Twins Reportedly Considering Moving Royce Lewis To Second Base
Twins infielder Royce Lewis made his first career appearance at second base yesterday, fielding three innings of work at the position during the club’s win over the Blue Jays. According to a report from Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic, that could be the start of what becomes a more permanent move to the keystone as the club ponders Lewis’s defensive future.
Lewis is among the league’s most impressive young hitters, although he’s been hampered by injuries to this point in his career. The first overall pick of the 2017 draft has been nothing short of electric at the plate when healthy enough to play throughout his time in the majors, with a .286/.345/.552 (146 wRC+) slash line since his debut back in 2022. He’s done more of the same so far this season, as he’s slashed an excellent .259/.322/.557 (140 wRC+) in 227 trips to the plate between stints on the injured list due to quad and hip injuries. Among hitters with at least 200 plate appearances this year, Lewis’s .299 isolated slugging percentage ranks fifth in the majors behind only Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani, Kyle Tucker, and Kerry Carpenter.
Despite possessing one of the league’s most potent bats, however, Lewis’s glove stands out as a serious question mark. While Statcast’s Outs Above Average metric has generally looked upon his work at the hot corner somewhat favorably (+2 OAA at the position for his career), Fielding Bible’s Defensive Runs Saved has been less kind with a -2 DRS in just 35 games at the position this year. Advanced defensive metrics require much larger sample sizes to stabilize than the 700 innings Lewis has posted a third base so far in his career, but the eye test and traditional defensive stats aren’t particularly forgiving regarding the 25-year-old’s performance either.
Lewis has committed 11 errors in 84 games at the hot corner, ten of which have been throwing errors. That’s a worrying total at a position that prioritizes the fielder’s arm as much as third base does, and even regulars at the hot corner who are generally regarded as below average defenders like Rafael Devers and Austin Riley don’t commit throwing errors at a clip that elevated. By comparison, Devers has committed 11 total throwing errors at third base since the start of the 2023 season, while Riley has committed that same number since the start of the 2022 campaign. That volume of errors comes in sample sizes of more than 2,000 and 3,000 innings respectively, figures which both dwarf Lewis’s innings total at the position.
Given Lewis’s lackluster throwing ability, it’s perhaps no surprise that the club would consider moving him to the keystone. According to Gleeman, Lewis has been taking regular practice reps at second base recently prior to yesterday’s in-game debut at the position, and club officials are currently “evaluating” whether to use Lewis at second or third base in the long term. Currently, the club is without shortstop Carlos Correa due to plantar fasciitis and is relying on a patchwork infield while mixing and matching between Lewis, Brooks Lee, Willi Castro, Jose Miranda, and Edouard Julien. Once Correa returns to reclaim the shortstop job, however, Gleeman suggests that the Twins plan to install Lewis and Lee as their long-term answers on either side of him and simply haven’t decided which position which player will play.
Lee is regarded as a stronger defender compared to Lewis and figures to profile as the superior defensive option at both positions. Gleeman notes in particular that Lee’s superior throwing arm could make him a “more natural” fit at the hot corner, but also suggests that Lewis is “somewhat apprehensive” about learning the new position on the fly. Of course, those concerns likely wouldn’t be a significant factor in the long term, as the Twins could dedicate Lewis to learning his new position during the coming offseason and Spring Training if they decide on the keystone as his long-term defensive home.
Installing either Lee or Lewis at second base would likely spell the end of Julien’s time at the position. The 25-year-old enjoyed a sensational rookie campaign last year as he slashed an excellent .263/.381/.459 in 408 plate appearances as the club’s primary second baseman. He’s a below average defender at the position, however, and his 2024 campaign has left much to be desired offensively as he’s struck out at a 34.7% clip while watching his walk rate dip from 15.7% last year to a somewhat less impressive 12.7% this season. It’s a somewhat similar situation for third baseman Jose Miranda, who lost his regular job in the Twins’ infield with a lackluster offensive performance and is also generally regarded as a below average defender. Looking ahead to 2025, it’s possible that both Julien and Miranda could look to compete with Alex Kirilloff for playing time at first base while also filling in at their respective positions elsewhere on the infield when injuries arise throughout the year.
Guardians Re-Sign Anthony Gose To Minor League Deal
The Guardians have re-signed left-hander Anthony Gose to a minor league deal, according to the transactions tracker on Gose’s player profile at MLB.com. The signing came together on August 31, meaning that Gose would be eligible to pitch for Cleveland in the postseason should the club choose to add him back to the 40-man roster.
