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Reds Re-Sign Connor Overton To Minors Deal

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The Reds have re-signed Connor Overton to a minor league deal, according to Baseball America’s Matt Eddy.  The right-hander was outrighted off of Cincinnati’s 40-man roster in early October and entered minor league free agency, but Overton now looks to return for what will be his third season in the Reds organization.

Overton underwent Tommy John surgery last May, so he isn’t expected to be part of the Reds’ 2024 plans until around midseason.  Since this was the second TJ procedure of Overton’s career, it is possible his recovery time might take a little longer than the usual 12-15 month timeframe, and it can’t be ruled out that he might need all of 2024 to rehab.  The minor league deal gives Overton and the Reds some low-risk security in allowing him to rehab in a familiar environment while seeing what he can potentially contribute on the field.

Overton made only three starts and threw 11 innings (to the tune of an 11.45 ERA) in 2023, and the combination of a stress reaction in his back and a hamstring injury also limited him to 33 innings over six appearances in 2022.  He has a 4.85 ERA over 59 1/3 total innings in the bigs, with the Blue Jays, Pirates, and Reds since his MLB debut in 2021.

A 15th-round pick for the Marlins back in the 2014 draft, Overton bounced around both the affiliated and independent minor leagues before breaking into the majors with Toronto.  Working as both a starter and a reliever since the canceled 2020 minor league season, Overton’s numbers have been quite impressive at the Triple-A level, which is likely another reason why the Reds wanted to keep the 30-year-old in the fold.  Overton’s first priority is simply to get healthy, but there is some possible late-bloomer potential if Overton can translate his Triple-A success to the majors.

Latest On Cardinals’ Pitching Pursuits

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The Cardinals entered the offseason looking for three new starting pitchers, and that goal has already been accomplished with the signings of Sonny Gray, Lance Lynn, and Kyle Gibson.  To this end, president of baseball operations John Mozeliak indicated that the club has done a lot of the heavy lifting on its efforts to upgrade the rotation, yet he didn’t rule out more additions.

“We feel like we have a strong five right now,” Mozeliak told Gregg Palermo of Spectrum News.  “We feel like we have three or four guys that could give us depth throughout the season as well, so it’s not like a front-line priority but you never say never because something may pop up and make sense.”

In discussing the club’s tactics as a whole, Mozeliak said “we were very aggressive in the free agent market which was strategic.  We did not think we were going to be able to acquire what we were looking for via trade, at least where we didn’t feel like we were going to give up something that we were comfortable with, and so now that we do have some starting pitching we are going to be looking at things for our bullpen and be open-minded because there could be something that we haven’t thought about.”

Technically, St. Louis now has a rotation surplus given all of the younger arms behind the projected starting five of Gray, Lynn, Gibson, Miles Mikolas, and Steven Matz.  It isn’t to say that the Cardinals are necessarily itching to deal from their starting depth since the team very likely wants to have as much depth as possible on hand to withstand another spate of injuries, not to mention the fact that only Gray had a clear-cut quality season in 2023.

However, it does make sense that the Cardinals would be open to moving one or two of their younger arms if it means bringing in more top-of-the-rotation help.  In addition to their interest in White Sox starter Dylan Cease, the Cards have “discussed internally what a potential trade for Tampa Bay ace Tyler Glasnow would look like,” Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes.

This isn’t really surprising news given that front offices routinely consider scores of free agents and trade candidates, and it seems similarly likely that the Cardinals probably at least checked in with the Rays about Glasnow as a matter of due diligence.  Perhaps most notably, Goold made specific mention that the Cardinals were weighing how Glasnow’s $25MM salary for 2024 would fit their payroll picture, which is currently projected to be slightly above their $178MM payroll from 2023.

