitching staff from further taxation.

This year, he has essentially been the 41st man on Seattle’s 40-man roster. He started the season with the Mariners on a minor league deal. They have selected his contract to the roster three times. In all three cases, he was designated for assignment within a few days. In the first two instances, he cleared waivers and then returned to the big league club once needed. He has a 3.60 earned run average in ten innings over four appearances.

This time, he didn’t clear waivers, as the Jays now have a need for such a pitcher. They recently optioned Easton Lucas, dropping their five-man rotation down to four. Thanks to some off-days, the club planned to go with a four-man rotation for a while, but a rainout on Saturday seemingly altered those plans.

Both Kevin Gausman and Chris Bassitt had to start yesterday to cover the doubleheader, which was the result of the postponement. The club is off today then has Bowden Francis on schedule for tomorrow. José Berríos could start on regular rest on Wednesday after starting on Friday. But neither Gausman nor Bassitt would be on regular rest for Wednesday’s game. Jake Bloss started for Triple-A Buffalo yesterday and won’t be an option by Wednesday either. Lucas was only optioned a week ago, on April 21. He can’t return to the big league within 15 days of that move unless replacing an injured player on the roster. Eric Lauer is an option as he’s been in the Triple-A rotation and tossed five innings on Thursday, though he’s not on the 40-man roster at present.

Perhaps Lawrence will make a spot start or simply give the club a long relief option for the next few days. Paxton Schultz tossed 57 pitches in relief of Gausman in the first game of yesterday’s twin bill, one of six relievers the club used yesterday. Schultz might not be available for a few days after that, so Lawrence could step in as a multi-inning option out of the bullpen.

It’s entirely possible that it will be another short stint for Lawrence on a club’s roster, just with the Jays this time instead of the Mariners, something he recently spoke to Tim Booth of The Seattle Times about. “I think I’m used to kind of the movement of it,” Lawrence said. “And I think it’s one of those things where you understand your role in the team and you’re willing to do whatever is going to help the team. Right now, it’s kind of doing this.”

Though living out of a suitcase is surely a challenge, Lawrence seems to be focused on appreciating what time in the majors he does have left. “I’ve been fortunate, like I said, and I never take it for granted,” Lawrence said. “Especially when you’re like this, you’re kind of riding the roller coaster a little bit. So I take every day for what it’s worth, and really try to be where my feet are, just be a part of the team.”

Though he’s still carving out some playing time, he’s self-aware enough that his mind has wandered to what’s next. “I know that at 37, I’m on the back end of my career. And I know when I’m done playing, I want to get into player development or front office, and I’d be lying if I didn’t say, I’ve had those conversations of, ‘Am I ready for that yet?’ But I’m not there yet,” he said.

Photo courtesy of Stephen Brashear, Imagn Images

Orioles Promote Kade Strowd For Major League Debut

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The Orioles announced that right-hander Kade Strowd has been recalled to the big league club. He will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game. Left-hander Grant Wolfram was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk as the corresponding move.

Strowd, 27, was added to the club’s 40-man roster in November to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. A 12th-round pick from 2019, he has been a reliever throughout his minor league career. He does have three starts but they were all at the lower levels and of the opener variety.

At the upper levels, he has generally been able to get decent amounts of strikeouts and ground balls, but with some control issues. From the beginning of 2023 to the present, he has 116 2/3 innings pitched between Double-A and Triple-A. He has a 5.55 earned run average and 11.9% walk rate in that time but a 29.1% strikeout rate and ground balls on about half the balls in play he’s allowed.

So far this year, he has ten innings pitched at Triple-A with an unsightly 8.10 ERA. However, his .481 batting average on balls in play and 36.1% strand rate are both far to the unlucky side in that small sample. He has struck out 36% of batters faced this year and kept his walk rate down to 8%.

For Baltimore, the pitching staff got a lot of usage recently. Their game on Friday was postponed by rain to Saturday, meaning they played three games in the past two days. Wolfram pitched on both days and might not have been available for tonight’s contest, so Strowd comes up to give them a fresh arm. It could be a brief stay for Strowd, since the O’s don’t have a starter listed for tomorrow and Kyle Gibson is on the taxi squad, per Jake Rill of MLB.com. If Gibson gets the ball, then someone will need to be bumped off the active roster.

Image courtesy of Nathan Ray Seebeck, Imagn Images

Orioles Claim Walter Pennington

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The Orioles have claimed left-hander Walter Pennington off unconditional release waivers, reports MLBTR’s Steve Adams. The Rangers had designated the lefty for assignment last week. His transaction tracker at MLB.com listed him as released by the Rangers over the weekend but the O’s put in a claim. The Orioles had an open 40-man spot and won’t need to make a corresponding move.

