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Pirates Place Phillip Evans On 45-Day IL; Promote Jose Osuna, Brandon Waddell

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10:09AM: The Pirates have officially placed Evans on the 45-day injured list.  The Bucs also announced the Mears option, the Osuna call-up, and the selection of Waddell’s contract.

8:55AM: Evans will likely miss the rest of the season after suffering a broken jaw and a concussion, Mackey reports.

8:33AM: The Pirates will be calling up infielder/outfielder Jose Osuna and left-hander Brandon Waddell from their alternate training site, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports (Twitter links).  Righty Nick Mears will be one of the players being sent to make room on the active roster, a day after Mears tossed an inning of relief to mark his Major League debut.

While no formal announcement has yet been made by the Pirates, Phillip Evans is surely headed to the injured list in the wake of yesterday’s brutal collision with teammate Gregory Polanco.  Evans and Polanco were both chasing for a fly ball in foul ground during the sixth inning of Pittsburgh’s 11-5 loss to the Tigers, and ran into each other at full speed with Evans’ head taking the full brunt of Polanco’s elbow and forearm.  Evans appeared to be conscious, though he was taken off the field in a stretcher and taken to hospital for evaluation.

Osuna is back on the Bucs’ roster for the second time this season, having already appeared in six games for the club before being optioned to the alternate camp on Thursday.  Experienced at both corner infield and outfield positions, Osuna has shown flashes of promise over his 256 MLB games, and generated some roughly league-average offense (99 OPS+, 97 wRC+) with his .264/.310/.456 slash line and 10 home runs over 285 PA in 2019.

Waddell was only added to the Pirates’ 60-man player pool on Friday, and another transaction will be forthcoming in order for the Bucs to make room for him on their 40-man roster.  The southpaw is set to make his Major League debut a little over five years after being selected out of the University of Virginia with a fifth-round pick in the 2015 draft.  Waddell has a 4.12 ERA, 2.07 K/BB rate, and 8.0 K/9 over 478 innings in Pittsburgh’s farm system, starting 85 of his 115 games.  It’s possible Waddell could just be getting a cup of coffee on the roster (like Mears) as the Pirates continue to cycle through pitchers, though the Bucs’ almost team-wide pitching struggles could provide opportunity for Waddell to gain a foothold in the big leagues.

Mets Place Michael Wacha On 10-Day IL

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The Mets announced that right-hander Michael Wacha has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to inflammation in his throwing shoulder.  Catcher Ali Sanchez has been called up from the club’s alternate training site to take Wacha’s spot on the active roster.

After a strong debut start for New York on July 27, Wacha has struggled over his last two outings, and has an overall 6.43 ERA over his first 14 innings in a Mets uniform.  Despite a 3.60 K/BB rate, an 11.6 K/9, and some generally above-average Statcast numbers, Wacha has been hurt badly by the long ball, with three homers allowed over his 14 frames (1.9 HR/9).  The early returns suggest a troubling continuation of the homer problem that plagued Wacha last season, as his HR/9 went from 0.9 over the first six years of his career to a sudden 1.8 number in 2019.

Wacha’s absence leaves the Mets further short-handed in a rotation that already lost Noah Syndergaard to Tommy John surgery last spring and Marcus Stroman to the injured list due to a tear in his calf muscle.  Mets manager Luis Rojas told the New York Post’s Mike Puma and other reporters that Stroman was still at least another simulated game away from returning, so there isn’t enough time for Stroman to be activated prior to Wednesday, when Wacha was scheduled to start.  Erasmo Ramirez, Corey Oswalt, Franklyn Kilome, and Ariel Jurado are all available at the Mets’ alternate training site as potential fill-ins, both for Wednesday or potentially longer if Stroman needs more time.

Royals Reinstate Hunter Dozier, Place Franchy Cordero On 10-Day IL

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The Royals have reinstated Hunter Dozier from the injured list, the club announced via Twitter.  Dozier will take the roster spot left open by outfielder Franchy Cordero, who is headed to the 10-day IL with a right wrist sprain.

Dozier is set to make his season debut after testing positive for COVID-19 just two days’ prior to the Royals’ first game.  He was reportedly feeling some symptoms at the time, but it is obviously good news to see him recovered and now ready to take the field.  The 28-year-old is looking to follow up a breakout 2019 season that saw him hit .279/.348/.522 with 26 homers and a league-best 10 triples over 586 plate appearances.