While the Rays have stated they are comfortable carrying a larger payroll than usual for 2024, the general feeling is that Tampa will still try to move some salaries between now and Opening Day.  This could manifest itself as trades of other players (i.e. Harold Ramirez, Manuel Margot, or maybe even Randy Arozarena) rather than Glasnow, yet the right-hander’s $25MM salary is easily the highest on Tampa Bay’s roster, and he isn’t seen as a long-term fixture given that Glasnow is eligible for free agency next winter.  This short-term appeal makes Glasnow an interesting fit for many teams, including St. Louis if the Cardinals are okay with a one-year payroll bump, or if they look to shed some salaries themselves either as part of a Glasnow trade, or in other deals.

Turning to the bullpen, Jordan Hicks and Yuki Matsui are a couple of the names already reported as players of interest for the Cardinals, and Goold adds Phil Maton as another target.  Maton has been an effective workhorse out of the Astros pen over the last two seasons, posting a 3.42 ERA and spectacular soft-contact numbers over 135 appearances and 131 2/3 regular-season innings.  A broken pinkie finger kept Maton from participating in Houston’s World Series run in 2022, but he has an outstanding playoff resume nonetheless, with an 0.83 ERA over 21 2/3 career postseason innings.

Maton (who turns 31 in March) went to high school in Chatham, Illinois, around a 90-minute drive away from St. Louis.  As Goold notes, geography also played a factor in the signings of Gray and Gibson, so the Cardinals might look to continue this trend to lure another semi-local product in Maton.  There hasn’t been a lot of buzz about Maton’s market to date, yet the relief pitching market as a whole hasn’t really gotten cooking, as teams have been primarily first focusing on starters.

Blue Jays Interested In Brantley, Pederson, Kiner-Falefa

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The Blue Jays have been linked to such high-profile names as Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Juan Soto, and others on the free agent and trade markets, yet the team isn’t only focusing on these top-tier names to address their roster needs.  According to Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi, the Jays have interest in free agent outfielders Michael Brantley and Joc Pederson, as well as utilityman Isiah Kiner-Falefa.

These names have long been on the radar of Jays GM Ross Atkins, who has at least explored the possibility of acquiring all of the trio in the past.  Kiner-Falefa was targeted at the last trade deadline, Pederson was targeted during his last stint in free agency during the 2021-22 offseason, and Brantley reportedly seemed on the verge of signing with Toronto in the winter of 2020-21 before opting to return to the Astros at something of the eleventh hour.

To some extent, Brantley or Pederson could be seen as backup plans if Toronto didn’t acquire Soto, since left field is the primary defensive spot for all three players.  A world exists where the Blue Jays could trade for Soto and then sign one of the other two outfielders, with an eye towards using Brantley or Pederson primarily as a designated hitter (with Soto or George Springer also getting some DH time for partial rest days).  Such a scenario might somewhat run counter to the Jays’ focus on defense over the last year, though Daulton Varsho would still be anchoring center field, and the Jays might be willing to sacrifice some glovework to boost their middling lineup.

In the bigger picture, none of Brantley, Pederson, or Kiner-Falefa would really be obstacles to any bigger-name acquisitions the Blue Jays might have in mind.  The three veterans are all likely to be had on one-year contracts, similar to Toronto’s signings of Kevin Kiermaier or Brandon Belt last winter.

Pederson hit .235/.348/.416 with 15 home runs over 425 plate appearances for the Giants last season, as his 111 wRC+ was still quite respectable but a big step down from the 146 wRC+ posted in 2022.  It was something of an unusual year for Pederson in 2023, as he cut back on his strikeouts and increased his walk rate, but seemingly at the cost of a good chunk of his usual power.  Pederson still had some of the best hard-contact numbers of any player in the league, and a .268 BABIP and a big gap in his wOBA (.331) and his xwOBA (.366) indicates that the 31-year-old might’ve been somewhat unlucky to post only a 111 wRC+.

That said, 2022 does stand out as something of an outlier amongst Pederson’s last four seasons, and even his career in general.  Without much baserunning or defensive value, Pederson projects best as a DH (or part-time left fielder or first baseman), and limiting him to plate appearances against only right-handed pitching is preferable given his career splits.