Pennington, 27, made his major league debut with the Royals last year but was flipped to the Rangers in July as part of the Michael Lorenzen trade. Between those two clubs, he tossed 18 innings in the big leagues last year. He allowed 3.00 earned runs per nine, with a 20.2% strikeout rate, 13.1% walk rate and 45.3% ground ball rate. He has posted some strong minor league numbers in recent years. Over the 2023 and 2024 seasons, he logged 134 innings on the farm with a 2.69 ERA, 28.6% strikeout rate, 10.2% walk rate and grounders on more than half of the balls in play he allowed.

This year, Pennington hasn’t pitched in any official action. The Rangers optioned him to Triple-A Round Rock on March 9th. Per his transactions tracker, he was transferred to the club’s Arizona Complex League affiliate on March 28th. MLBTR has learned that he is healthy and has been working on some mechanical stuff in extended spring lately.

The O’s had an open roster spot and are intrigued enough to bring him into their system, with the southpaw likely reported to Triple-A Norfolk soon. The Orioles aren’t hurting for lefty relievers, as they currently have Keegan Akin, Gregory Soto, Cionel Pérez and Grant Wolfram on the big league squad. Still, clubs always like to add more pitching depth when they can and both Pérez and Wolfram have poor numbers at the moment.

Photo courtesy of Joe Camporeale, Imagn Images

Eury Pérez, Ryan Weathers Begin Rehab Assignments

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The Marlins’ rotation has some reinforcements on the way, as both right-hander Eury Pérez and left-hander Ryan Weathers began rehab assignments over the weekend. Pérez tossed one inning for Single-A Jupiter on Saturday while Weathers logged three innings for the same club on Sunday.

The timing is fairly notable with Pérez, who underwent Tommy John surgery in April of last year. Back in February, he said that he was targeting a return around the All-Star break this year. It now seems as though he’s on pace to beat that timeline.

A rehab assignment for a pitcher can normally last as long as 30 days, though that can be extended for Tommy John recoveries. For those pitchers, it’s possible to extend the 30-day rehab window by an extra 10 days. That extension can happen as many as three times, meaning the total rehab assignment can eventually get up to 60 days. But even if Pérez ends up rehabbing for close to 60 days, that would only take him to mid-to-late June, well before the mid-July All-Star break.

Prior to his surgery, Pérez was in the process of establishing himself as a future ace. He was one of the top prospects in the sport before his debut. He made it to the majors in 2023, only 20 years old at the time, and tossed 91 1/3 innings over 19 starts. He allowed 3.15 earned runs per nine with a 28.9% strikeout rate and 8.3% walk rate. Ideally, he’ll be able to pick up right where he left off when he returns.

The Marlins control him through 2029, so he could be a pillar of their rotation for years to come. The baseball industry is expecting Sandy Alcantara to be traded this summer, so perhaps Pérez can take over as the rotation’s anchor.

As for Weathers, he was once a top 100 prospect with the Padres but struggled in his initial attempts against big league hitters. He was acquired by the Marlins at the 2023 deadline and then finally had some major league success in 2024. He posted a 3.63 ERA in 16 starts for the Marlins last year with a 21.8% strikeout rate, 6.5% walk rate and 46.6% ground ball rate.

Unfortunately, health has been stalling that breakout. A left index finger strain kept him on the injured list for most of the second half of last year. He then suffered a forearm strain before Opening Day of this year, which has led to him spending the entire season on the IL so far. He will likely return ahead of Pérez since he’s not coming back from surgery and also seems to be further along in his build-up.

The Marlins optioned Connor Gillispie yesterday, dropping them down to four starters. He allowed seven runs in two innings against the Mariners on Saturday, bumping his ERA to 8.65 for the year. That temporarily gives them a four-man rotation of Alcantara, Max Meyer, Cal Quantrill and Edward Cabrera. Perhaps Adam Mazur will get a chance to replace Gillispie, since he has a 1.44 ERA in Triple-A at the moment. Valente Bellozo is also on the 40-man and is sitting on a 1.59 ERA in Triple-A.

By the time Weathers and Pérez get back into the mix, the club will want to open spots for them. Alcantara isn’t going anywhere. He’s out to a rough start, with a 6.56 ERA through five outings, but the club will give him lots of time to get back on track after missing 2024 while recovering from his own Tommy John surgery. Meyer has options and can technically be sent to the minors but he’s been the club’s best pitcher this year, with a 3.18 ERA, 33.1% strikeout rate, 7.7% walk rate and 56.1% ground ball rate.

