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Blue Jays Select Casey Lawrence, Designate Gosuke Katoh

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The Blue Jays have selected the contract of right-hander Casey Lawrence and designated infielder Gosuke Katoh for assignment.  In another corresponding move, left-hander Andrew Vasquez was optioned to Triple-A Buffalo.

Lawrence is now on the verge of his first appearance in The Show since the 2018 season.  The righty posted a 6.64 ERA over 78 2/3 innings with the Blue Jays and Mariners in 2017-18, and after being let go by the Mariners following that 2018 campaign, Lawrence pitched in Japan in 2019 and inked a minors deal with the Twins prior to the 2020 season, but ended up not pitching at all due to the canceled minor league season.

Lawrence returned to the Jays on another minors deal in 2021 and he has posted some solid numbers with Triple-A Buffalo as a starter and reliever for the last two seasons.  He’ll most likely work out of Toronto’s bullpen as a long man, though he could provide some extra depth behind Ross Stripling and Yusei Kikuchi.  Normally a swingman, Stripling has been filling in for the injured Hyun Jin Ryu, while Kikuchi has been inconsistent thus far in the 2022 season.

A longtime member of the Yankees farm system, Katoh bounced around to the Marlins, Padres, and Blue Jays on minor league contracts over the last three seasons before finally getting his first MLB opportunity this season with Toronto.  Katoh had only one hit over 11 PA but he also walked three times and scored two runs while playing some first base and second base.

Nationals Claim Cory Abbott, Move Sean Doolittle To 60-Day IL

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The Nationals announced that right-hander Cory Abbott has been claimed off outright waivers from the Giants.  Abbott has been optioned to Triple-A, and left-hander Sean Doolittle has been moved to the 60-day injured list to create a 40-man roster spot.  Abbott is changing teams for the second time in two weeks, as San Francisco only acquired him from the Cubs (for cash considerations) on April 21 after Chicago had previously designated Abbott for assignment.

A second-round pick for the Cubs in the 2017 draft, Abbott has pitched at the Triple-A level over the last two seasons and not gotten great results, with only a 5.82 ERA over 102 innings for Triple-A Iowa.  Abbott has a 29.56% strikeout rate in Triple-A ball, but he has also struggled with his control and particularly with the home run ball.  The righty has allowed an ungainly 22 homers over his 102 innings in Iowa.

Still, given Abbott’s draft pedigree and his ability to miss bats, it isn’t surprising that multiple teams have now shown an interest in his services.  Abbott has worked exclusively as a starter in the minors and made one start during his seven-game cup of coffee with the Cubs in 2021 — he posted a 6.75 ERA over his only 17 1/3 innings in the majors to date.

Given the lack of production from the Nationals rotation this season, D.C. might consider Abbott as either a depth option or even as a candidate to make some starts.  Abbott could get a nod over Joan Adon or Aaron Sanchez, as the Nats continue to try and tread water until Stephen Strasburg and Joe Ross are back from the injured list.

Doolittle’s status is also cause for concern, as he’ll now be sidelined until at least late June.  Washington placed Doolittle on the 10-day IL on April 20 with a left elbow sprain, and it was already known at the time that Doolittle would be missing more than just 10 days.  The former All-Star is trying to get back on track after a couple of down seasons, and was off to a great start in 2022, tossing 5 1/3 shutout innings with only a single hit allowed over his first six appearances.

Reds Claim Robert Dugger From Rays

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The Reds have claimed right-hander Robert Dugger off waivers from the Rays.  Tampa Bay designated Dugger for assignment on Monday.

After signing a minor league deal with the Rays during Spring Training, Dugger’s tenure with the club will end after a single game.  The Rays selected Dugger’s contract on May 1 and he tossed 5 1/3 innings of relief work after starter Josh Fleming was hit hard in a 9-3 loss to the Twins.

Dugger has now made at least one appearance in each of the last four MLB seasons, albeit in sparing fashion — he has pitched 76 innings over 24 total games with the Marlins, Mariners, and Rays.  Dugger started 12 of those games and has primarily worked as a starter throughout his minor league career, so he automatically becomes a rotation candidate for a Reds team that has been plagued with injuries.

Luis Castillo, Mike Minor, and Nick Lodolo are all still working their way back from the IL, so in the interim, Dugger could potentially start for Cincinnati as early as Saturday, when the Reds host the Pirates in a doubleheader.  The struggling Reds don’t have another off-day until May 16, so some arms will be needed to eat innings until some of the regular starters return from the injured list.