Brantley would also have to be considered a part-time option due to his health, as shoulder surgery and recurring soreness kept Brantley out of action from June 2022 until August of last season.  He amassed 89 total PA with the Astros during the regular season and postseason, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if Brantley’s eventual contract contains a lot of incentive clauses tied to playing time.  The former five-time All-Star showed only flashes of his old self at the plate in 2023, though it is possible another full offseason of rest and rehab might get Brantley back into something closer to his past form.

Kiner-Falefa is in some ways the easiest player to project of the trio, as the 28-year-old has pretty firmly established himself as a light-hitting jack of all trades who can provide at least respectable defense at a wide variety of positions.  A Gold Glove winner with the Rangers as a third baseman in 2020, IKF could be viewed by the Blue Jays as a potential glove-first replacement for Matt Chapman at the hot corner, with the Jays then presumably looking to add bigger bats to fill their other holes at second base, left field, or DH.  If Toronto doesn’t think enough of Kiner-Falefa’s bat to merit a semi-starting role, he could simply be a top utility option off the bench, giving the Blue Jays some flexibility in how hard they need to push on any one of their particular positions of need.

As usual, Atkins is seemingly keeping tabs on just about every prominent player on the market, and Davidi hears from player agents that the Blue Jays are “planning to shift quickly if needed” should their attempts at a superstar acquisition fall short.  In terms of Ohtani specifically, Davidi is doubtful the two-time AL MVP will ultimately land in Toronto, yet the Jays aren’t really costing themselves by exploring the possibility since the position-player market is moving quite slowly.  It could be that several teams and players are in the same boat as the Blue Jays in waiting on Ohtani’s decision to open up the market to a fuller extent.

Tigers Sign Kenta Maeda

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November 28: The club has now officially announced the deal, which is frontloaded. Maeda will make $14MM in 2024 and $10MM in 2025. The club’s 40-man roster count is now at 38.

November 26: The Tigers have added some experience to their young rotation, agreeing to sign right-hander Kenta Maeda to a two-year, $24MM contract.  Maeda will undergo his physical on Monday, so the deal should be officially announced within the next 24 hours.  Maeda is represented by the Boras Corporation.

Reports emerged earlier this week linking Maeda and the Tigers, though the Twins (Maeda’s former team) maintained interest.  However, SKOR North’s Darren Wolfson writes that the Twins only had interest in Maeda on a one-year contract, so moving to a multi-year looks to have sealed the deal for the Tigers.  Minnesota will now have to deal with Maeda as an opponent on a division rival, as Maeda will join the third team of his Major League career as he enters his age-36 season.

With Eduardo Rodriguez possibly leaving Detroit in free agency, Maeda steps in as the veteran presence within a Tigers rotation that is still pretty unseasoned.  Most of the Tigers’ young arms were also set back by injuries during the club’s nightmarish 2022 season, though Tarik Skubal and Matt Manning pitched well when healthy, and Reese Olson stepped up as a legitimate rotation candidate.  At the moment, Maeda looks to be the No. 2 on the staff behind Skubal, with Manning, Olson, and Casey Mize (set to return after missing 2023 due to Tommy John surgery) looking like the provisional starting five.

This offseason marked the end of the incentive-heavy, eight-year, $25MM deal Maeda signed with the Dodgers back in January 2016, when Maeda first came to the majors from Nippon Professional Baseball.  Maeda’s earning power at the time was somewhat limited due to some concerns over his elbow, though he didn’t have any major arm-related injury issues over four years in Los Angeles before the Dodgers dealt him to the Twins during the 2019-20 offseason.  Maeda responded with an outstanding performance in the pandemic-shortened campaign, posting a 2.70 ERA in 66 2/3 innings and finishing second in AL Cy Young Award voting.

With a more modest 4.66 ERA in 106 1/3 frames in 2021, the injury bug then finally bit, as Maeda had to undergo the internal-brace version of Tommy John surgery.  Using the brace theoretically could have reduced Maeda’s time on the injured list, yet he ended up missing the entire 2022 season.  His comeback year in 2023 was also shortened by close to two months by a triceps strain, but the numbers were pretty solid overall when Maeda did take the mound.