While the Royals’ offense has been pretty productive even with Dozier out, his return will likely represent a big upgrade on Cordero, who has hit only .154/.185/.231 over his first 27 plate appearances with the team.  He suffered his wrist injury during batting practice on Wednesday, and will now make another unwelcome trip to the IL in a career that has thus far been marked by injuries.

Elbow and quad problems limited Cordero to only 49 total games over the 2018-19 seasons, though the 25-year-old has flashed some impressive power potential when he has been able to play.  There is still lots of upside if Cordero can stay healthy, which is why Kansas City was willing to trade reliever Tim Hill to San Diego for Cordero and Ronald Bolanos back on July 16.

Yankees Place Giancarlo Stanton On 10-Day Injured List

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The Yankees have placed Giancarlo Stanton on their 10-day injured list due to a left hamstring strain, the team announced.  Thairo Estrada has been recalled to take Stanton’s place on the active roster.

Stanton was removed from last night’s 5-3 loss to the Rays, as manager Aaron Boone told reporters (including MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch) that the slugger suffered the injury while running the bases in the fourth inning.  Stanton was was able to remain on the field and even advance to both third and home later in the inning to score a run, though Mike Ford replaced Stanton during the next DH at-bat in the sixth inning.

Yet another trip to the IL is ominous news for Stanton and Yankees fans in the wake of the slugger’s oft-injured status over the last two seasons, and several leg-related issues (knee, quad, calf) were among Stanton’s long list of maladies.  Stanton was limited to only 18 games in 2019 and he would have missed time at the start of a normally-scheduled 2020 season had the league not been shut down.

Though the first 14 games of the season, Stanton seemed to be in prime form, hitting .293/.453/.585 with three homers over his first 54 plate appearances.  Albeit in a small sample size, this performance continues to indicate that Stanton is one of the sport’s most impactful bats when healthy, though remaining on the field is becoming an ever-increasing difficulty.

The Yankees played Stanton exclusively as a designated hitter this season in order to keep him as fresh as possible, and with the position now open, the club could cycle several players through DH duty.  Of those on the active roster, Ford and Mike Tauchman are the likeliest candidates for more playing time, plus Miguel Andujar and Clint Frazier loom as potential call-ups from the minor league camp.

Chris Iannetta Retires

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12:49PM: Iannetta explained his decision to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, saying that he told the Yankees in the offseason that he was going to retire if he wasn’t on the Major League roster.  That stance didn’t change after Higashioka was injured.

“If I didn’t make the team out of spring, I was going to call it a career….That’s kind of what transpired when they took me off the roster and wanted me to go to Scranton,” Iannetta said.  “I was like, no.  I wasn’t about to hang on or sit around and wait for someone to get hurt or get called up again.  I’ve never wished anyone to get hurt in my entire career, and I wasn’t about to start now.”

12:40PM: The Yankees placed catcher Chris Iannetta on their restricted list yesterday, a somewhat curious transaction that could now be a bit more clear.  MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reports (Twitter link) that Iannetta “is believed to be retiring” after 14 seasons in the majors.

Originally a fourth-round pick for the Rockies in the 2004 draft, Iannetta spent eight seasons in total with Colorado, first from 2006-11 and then a return for the 2018 and 2019 seasons.  In between those stints at Coors Field, Iannetta also spent four seasons with the Angels (after being dealt in a notable trade that sent Tyler Chatwood to Colorado), and one season apiece with the Mariners and Diamondbacks.

He inked a minor league deal with the Yankees last February and had his contract selected prior to their July opener, though Iannetta never officially appeared in the pinstripes before he was designated for assignment last week.  Iannetta was then outrighted off New York’s 40-man roster but didn’t report to the club’s alternate training site, which George A. King III of the New York Post reports (via Twitter) was the reason for Iannetta’s placement on the restricted list.

A possible wrinkle to the story could be today’s news that Kyle Higashioka has been placed on the 10-day injured list with an oblique strain.  Erik Kratz was called up to take Higashioka’s spot as Gary Sanchez’s backup, and with the Yankees now short on catching depth, one wonders if Iannetta might be persuaded to return if he has a clearer path to a Major League job.