Cabrera and Quantrill are perhaps less secure. Quantrill is sitting on a 7.83 ERA right now. He’s never been a huge strikeout guy but his 12.5% rate this year is even lower than his own standards. Cabrera has always combined strikeouts with walks to mixed results, which is still the situation. He has punched out 26.9% of opponents this year but has also given out free passes at an 11.9% rate. He currently has a 6.14 ERA on the year, though he missed some time with a blister and has only made three starts.

It’s possible the rotation outlook will change by the time Weathers and Pérez are back in the mix, due to other injuries or shifts in performance, but the Marlins may have to make some decisions about who holds onto a rotation job. The picture will likely change again ahead of the July trade deadline. As mentioned, it’s expected that Alcantara will be moved this summer, though the club may hold onto him if his struggles continue. Quantrill is on a one-year deal and should be available as well, though he would also have to turn his results around to have trade appeal. Cabrera has been in plenty of trade rumors over the years but is under club control through 2028.

Photo courtesy of Rhona Wise, Imagn Images

Submit Your Questions For A Mailbag Episode Of The MLB Trade Rumors Podcast

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On the MLB Trade Rumors podcast, we regularly answer questions from our readers and listeners. We’re now a few weeks removed from the offseason and even the early-season extensions. The trade deadline is still a few months away. That gives us some time to dig into the mailbag!

If you have a question about a past transaction, a look ahead to trade season or anything else baseball-related, we’d love to hear from you! You can email your questions to mlbtrpod@gmail.com.

Also, if you want to hear your voice on the podcast, send us your question in audio form and we might play it. iPhone users can find instructions on how to do so here.

In the meantime, don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Dodgers Claim Yoendrys Gómez

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April 26: The Dodgers have formally added Gómez to their active roster. In a corresponding move, the team optioned right-hander Noah Davis.

April 25: The Dodgers have claimed right-hander Yoendrys Gómez off waivers from the Yankees, according to announcements from both clubs. The Yankees designated him for assignment earlier this week. The Dodgers have had an open 40-man roster spot since designating outfielder Eddie Rosario for assignment on the weekend. Since Gómez is out of options, they will need to open an active roster spot for him once he reports to the club.

Gómez, 25, joins a new organization for the first time. The Yankees signed him as an international amateur out of Venezuela back in 2016. As he climbed the ladder, he worked his way into being one of the top 30 prospects in the system. The Yankees added him to their 40-man roster in November of 2020 to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft.

Since then, he has hardly been given a chance to face major league hitters. He used up three option years in the 2021-2023 seasons. Tommy John surgery in 2021 played a role there, as he wasn’t able to pitch much in that year or in 2022. The Yankees were given a fourth option for 2024, but he came into 2025 out of options and with just 13 1/3 innings of major league pitching under his belt. He held a long relief role for the first few weeks of this season, tossing 10 innings over six appearances.

Overall, Gómez has a 3.09 earned run average in 23 1/3 big league innings to this point. That’s not much to go on, but his minor league numbers are presumably intriguing to the Dodgers. Across 2023 and 2024, he tossed 148 2/3 innings on the farm with a 3.63 ERA. His 12.3% walk rate was on the high side but he struck out 27.7% of batters faced.

The Dodgers are generally willing to bet on talented but injury-prone pitchers and often find themselves rotating through various arms over the course of a season. At the moment, they have 12 pitchers on the injured list. Many of those underwent major surgeries last year, meaning the club wasn’t counting on them to contribute in 2025. However, they have also seen guys like Blake Snell, Blake Treinen and Tony Gonsolin get hurt in the past few weeks.

Right now, their rotation is down to Tyler Glasnow, Dustin May, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki. The club is trying to keep Yamamoto and Sasaki on a weekly pitching schedule, which is customary in Japan. As such, they have been doing the occasional spot start or bullpen game. Guys like Landon Knack, Justin Wrobleski and Bobby Miller have made spot starts this month. On Wednesday, Ben Casparius started a bullpen game, with six relievers coming in after him. They also used seven pitchers in Tuesday’s extra-innings game at Wrigley.

The Dodgers had an off-day yesterday but have leaned heavily on their staff. Gómez will give them a fresh arm whenever he meets up with them. He tossed three innings for the Yanks on Monday, so he should be able to be deployed as a multi-inning guy in some capacity. The Dodgers have Yamamoto, Sasaki, Glasnow and May scheduled to pitch the next four games but might need another sport start and/or bullpen game by Tuesday. Gonsolin tossed five innings in a rehab start on Wednesday, so he might be a factor in the club’s plans as well.

Photo courtesy of Charles LeClaire, Imagn Images

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