Maeda posted a 4.23 ERA, 27.3% strikeout rate, and 6.5% walk rate over 104 1/3 innings for Minnesota.  Both the walk and strikeout rates were well above average, and Maeda wasn’t a high-velocity pitcher even before surgery, so his 90.9mph average was just slightly below his career norm.  Maeda did allow a lot of hard contact last year, which was something of a red flag considering that he very good and occasionally elite at inducing soft contact in the seasons prior to his brace procedure.

Between the hard-contact numbers, Maeda’s age, and injury history, the expectation was that Maeda’s market might be limited to a two-year (or two years with an option) contract this winter.  MLBTR ranked Maeda 25th on our list of the offseason’s top 50 free agents, and predicted a two-year, $36MM pact for the right-hander.  The actual dollar figure will fall below our projection, perhaps suggesting that teams had concerns over Maeda’s ability to stay healthy.  Speculatively, it could also be that Maeda preferred to get a deal done sooner rather than later, perhaps as a nod to the strong interest shown by the Tigers this early in the winter.

There’s no doubt that the righty has a high ceiling of performance when he’s healthy, making the signing a pretty solid move for Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris.  After spending most of his first year in the job in evaluation mode, Harris has started to make some modest but noteworthy expenditures for veteran talent, both in signing Maeda and in trading for Mark Canha earlier this month.  Adding Maeda’s deal puts Detroit’s projected payroll (as per Roster Resource) at only $85.26MM, though Harris has spoken of exercising financial caution in the past, and it isn’t yet clear how much the Tigers are willing to spend this winter.

At the very least, the Tigers have the flexibility to perhaps explore a bigger move should an opportunity present itself, and Maeda’s signing perhaps opens such a door in a unique fashion.  Evan Petzold of The Detroit Free Press wrote this week that the Tigers were considering Maeda both for the pitcher’s own value and also to “establish themselves in the Japanese pitching market.”  This is particularly intriguing in the context of Detroit’s interest in Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and if Harris and Tigers ownership were prepared to break the bank on a player, it might be for this circumstance of a 25-year-old Japanese ace who might have up to a decade of prime baseball still ahead of him.

Shota Imanaga is another prominent name coming to the majors from NPB this winter, even if Imanaga is 30 and his ceiling isn’t considered as high as Yamamoto’s.  It is also possible the Tigers might not be done with veteran pitchers from the Major League free agent market, as names like Seth Lugo and Luis Severino are also reportedly on Detroit’s radar as arms available on shorter-term and relatively less-expensive contracts.

An argument could’ve been made for the Twins to issue Maeda a qualifying offer as he entered free agency, yet with Minnesota planning to cut payroll next year, it is easy to see why the Twins might not have wanted to risk Maeda accepting the offer and locking in a $20.325MM salary for 2024.  By not issuing a qualifying offer, Minnesota won’t receive anything in compensation for Maeda’s departure.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post (X link) was the first to report the agreement and the term length, while ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported the $24MM figure.  Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reported that Maeda’s deal was pending the pass of his physical.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Giants Re-Sign Cole Waites To Minor League Contract

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The Giants have brought back Cole Waites on a minor league contract, according to the team’s official transactions page.  Waites was non-tendered last week, and the new minor league pact means that the Giants won’t need to use a 40-man roster spot on the 25-year-old righty.

Waites had Tommy John surgery in mid-September, making it all but certain he’ll miss the 2024 season unless he can complete rehab in time for an inning or two right at the end of the regular-season schedule.  The transactions page didn’t indicate that Waites’ deal is anything more than a standard one-year minors contract, but it wouldn’t be surprising if it was a two-year deal or if the Giants signed him to another type of extension at some point in 2024 once they get a better read on how his rehab is progressing.