If this is indeed it for the 37-year-old Iannetta, he’ll head into retirement with 1197 MLB games and 4253 plate appearances to his name, with 141 homers and a career .230/.345/.406 slash line.  Iannetta’s 100 wRC+ makes him an exactly average run-creator over his 14 seasons, and his three best offensive seasons were somewhat unusually spaced out — a 129 wRC+ in 2008 over 407 plate appearances with the Rockies, a 125 wRC+ in 373 PA with the Angels in 2014, and then a 120 wRC+ over 316 PA with the D’Backs in 2017.  Iannetta’s offensive production was largely fueled by an ability to reach base, highlighted by a .390 OBP during that big 2008 campaign.

Iannetta is the Rockies’ all-time leader in games caught, and as noted by Heyman, he is also a notable figure in the history of Rhode Island baseball.  Of all big league players born in the Ocean State, Iannetta ranks seventh in games played, behind three Hall-of-Famers (Nap Lajoie, Gabby Hartnett, Hugh Duffy) and three other notables in Paul Konerko, Davey Lopes, and Bill Almon.  MLB Trade Rumors congratulates Iannetta on a fine career, and we wish him the best in his post-playing days.

Red Sox Option Ryan Weber, Call Up Dylan Covey

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The Red Sox have optioned right-hander Ryan Weber to their alternate training site, as per a team announcement.  Recently-acquired righty Dylan Covey has been called up to take Weber’s spot on the MLB roster.

The 2020 season has been a struggle for Weber, who has a 9.90 ERA over three starts and only 10 innings pitched.  Weber has allowed five home runs over that brief sample size, as well as nine walks and only three strikeouts.  Clearly the Sox had been enough to continue with Weber as a starting pitcher, as strapped as Boston is for arms.

It was due to this pitching shortage that Weber found himself in the rotation in the first place, after working as a reliever for 31 of his 42 Major League appearances prior to this season.  Weber had only a 5.04 ERA and 5.7 K/9 through 114 1/3 innings from 2015-19, though his strong ability to generate grounders and limit hard contact gave the Red Sox some hope that he could at least tread water as a regular starter.  Weber’s grounder rate is down to only 40% this season, however, and opposing batters are teeing off to the tune of a 54.8% hard-hit ball rate.

Covey might step right into Weber’s rotation spot, though while the 28-year-old righty brings more experience as a starting pitcher, he also has a rather shaky track record.  Covey posted a 6.54 ERA, 6.2 K/9, and 1.52 K/BB rate over 250 1/3 innings with the White Sox from 2017-2019, also posting some solid ground-ball rates and exhibiting some problems with the long ball (1.6 HR/9).  Over 63 appearances for Chicago, Covey started 45 of those games.

The Red Sox acquired Covey from the Rays just a few days prior to their July opener, and he made one relief appearance for Boston before being sent to the alternate training site.  That one outing didn’t go particularly well, as Covey gave up two earned runs over two innings in Boston’s 7-2 loss to the Orioles on July 25.

Yankees Announce Multiple Roster Moves

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The Yankees have announced five roster moves prior to today’s doubleheader with the Rays.  Catcher Erik Kratz joins the active roster after signing a Major League contract with the team, and Kratz will take the place of catcher Kyle Higashioka, who is headed to the 10-day injured list (retroactive to August 6) due to a right oblique strain.  The Yankees also brought up infielder Thairo Estrada from their alternate training camp and named righty Albert Abreu as their extra 29th man for the double-header.  Right-hander Nick Tropeano has also been designated for assignment to create roster space for Estrada.

Given that even minor oblique injuries usually take a couple of weeks of recovery time, Higashioka could potentially be in danger of missing the rest of the 2020 season if he has suffered anything beyond a low-level strain.  Any sort of IL stint is a tough blow to Higashioka, who was slated for a larger role as New York’s backup catcher behind Gary Sanchez when Austin Romine departed for the Tigers in the offseason.

Higashioka’s absence opens the door for Kratz to play in his 11th MLB season.  The veteran signed another minors deal with the Yankees over the offseason, his third such deal in less than three years’ time, though Kratz’s total official tenure in the pinstripes consists of only four games in 2017.  Mostly working as a part-timer throughout his career, Kratz will back up Sanchez as New York is now suddenly rather short at catcher if Higashioka is indeed facing a lengthy absence.  Josh Thole and Max McDowell are the other catching options within the 60-man player pool, as Chris Iannetta was placed on the restricted list yesterday and could be retiring.