Royals Place Carlos Santana On 10-Day Injured List

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First baseman Carlos Santana has been placed on the Royals’ 10-day injured list due to right ankle bursitis.  Emmanuel Rivera was called up from Triple-A to take Santana’s spot on the active roster.

Kansas City manager Mike Matheny told reporters (including MLB.com’s Anne Rogers) that Santana suffered the injury while running the bases in Monday’s game, and continued soreness caused Santana to be a late scratch from Tuesday’s lineup.  No specific timeline was suggested for Santana’s return, but he might not be out of action too far beyond the 10-day minimum.

While it seems as though Santana has escaped a serious injury, the absence is still unlucky, as Rogers notes that Santana has finally started to produce at the plate.  The veteran slugger’s four-game hitting streak is pretty modest, yet it still stands out as a positive sign after Santana hit only .104/.307/.188 over his first 62 plate appearances.  After signing a two-year, $17.5MM free agent deal with the Royals in the 2020-21 offseason, Santana has still yet to get on track in a K.C. uniform, as he struggled through an injury-hampered 2021 campaign.

Hunter Dozier or Ryan O’Hearn are probably the likeliest candidates to fill in at first base during Santana’s absence.  Top prospect Nick Pratto is hitting pretty well at Triple-A, though the Royals might not call Pratto up and start his MLB service clock if Santana is only going to miss a couple of weeks.

Twins Place Miguel Sano On 10-Day Injured List, Surgery Under Consideration

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MAY 2: Surgery is on the table for Sano, who officially went on the IL this morning with a left knee sprain, according to Baldelli (Helfand link). The Twins will make the determination of whether a procedure is necessary this week. If Sano were to go under the knife, he’d still be expected to return this season, tweets Joe Trezza of MLB.com.

MAY 1: The Twins will be placing first baseman Miguel Sano on the 10-day injured list, manager Rocco Baldelli told reporters (including Betsy Helfand of The St. Paul Pioneer Press).  Sano is dealing with a sore left knee.  Catcher Jose Godoy will also be optioned to Triple-A, so the Twins will get their roster from 28 players down to 26 by tomorrow’s deadline.

Sano has missed four of Minnesota’s last five games with the injury, suffered during the game-ending rundown in the Twins’ 5-4 walkoff win over the Tigers on Tuesday.  After sitting out three games, Sano was the starting first baseman Saturday but was removed from the game during the seventh inning.

A timeline isn’t yet known for when Sano might be able to return to the lineup, but this absence could serve as something of a reset to his 2022 season.  Sano has been ice cold at the plate, hitting only .093/.231/.148 over his first 65 plate appearances.  As horrific as those numbers look, Sano has also been rather unusually unlucky, with only a .121 BABIP and a .196 wOBA far below his .344 xwOBA.  Sano’s xwOBA is actually above the league average, and his hard-contact numbers (hard-hit ball percentage, barrel percentage) and walk rate have all been excellent.

Though this indicates some hope Sano can rebound once he returns from the IL, the Twins will be shorthanded at first base in his absence.  Alex Kirilloff would normally take over the corner but Kirilloff is himself injured, currently on a minor league rehab assignment for a wrist issue.  If losing Sano and Kirilloff wasn’t enough for the Twins, Kyle Garlick also left today’s game due to calf tightness, so Minnesota might also have a gap to fill in the outfield depth chart.

Luis Arraez had never played first base prior to this season, but the utilityman has been filling in for Sano this week and looks like Minnesota’s top choice as the temporary replacement.  Baldelli also suggested that third baseman Gio Urshela or catcher Gary Sanchez could get some work at first base.  Urshela has played a handful of games at the position during his career, while Sanchez has played three games as a first baseman during his pro career (and none since 2017).

Rangers’ Willie Calhoun Wants To Be Traded After Demotion To Triple-A

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The Rangers optioned outfielder Willie Calhoun to Triple-A today, as part of the team’s efforts to pare down to 26 players in advance of Monday’s roster reduction deadline.  Calhoun’s demotion was seen as something of a surprise, and it appears as though he sees the move as something of a last straw.

“(I’m) gonna go to Triple A and put myself in a position to get traded.  I do want to be traded,” Calhoun told The Athletic’s Levi Weaver.  “I do want to be traded….I don’t know if I’ll play another game in a Rangers uniform.  And I let them know that.”