An 18th-round pick for the Giants in the 2019 draft, Waites has appeared in the big leagues in each of the last two seasons, totaling eight innings over 10 games and a 6.75 ERA with six walks and strikeouts apiece.  Waites fits the clasic profile of the hard-throwing but wild reliever, with a 15.32% walk rate over his 103 career minor league innings but also a fastball that routinely hits the upper-90s (and can reach 100mph).  When Waites has been able to find the plate, he has been deadly — he has a 37.61% strikeout rate against minor league hitters.

The potential is obvious if Waites can pair that heater with even average control, though his injury history now adds another obstacle to his future.  Waites also missed a big chunk of the 2021 season due to knee surgery, and between his injuries and the canceled 2020 minor league season, he has played in only 102 games (and thrown 103 innings) as a professional.

Angels Sign Adam Kolarek

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The Angels announced (via their X feed) that they have signed left-hander Adam Kolarek to a one-year contract worth $900K.  Kolarek elected to become a free agent after finishing the season in the Braves’ minor league system.

While $900K isn’t much by MLB standards, it is somewhat surprising that Kolarek landed a guaranteed deal at all given his shaky results and even a lack of overall big league playing time over the last three seasons.  That said, the Angels were thin on left-handed relief pitching, so locking in Kolarek provides one initial step over what might be a wider-scale revamp of a bullpen that struggled badly last season.

Since Opening Day 2021, Kolarek (who turns 35 in January) has thrown 32 2/3 innings over 32 appearances with the A’s, Dodgers, and Mets, with a 4.58 ERA.  Most of those struggles were contained to his 2021-22 seasons in Oakland, but even when posting better results in 2023, Kolarek still found himself as a sudden journeyman.

Kolarek signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers last winter and was designated for assignment after just a lone MLB appearance with the team in June.  He chose to remain with the organization after being outrighted off the 40-man roster, and was then dealt to the Mets at the deadline and tossed 4 2/3 innings in a New York uniform.  Another DFA soon followed, and this time Kolarek did elect free agency rather than accepting another outright assignment, and he then landed with the Braves on a minors deal without seeing any time on the Major League roster in September.

As noted, Kolarek did show flickers of a turnaround in 2023.  He didn’t allow any runs (and only two hits and walk) over his six total MLB innings last year, and he had a 3.80 ERA in 42 2/3 frames at the Triple-A level.  That minor league ERA comes with the significant red flag of a 16.13% walk rate, as the control problems that hampered Kolarek in 2021-22 continued to be a problem.

The walks have crept up on Kolarek at earlier stages of his career, yet he got things under control during his prime years of 2018-20.  The lefty posted a 3.07 ERA in 108 1/3 innings for the Rays and Dodgers during those years, highlighted a World Series ring with Los Angeles in 2020.

While his results have been inconsistent, the one constant throughout Kolarek’s career has been his ability to induce ground balls.  Since the start of the 2017 season, only five pitchers with more than 140 innings pitched have a higher grounder rate than Kolarek’s elite 63.9% total.

Reds Sign Reiver Sanmartin, Alex Blandino To Minor League Deals

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The Reds signed left-hander Reiver Sanmartin and infielder Alex Blandino to minor league deals within the last week, according to Cincinnati’s official transactions page.  Sanmartin was assigned to Triple-A Louisville, while Blandino was assigned to Double-A Chattanooga.

Sanmartin was cut loose by the Reds just prior to the non-tender deadline, and he’ll now return to the team while no longer part of the 40-man roster.  It doesn’t seem like he’ll be available for most or even all of the 2024 season after undergoing UCL surgery back in July, if that surgery was indeed a standard Tommy John procedure.  However, Sanmartin’s prognosis improves if he underwent an internal brace procedure, which carries a more fluid but perhaps significantly shorter recovery timeline depending of the nature of the injury.  Should Sanmartin fall within that 6-9 month range for a brace surgery, he might be ready to go for the start of Spring Training.