Gose, 34, was once a second-round pick by the Phillies in the 2008 draft. He was a top-100 prospect as a hitter after making some noise as a two-way player during his prep days, but after struggling through five seasons in the majors with below average offensive results (he’s a .240/.309/.348 hitter for his career) the lefty decided to return to pitching. He resurfaced in the big leagues as a reliever in Cleveland back in 2021, impressing with a six-appearance cup of coffee that saw him strike out 37.5% of opponents and post a 1.35 ERA.
Since then, he’s accumulated an additional 24 big league appearances with the Guardians. The majority of those came back in 2022, when he pitched to a lackluster 4.71 ERA with a 5.06 FIP in 21 frames. While he still struck out an impressive 30.4% of opponents during that stretch, Gose walked an untenable 15.2% of batters faced and allowed four homers in his limited body of work, minimizing the impact of the high-octane arsenal he offers. Gose’s attempted comeback as a pitcher was complicated further when he underwent Tommy John surgery that September, wiping out the entirety of his 2023 season.
Gose returned to action at the start of the 2024 campaign and put up solid numbers at the Triple-A level with a 3.46 ERA and a 32.9% strikeout rate in 39 innings of work. That strong body of work is enough for the lefty to have earned a couple of opportunities at the big league level with Cleveland, although those have not gone well. In 3 1/3 innings of work across his two appearances with the Guardians this year, Gose has surrendered three runs on six hits and a walk while striking out two. That led the club to designate Gose for assignment last week, and while he initially elected free agency he evidently decided to return to the club shortly thereafter on a fresh minor league contract.
That will allow Gose to not only continue acting as a non-roster depth option for the Guardians’ bullpen down the stretch, but it also leaves the door open to Gose making the club’s postseason roster. Of course, for that to come to pass Gose would surely not only have to return to the big leagues before the regular season comes to an end but also flash results more in line with his strong minor league numbers than his brief stint in the majors this year.
Giants Activate Tristan Beck, Recall Blake Sabol
Amid yesterday’s flurry of transactions related to September’s expansion of active rosters from 26 to 28, the Giants recalled catcher Blake Sabol and activated right-hander Tristan Beck from the 60-day injured list to fill the newly created vacancies. No corresponding 40-man move was necessary to activate Beck, and the club’s 40-man roster now stands at 39.
Beck, 28, has spent the entire season on the injured list to this point after suffering an aneurysm in his upper arm back in February. The righty underwent surgery to correct the issue back in early March but was shut down from throwing for the next two months and since then has been slowly working his way back towards a return to the majors. After spending the majority of August on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Sacramento, Beck finally made it back to the majors yesterday.
With that being said, Beck’s current role isn’t the one he was expected to fulfill at the start of the season. The right-hander was expected to be a member of the club’s starting rotation this year at the time of his injury after a solid rookie season in 2023 where he pitched to a 3.92 ERA in 85 innings of work as a multi-inning relief arm and spot starter. Beck’s injury derailed those plans, however, and while he started games in the minors during his rehab assignment last month he maxed out at just 56 pitches.
That won’t be enough for him to join a rotation that currently features Blake Snell, Logan Webb, Kyle Harrison, Hayden Birdsong, and Mason Black, but it should allow him to join righties Landen Roupp and Sean Hjelle as a multi-inning option out of the bullpen down the stretch. If Beck manages to post solid numbers in his return from surgery, it’s even possible that he could work his way back to into the conversation for starts with the Giants by next season, with Snell widely expected to opt out of his deal with San Francisco and vacate a rotation spot by returning to free agency.
As for Sabol, the 26-year-old was thrust into a semi-regular role with the club last year after being selected from the Pirates in the Rule 5 draft. He performed admirably in the role, with a decent .235/.301/.394 slash line that was within spitting distance of league average as he split time between catcher and left field in 110 games for San Francisco. This year, however, Sabol has returned to the minor leagues for the majority of the year with just 11 games in the majors under his belt to this point. Triple-A has been a bit of a struggle for the 26-year-old, as he’s slashed just .241/.339/.373 at the level despite the Pacific Coast League’s inflated offensive environment. Still, the versatile youngster should provide the Giants with some depth in the outfield and behind the plate down the stretch, and a strong performance could earn him more regular playing time headed into 2025.
The Opener: Leiter, Gurriel, Red Sox, Mets
Happy Labor Day to those who celebrate! While fans around America enjoy a day of rest and relaxation, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Leiter to be recalled:
The Rangers are set to recall the second overall pick of the 2021 draft, right-hander Jack Leiter, to the big league club today. While the 24-year-old was optioned back down to the minors after pitching in a doubleheader against the White Sox last week as the club’s 27th man, reporting indicated at the time that the Rangers were planning to give Leiter a more extended look in the rotation down the stretch. That look figures to start today, and Leiter will get a tough first assignment with Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, and the Yankees coming to town for a game that’s scheduled to start at 7:05pm local time.