Once a top-100 prospect, Calhoun was the key piece of the three-player package Texas received from the Dodgers for Yu Darvish at the 2017 trade deadline.  It appeared as though Calhoun was on his way to becoming a fixture in the Rangers lineup when he hit .269/.323/.524 with 21 home runs over 337 PA in 2019, but injuries since played a role in his lack of production.  Calhoun suffered a broken jaw after being hit in the face by a Julio Urias fastball during Spring Training 2020, and then missed three months of the 2021 season after suffering a forearm fracture when Kris Bubic hit him with another pitch.

Since the start of the 2020 campaign, Calhoun has hit only .223/.288/.339 over 445 plate appearances.  That includes a .556 OPS over 53 PA this season, and the Rangers had seen enough to believe that Calhoun was expendable on the active roster.  Calhoun’s issues with the organization have clearly been building for a while, as he told Weaver that “I’ve been wanting out for the last year, year and a half.  I feel like I need a change of scenery.”

However, Calhoun also wasn’t pleased with how Rangers hitting coaches both old and new (Tim Hyers and assistant coach Seth Conner were hired over the offseason) tried to alter his swing and approach.  “I don’t agree with some of the hitting philosophies from the new guys,” Calhoun said.  “I don’t process that (information) too well.  I’m not 6-4, 230 pounds; I can’t hit pop-up home runs.  I don’t have that leverage.”

Rangers manager Chris Woodward told reporters Sunday the team wanted Calhoun “to work a little bit more vertical with his swing,” but Calhoun said this clashed with his ideal approach as the “line-drive, doubles guy” he was during his time in the Dodgers farm system.

There isn’t much leverage on Calhoun’s side to force a trade, as Texas still has control over his services through the 2024 season.  There was some speculation whether the Rangers would tender him a contract last winter, the two sides avoided arbitration in Calhoun’s first arb-eligible year by agreeing to a $1.3MM salary for the 2022 season.

When asked about Calhoun’s desire for a trade, Rangers GM Chris Young simply said that “we’re looking to get Willie going.  The game is about performance.  If he goes out and performs at a high level, there will be an opportunity for him.”

This statement doesn’t rule out the possibility of a trade, of course, as it could be that Calhoun’s next “opportunity” could indeed come with another team.  If the Rangers are ready to move on, they would naturally like to get some kind of decent return back, and as Calhoun noted, going on a tear at Triple-A would help him rebuild his stock for any teams interested in acquiring the 27-year-old.

Anthony Alford Elects Free Agency

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Outfielder Anthony Alford has elected to become a free agent rather than accepting the Pirates’ outright assignment to Triple-A, John Dreker of the Pirates Prospects site reports (Twitter link).  Pittsburgh designated Alford for assignment last week, and he cleared DFA waivers yesterday without being claimed.

Since this isn’t the first time Alford has been outrighted off a team’s 40-man roster, he had the option of deciding whether to accept the Pirates’ assignment, or entering the open market in search of another opportunity elsewhere.  While it’s possible Alford could end up re-signing with the Bucs, his decision to test free agency likely ends his tenure in Pittsburgh after less than two years.

The Pirates acquired Alford via waiver claim in August 2020, taking him off the Blue Jays’ roster after Toronto had also designated the outfielder.  The Jays made Alford a third-round pick in the 2012 draft, and he drew three years’ worth of top-100 prospect attention from multiple pundits as he continued to move up the ladder in the Toronto farm system.  However, injuries also curtailed his progress, and ultimately limited Alford to only 46 Major League games in a Blue Jays uniform from 2017-20.

The outfielder got only slightly more of a look with the Pirates, playing 56 games and receiving 165 plate appearances in a Pittsburgh uniform over the last three seasons.  Alford’s .235/.309/.423 slash line in that span was only slightly below (97 OPS+) league-average production, but it also wasn’t enough for the Pirates to keep him around ahead of younger players.

Now 27 years old, Alford will move on to see if the third time is the charm with his baseball career.  Speculatively, the Braves could be a potential fit given how president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos was the Blue Jays’ GM when Toronto initially drafted Alford.  Any number of other clubs could also be willing to take a flier on a former top prospect, and try to translate Alford’s obvious athletic ability into consistent success on the field.