There wasn’t any mention whether or not Sanmartin’s minor league deal was for one or two years, as the longer deal would’ve hinted at a longer recovery.  Such two-year pacts at either the minor league or Major League levels aren’t uncommon for pitchers recovering from major arm surgeries, as teams get to lock up a player with the acknowledgement that they’ll miss most or all of that first year.  Just earlier today, the Red Sox inked a two-year minor league pact with Wyatt Mills, who had TJ surgery last July.

Sanmartin came to the Reds from the Yankees as part of the Sonny Gray trade in January 2019.  Making his MLB debut in 2021 and then appearing for Cincinnati in each of the last three seasons, Sanmartin has a 5.77 ERA over 82 2/3 innings in the Show, working primarily as a reliever.  With underwhelming walk and strikeout rates, Sanmartin’s 53.5% groundball rate is a highlight, though batters have been fortunate with a .339 BABIP against Sanmartin’s grounder-heavy approach.  The 27-year-old southpaw has had better strikeout and control numbers down on the farm, en route to a 3.39 ERA over 446 career minor league innings.

Blandino is another former Red, as he was selected 29th overall by the team in the 2014 draft and then played all three of his MLB seasons (2018-21) in Cincinnati.  However, a torn ACL and other injuries hampered his time in the big leagues, as Blandino had a penchant for drawing walks but not much else over the course of a .226/.339/.291 slash line in 279 plate appearances.  After the Reds outrighted Blandino following the 2021 season, he spent some time in the minors with the Giants and Mariners, and his only pro experience in 2023 was playing with Team Nicaragua in the World Baseball Classic.

The 31-year-old Blandino has a lot of experience at both middle infield positions and at third base, plus a handful of appearances as a first baseman, corner outfielder, and even four mop-up pitching appearances in blowouts during the 2021 campaign.  This versatility makes him a useful depth option to have on hand in the minors, especially since the Reds’ influx of young star prospects coming to the majors has thinned out the position-player ranks in their farm system.

Tigers Re-Sign Garrett Hill

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The Tigers and right-hander Garrett Hill have reunited, as Hill’s MLB.com profile page indicates that he signed a new minor league deal earlier this week.  It’s a quick reunion for the two sides, as the Tigers just non-tendered Hill last week to open up some space on their 40-man roster.

A 26th-round pick for Detroit in the 2018 draft, Hill made his MLB debut in 2022 on the fourth of July and started his first eight Major League games before moving into the bullpen.  The result was a respectable 4.03 ERA over 60 1/3 innings, even if a .247 BABIP helped cover up for some uninspiring secondary numbers.  Hill’s fortune turned last season, as he was tagged for a 9.19 ERA over 15 2/3 relief innings in the majors and even a 6.02 ERA in 46 1/3 frames for Triple-A Toledo.  While Hill’s control had only been decent earlier in his career, walks became an increasingly big problem in 2023, with a 14.3% walk rate over his time in Toledo.

Hill also spent little over a month on the Triple-A injured list, so it was a tough year all around for the righty.  He’ll look for a fresh start in his age-28 season, and it makes sense why the Tigers would want to keep Hill in the fold.  Beyond his swingman potential, Hill has consistently missed a lot of bats over his minor league career — even amidst his struggles, Hill still posted a 28.7% strikeout rate at Triple-A in 2023.  That strikeout potential has yet to translate at the big league level, but there’s no risk for Detroit in bringing him back for another look on a minors contract.

Braves Sign Andrew Velazquez, Ben Bowden To Minors Contracts

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The Braves have signed infielder Andrew Velazquez, and left-hander Ben Bowden to minor league contracts, as per both players’ MLB.com profile pages.  For Velazquez, it’s a return to the organization, as he elected free agency after being outrighted off the Braves’ 40-man roster at the start of November.

His trip through the market will now take him back to Atlanta, as Velazquez is still seeking his first big league appearance in a Braves uniform.  The Braves claimed Velazquez off waivers from the Angels in early September but he played exclusively at Triple-A Gwinnett, as Atlanta never had an injury situation develop that would’ve gotten Velasquez a look on the Major League roster.