It wasn’t long ago that Abreu was one of the most intriguing prospects in baseball, drawing top-100 attention prior to the 2017 season and even a placement in the 100th position on Baseball Prospectus minor league rankings before the 2018 season.  Coming from the Astros as part of the November 2016 trade that sent Brian McCann to Houston, Abreu has yet to truly distinguish himself over three seasons in New York’s farm system, with injuries also hampering his progress.  Abreu has a 3.77 ERA, 2.11 K/BB rate, and 9.1 K/9 over 439 minor league frames, though none above the Double-A level.

MLB.com’s scouting report says “all three of Abreu’s pitches can grade as well above average,” as his repertoire includes an upper-90s fastball, a “power slurve,” and an interesting changeup.  Depending on his health, Abreu’s future could be in the bullpen rather than in the starting rotation, and the Yankees are likely to use him as a reliever in his first taste of Major League action.  It also isn’t certain if Abreu could just be getting a cup of coffee due to the expanded doubleheader roster, or if the Yankees have an eye towards seeing if he can contribute in a larger role throughout the season.

Tropeano’s contract was only selected on Thursday, so his tenure with the Bronx Bombers could possibly end without ever appearing in an official game.  Tropeano signed a minor league deal back in January, coming to New York in the wake of a rough 2019 that saw him post a 9.88 over 13 2/3 IP with the Angels and also struggle significantly at Triple-A ball.

White Sox Place Aaron Bummer On 10-Day IL, Promote Zack Burdi

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The White Sox placed left-hander Aaron Bummer on the 10-day injured list due to a left biceps strain, the team announced.  Right-hander Brady Lail was also designated for assignment, and the two open Major League roster spots will be filled by right-handers Zack Burdi and Drew Anderson.  Burdi is being called up from the club’s minor league training site, while Anderson had his contract purchased.

Bummer suffered the injury in last night’s game, departing during an at-bat against Cleveland’s Jose Ramirez.  The seriousness of the biceps problem isn’t yet known, though any absence for Bummer counts as a problem for the White Sox given the southpaw’s increasing prominence in the bullpen.  After posting a 4.36 ERA over 53 2/3 innings during the 2017-18 seasons, Bummer broke out with a 2.13 ERA, 2.50 K/BB rate, 8.0 K/9, and a whopping 72.1% grounder rate over 67 2/3 innings in 2019.  Only Zack Britton had a higher ground-ball rate among all pitchers who threw at least 60 innings last season.

In a nod to their belief in Bummer’s work, the White Sox signed him to a contract extension in February that will pay Bummer at least $16MM in guaranteed money through the 2024 season.  If two club options are exercised, Bummer will be in Chicago through 2026 for a total of $29.5MM — not a bad payday for a rather unheralded 19th-round pick from the 2014 draft.

Burdi, meanwhile, had a much higher profile as the 26th overall pick over the 2016 draft, though the righty’s progress was stalled by Tommy John surgery that sidelined him for much of the 2017 and 2018 seasons.  If that wasn’t enough, a ligament tear in his patella prematurely ended Burdi’s 2019 campaign after just 22 2/3 innings.  All told, Burdi has only 100 2/3 professional innings under his belt, and only 16 of them at the Triple-A level.

However, those Triple-A innings came back in 2016, indicating that the White Sox were planning on fast-tracking him to their big league bullpen in pretty short order.  Working almost exclusively as a reliever, Burdi has a 4.31 ERA, 2.53 K/BB rate, and a 12.5 K/9 over his minor league career, and is the owner of a blazing fastball that regularly sits in the high 90’s and has often touched the 100mph plateau.  Burdi’s arsenal suggests a possible future as Chicago’s closer, if he can stay healthy and translate his velocity into success against big league hitters.

Lail has four Major League innings to his name over the last two seasons, including a single outing for the Sox this season that saw him toss 1 1/3 frames of work in Thursday’s 8-3 loss to the Brewers.  An 18th-round pick for the Yankees in 2012, Lail has mostly worked as a reliever in the minors over the last two seasons, and has an overall 3.97 ERA, 2.64 K/BB rate, and 7.0 K/9 over 741 career minor league frames.  The DFA is an unfortunate early birthday for Lail, who turns 27 tomorrow.