AL West Notes: Ohtani, Angels, Syndergaard, Altuve, Carpenter, Story, Giles

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Reigning AL MVP Shohei Ohtani was removed from today’s game due to right groin tightness, as he suffered the injury while trying to beat out a double play during the seventh inning.  Jack Mayfield pinch-hit for Ohtani in the ninth inning, when the DH spot was next up at the plate.  Ohtani told MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger and other reporters that it was something of a precautionary removal and that he intended to play tomorrow, though Angels manager Joe Maddon took a more wait-and-see approach.

Naturally, any injury to Ohtani impacts the Angels on two fronts, as he is also scheduled to start Wednesday’s game against the Red Sox.  With Los Angeles optioning Jose Suarez to Triple-A today, it could provide an opportunity for Jaime Barria or Kenny Rosenberg to pick up a spot in the Halos’ six-man rotation.

The Angels at least know who will be starting Tuesday’s series opener, as Maddon said that Noah Syndergaard will take the ball.  Syndergaard was scratched from a planned start last Friday due to illness, but it appears as though the right-hander is back in good health, and he tossed a bullpen session today with no issues.

More from around the AL West…

  • Jose Altuve is on pace to be activated from the 10-day injured list on Monday when the Astros begin a home series against the Mariners, Astros GM James Click told reporters (including The Houston Chronicle’s Chandler Rome).  A left hamstring strain sent Altuve to the IL on April 20, though the strain wasn’t thought to be serious at the time, and Altuve will indeed return only slightly beyond the minimum 10 days.  The seven-time All-Star has yet to get rolling this season, hitting only .167/.268/.250 over his first 41 plate appearances.
  • Matt Carpenter was one of several veterans signed to minor league contracts who had the ability to opt out of their deals today, but Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports that Carpenter will pass on his opt-out clause and remain in the Rangers organization.  It isn’t surprising that Carpenter (a Texas native) elected to stay put, as he already passed on another opt-out opportunity when the Rangers sent him to the minors at the end of Spring Training, and Carpenter said anyway that he needed more time to ramp up and adjust to his overhauled swing.  The former Cardinals standout has performed decently well at Triple-A Round Rock, hitting .239/.327/.457 with two home runs in 52 PA.
  • Both the Rangers and Mariners were linked to Trevor Story’s market prior to the lockout, and The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports that both AL West rivals offered Story a contract similar to the six-year, $140MM deal that the free agent eventually signed with the Red Sox in March.  At that earlier date in the offseason, Story’s reps countered with a much larger contract demands, leading both Texas and Seattle to go in different directions with their lineup plans.  The Rangers instead splurged on both Corey Seager and Marcus Semien, while the Mariners (who intended to use Story as a second baseman) acquired Adam Frazier from the Padres, and then added Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suarez to the position player side in another trade with the Reds following the lockout.  Interestingly, Rosenthal notes that Story has changed his representation since signing with Boston, and is now a client of the Wasserman Agency.
  • Mariners reliever Ken Giles is still three or four weeks away from playing in any games, though he has started a throwing program, The Athletic’s Corey Brock reports.  Giles underwent Tommy John surgery in October 2020 and was aiming to return by Opening Day, though a strained tendon in his right middle finger set Giles back significantly during Spring Training.  As such, the veteran right-hander has had to more or less restart his ramp-up activities.  Still, Giles is on pace to be an option for the M’s bullpen come June, and he could be an impact addition if Giles is able to recapture some of his past form, as the righty has at times looked like one of the best relievers in baseball during his seven MLB seasons.

Guardians Designate Logan Allen, Bobby Bradley For Assignment

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The Guardians have designated left-hander Logan Allen and first baseman Bobby Bradley for assignment.  In another roster move, righty Anthony Castro was activated from the COVID-related injured list, and then optioned to Triple-A.

In the short term, the Guardians have reduced their roster from 28 to 26 players in advance of tomorrow’s roster reduction deadline.  In the bigger picture, however, these moves could mark the organizational end of two players who (not long ago) were considered two possible building blocks.  Both Allen and Bradley were former top-100 ranked prospects, but that promise didn’t translate into consistent MLB success.  Allen and Bradley are both out of minor league options, so Cleveland had to expose them to the DFA wire in order to try and send either player to Triple-A.

Allen was an eighth-round pick for the Red Sox in 2015, and he has thus far been involved in two major trades in his young career.  Allen was one of the four prospects Boston sent to the Padres for Craig Kimbrel in November 2015, and Allen was then one of the seven names involved in the huge three-team swap between San Diego, Cincinnati, and Cleveland prior to the 2019 trade deadline.  That deal saw Cleveland end up with Franmil Reyes, Yasiel Puig, prospects Scott Moss and Victor Nova, plus Allen, who had made his Major League debut earlier that year with the Padres.