This same type of depth role probably awaits Velazquez in 2024, though since the Braves dealt Nicky Lopez to the White Sox, Velazquez might have a better shot at claiming a bench spot.  Both glove-first players, Lopez is projected for a $3.9MM arbitration salary and Velazquez $740K, though due to the non-tender, Velazquez isn’t on any kind of guaranteed salary as a minor league signing.

The 29-year-old Velazquez has appeared in each of the last six Major League seasons, hitting .189/.244/.293 over 624 plate appearances.  Most of that action (349 PA) came with the Angels in 2022, when Velazquez ended up assuming mostly everyday shortstop duties when David Fletcher fell out of favor with the team.  While he didn’t produce anything at the plate, Velasquez was a big help on defense, with +11 Defensive Runs Saved, +3 Outs Above Average, and a +3.0 UZR/150 in 906 innings at shortstop.

However, his defensive numbers were all deep into the minuses over 233 1/3 innings last year, as Velazquez appeared in only 54 games and spent most of 2023 in Triple-A.  It could be just a small sample size issue, though given Velazquez’s lackluster offense, he needs to be at least an above-average glove to get him any chance of sticking as a big league backup.  In terms of versatility, Velasquez has played mostly shortstop, with some time at second base and center field, and a handful of appearances at third base and left field earlier in his career.

Bowden’s MLB resume consists of 35 2/3 relief innings over 39 appearances with the Rockies in 2021.  A second-round pick for Colorado in the 2016 draft, Bowden has posted a lot of strikeouts during his minor league career, yet also a lot of walks and home runs.  Spending most of his minor league time in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League hasn’t helped in that regard, though Bowden also gave up eight homers in 52 1/3 innings pitching with the Phillies’ Triple-A affiliate in 2023 (with a 4.64 ERA, 32.2% strikeout rate, and 13.6% walk rate).

The Phillies, Giants, and Rays have all gotten looks at Bowden after Tampa first claimed him off waivers from the Rockies in April 2022, so the southpaw’s ability to miss bats is still a point of interest for clubs.  Atlanta now becomes the latest team to see if Bowden can harness his control enough to become a viable option for the Major League bullpen.

Red Sox Sign Wyatt Mills To Two-Year Minor League Deal

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The Red Sox have signed right-hander Wyatt Mills to a minor league contract covering both the 2024 and 2025 seasons, MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo reports (X link).  The length of the deal reflects Mills’ health situation, as he underwent Tommy John surgery last July and may not pitch at all during the 2024 season.

Mills has a 6.21 ERA over 42 career innings in the majors, all with the Mariners and Royals during the 2021-22 seasons.  While the early returns on his big league career have been uninspiring, Mills has a 3.25 ERA, 32.06% strikeout rate, and grounder rates usually over the 50% mark over his 188 1/3 innings in the minors.

Working out of the bullpen for all but one of his 155 games in the minors, Mills has some interesting potential as a bullpen arm, which is why both Kansas City and Boston have acquired the righty in trades during his young career.  Mills went to K.C. as part of the Carlos Santana swap with the Mariners at the 2022 trade deadline, while the Red Sox then picked Mills up in a deal last winter.

Unfortunately for Mills, he has yet to throw an official pitch as a member of the Red Sox organization.  He developed elbow inflammation during Spring Training and was sidelined for months before it was ultimately decided that Tommy John surgery was necessary.  He did earn a full year of MLB service time for spending the season on the big league injured list, yet that’s small consolation considering the injury will now cost Mills (who turns 29 in January) possibly two full years of his career.

Mills wasn’t yet eligible for salary arbitration, but the Red Sox non-tendered him anyway last week to remove him from the 40-man roster.  It’s safe to assume a handshake deal might’ve been in place to bring Mills back so quickly after he was non-tendered, and the Sox will now get to continue overseeing his TJ rehab and see what Mills can still bring to the table in 2025.  It’s not out of the question that he can bank at least some minor league innings in late 2024, since as a reliever, Mills won’t need to rebuild his arm to quite the same extent that a starter would when coming back from a Tommy John procedure.

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