Anderson will make his White Sox debut after joining the club on a minors deal last winter.  He posted a 7.71 ERA over 21 innings with the Phillies over the 2017-19 seasons, and a 3.52 ERA, 2.48 K/BB, and 7.7 K/9 in 486 innings in Philadelphia’s farm system.  Anderson has started 94 of his 101 career games in the minors but only started once at the big league level, so the White Sox will likely deploy him out of the bullpen barring a rotation emergency.

Injury Updates: Seager, Bummer, Senzel, Strop

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The latest on four notable players who left last night’s action due to potential injuries…

  • Corey Seager left the field during the third inning of the Dodgers’ 7-2 victory over the Giants due to what the club described as lower back discomfort.  As manager Dave Roberts told MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick and other reporters, Seager will evaluated and likely won’t be in Saturday’s lineup.  The shortstop suffered the injury the inning prior while diving for a ground-ball single off the bat of Chadwick Tromp, and was pulled an inning later after Seager was slow to cover second on the first out of the frame.  Seager has been one of baseball’s hottest hitters early in the 2020 campaign, batting .340/.389/.600 with three homers.
  • White Sox left-hander Aaron Bummer left during the seventh inning of Chicago’s 2-0 win over Cleveland due to left biceps soreness.  After tossing a pitch to Jose Ramirez, Bummer called the trainer to the mound and then departed the game.  Bummer “just felt what he thought was a cramp in his biceps,” White Sox manager Rick Renteria told the Chicago Tribune’s LaMond Pope and other reporters.  “Hopefully it’s no extended period of time but we are going to be careful with him.”  Bummer’s departure came after 1 2/3 innings of scoreless ball, which dropped his ERA down to 1.23 through 7 1/3 frames of total work this season.  The southpaw has quietly been a sturdy bullpen force since debuting in the 2017 season, which inspired the White Sox to sign Bummer to a five-year extension last February.
  • Both Nick Senzel and Pedro Strop left the Reds’ 8-3 victory over the Brewers with groin injuries.  Senzel departed the game before re-taking his position in center field in the bottom of the fourth inning, while Strop left four pitches into an eighth inning at-bat against Brock Holt.  Both players are day-to-day.  Senzel already missed a few games this season for precautionary reasons (he tested negative for COVID-19 after experiencing symptoms) and he has been plagued with injuries throughout his young career, so the Reds are surely hopeful he can avoid another trip to the injured list.  Strop has a 3.86 ERA through 2 1/3 innings in a Cincinnati uniform, after the veteran right-hander signed a one-year contract with the Reds last winter.

Astros Place Roberto Osuna On 10-Day IL

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2:14pm: The Astros have placed Osuna on the 10-day injured list with right elbow soreness, according to Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. He’ll be replaced on the active roster by right-handed pitcher Humberto Castellanos, who had previously been on the Astros’ taxi squad.

8:46am: Astros closer Roberto Osuna left Saturday’s game due to an arm injury, and manager Dusty Baker told reporters that Osuna will head from Anaheim to Houston to undergo an MRI.  Facing his third batter of the ninth inning last evening, Osuna threw a pitch to the Angels’ Jason Castro and immediately signaled for the trainer to visit the mound.  The right-hander was removed and replaced with Cy Sneed.

In the short term, Osuna’s injury quite possibly cost Houston the game, as Castro hit an RBI double to tie the score, and the Angels then scored the winning run in the 10th.  But Saturday’s defeat could be a relatively small matter compared to a potentially serious arm problem for Osuna, especially considering how the Astros’ pitching staff has already been ravaged by injuries.

Chris Devenski, Brad Peacock, Joe Biagini, Jose Urquidy, Austin Pruitt, and reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander are all on the injured list, while Ryan Pressly only just returned from a sore elbow.  The Astros have made some recent acquisitions (signing Fernando Rodney and acquiring Hector Velazquez from the Orioles) to help fill out their pitching depth, though there’s only so much that can be done to replace so many sidelined hurlers.

Should Osuna’s MRI reveal any bad news, his loss would be a particularly tough one for the Astros.  Osuna has a 2.45 ERA, 6.33 K/BB rate, and 9.3 K/9 over 92 innings since coming to the Astros from the Blue Jays in July 2018.  Pressly might be the top choice for save situations with Osuna sidelined, though the club might want to ease Pressly back in action considering that Saturday marked his first game of the season.

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