After the trade, Allen appeared in one game with his new team in 2019, then only three games in the shortened 2020 season.  Last year was Allen’s first semi-extended look at the big league level, and he posted a 6.26 ERA, 16.7% strikeout rate, and 7.7% walk rate over 50 1/3 innings.  That walk rate was a positive sign considering some of the control problems Allen had faced in the minors, but as had been the case for Allen at Triple-A, his time in the majors was hampered by the long ball.  The southpaw allowed 12 home runs over his 50 1/3 frames.

Between the lack of success in both the majors and at Triple-A Columbus, Allen became an expendable piece for a Guardians organization that is brimming with young talent.  The same could be said of Bradley, as Owen Miller and Josh Naylor have emerged as the Guards’ preferred options at first base only about a season after Bradley was seen as a first baseman of the future.

A third-round pick in the 2014 draft, Bradley displayed plenty of power in the minor leagues, even if his batting averages and on-base numbers weren’t always as impressive.  A big Triple-A season in 2019 earned him a call-up and a 15-game cup of coffee in Cleveland, but Bradley didn’t see any game action at all in 2020 — the minor league season was canceled, and the Guardians never promoted Bradley from their alternate training site.

Cleveland fans were notably impatient to see Bradley get a look in 2021, especially with Jake Bauers struggling as the team’s regular first baseman.  Once Bradley finally got his chance, however, he hit a modest .208/.294/.445 with 16 home runs in 279 PA.  His power was still apparent, but Bradley struck out 99 times, and particularly struggled against left-handed pitching.  This season, Bradley had only two hits in 17 at-bats, striking out nine times.

It wouldn’t be a surprise to see either player taken via waiver claim, or for another club to work out a trade with the Guardians.  Both players are still young (both have May birthdays, with Allen turning 25 this month and Bradley 26), and they have each shown enough flashes of promise that a new team might think the flaws can be fixed.

Twins, Luis Arraez Avoid Arbitration

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7:21PM: Arraez will earn $2.125MM this season, Jon Heyman of The New York Post reports (Twitter link).  This is the exact midpoint between each side’s submitted figure.

7:03PM: The Twins and utilityman Luis Arraez have agreed to a one-year contract for the 2022 season, according to The Athletic’s Dan Hayes and Katie Woo (Twitter link).  The two sides will avoid an arbitration hearing, as a deal wasn’t reached between Arraez and the Twins prior to the deadline for filing arb figures.

Terms of the deal aren’t yet known, but Arraez filed for a $2.4MM salary, while the Twins countered with $1.85MM.  (MLBTR’s Matt Swartz projected Arraez for a $2MM salary.)  This is the first of four arbitration-eligible years for the 25-year-old, who gained an extra arb year as a Super Two player.

As per the usual “file or trial” tactic, teams usually don’t agree to one-year contracts with players after the filing deadline, preferring to head to a hearing unless a multi-year extension could be struck.  However, the unusual nature of this year’s baseball calendar (due to the lockout) might have made the Twins more open to just a one-year pact with Arraez, perhaps simply to avoid the extra awkwardness of a hearing over a month into the season.

Since making his big league debut in 2019, Arraez has been an extremely valuable member of the Minnesota roster due to both his production at the plate and his versatility in the field.  While playing mostly as a second baseman, Arraez has bounced around to fill in at third base and left field, plus a handful of appearances as a shortstop and first baseman (much of Arraez’s first base time has come this very week, as he has stepped in for the injured Miguel Sano).

At the plate, Arraez is arguably baseball’s best contact hitter, with only an 8.9% strikeout rate over his first 1036 career plate appearances.  This strikeout rate is less than his 9.1% walk rate, and this extreme contact rate has translated to a very solid .313/.375/.403 career slash line (114 wRC+, 115 OPS+).  Arraez doesn’t offer much power or even hard contact, yet the sheer volume of contact has allowed him to become a productive offensive player.

Gary Sanchez is now the Twins’ only remaining arbitration-eligible player whose case has yet to be settled.  As per MLBTR’s Arbitration Tracker, there are 23 players around baseball who are still headed for in-season arb hearings unless a deal can be worked out before the meeting with the arbiters.

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