Leiter struggled badly early in his professional career despite posting sensational numbers during his time in the SEC, but this year has managed to turn things around at Triple-A. He’s posted a solid 3.51 ERA with a 33.3% strikeout rate for the Rangers’ affiliate in Round Rock, a feat made more impressive by the inflated offensive environment in the Pacific Coast League. He’s made just four spot starts in the big leagues to this point in his career to terrible results, but given his stellar minor league numbers it’s easy to see why Texas wants to see how he looks in a more consistent major league role.
2. Gurriel to undergo MRI:
The Diamondbacks were dealt a frustrating blow yesterday afternoon when outfielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. was pulled from yesterday’s game due to a calf injury that occurred while he attempted to beat out a double play ball. Manager Torey Lovullo described Gurriel as day-to-day after the game but also noted that the outfielder is set to undergo an MRI to determine the severity of the issue. Gurriel’s second season in a Diamondbacks uniform has been more or less identical to his first, as he’s posted a 104 wRC+ with 1.9 fWAR after posting a 105 wRC+ with 2.0 fWAR for last year’s NL pennant-winning squad.
If Gurriel were to miss significant time due to the injury, it’s possible that the club’s current DH tandem of Joc Pederson and Randal Grichuk could see expanded roles down the stretch, though recently recalled youngster Jorge Barrosa would be another option worth considering in Gurriel’s absence. The switch-hitting rookie has just 11 plate appearances in the majors under his belt but owns a solid .272/.383/.444 career slash line in 181 games at the Triple-A level to this point in his career. If the club prefers to keep Pederson and Grichuk in their current roles but does not want to turn their regular left field job over to a 23-year-old rookie, they could also turn to Pavin Smith to cover for Gurriel. The outfielder has struggled at the big league level in years past but this season has hit a solid .250/.314/.434 in a part-time role.
3. Series Preview: Red Sox @ Mets
An interleague series between the two clubs closest to capturing a playoff spot in each league is scheduled to begin today when the Red Sox head to Queens for a three-game set. Of the two clubs, the Mets are much more firmly in playoff contention at this point, sitting just one game back of the Braves for the final NL Wild Card spot. The Red Sox, by contrast, are 4.5 games back of the Royals and Twins in the AL Wild Card race entering the stretch run. Per the playoff odds over at Fangraphs, Boston has a 15.5% chance of making the postseason while the Mets have 29.2% odds.
With the season entering its final stretch, the series could prove pivotal for both clubs as they seek postseason berths. Game 1 is scheduled to begin at 7:10pm local time this evening, when Red Sox youngster Brayan Bello (4.66 ERA) takes the mound opposite veteran hurler Luis Severino (3.96 ERA). Tomorrow will see righty Kutter Crawford (4.12 ERA) square off against southpaw David Peterson (2.83 ERA), and Boston’s staff ace Tanner Houck (3.12 ERA) face Mets righty Tylor Megill (4.82 ERA) in the series finale on Wednesday.
Drew Thorpe To Undergo Season-Ending Surgery To Remove Bone Spur
White Sox right-hander Drew Thorpe is set to undergo season-ending surgery to remove a bone spur from his right elbow, as relayed by MLB.com’s Scott Merkin. Merkin adds that the club announcement details that Thorpe, who has been on the injured list the past month due to a flexor strain, is expected to be ready for Spring Training with no restrictions.
Thorpe made plenty of headlines this winter when he was included in not one but two separate blockbuster trades over the offseason. First, the Yankees swapped their second-round pick from the 2022 draft to the Padres as part of the package that brought Juan Soto to the Bronx. Just three months later, Thorpe was on the move yet again as he was shipped to Chicago in order to bring right-hander Dylan Cease to San Diego. The hype surrounding Thorpe that led him to be included in two of last winter’s biggest trades was based in his status as a consensus top-100 prospect who had just finished up a dominant 2023 season with the Yankees that saw him post a 1.48 ERA in his first taste of Double-A action down the stretch.
Upon suiting up for the White Sox for the first time back in April, Thorpe was sent back to the Double-A level and continued to display the dominance he had shown during his time with New York. In 60 innings of work across 11 starts, Thorpe posted a 1.35 ERA despite his strikeout rate dropping from the eye-popping 34% rate he flashed with the Yankees last year to a more pedestrian 25%, and by the time the calendar flipped to June the White Sox decided that Thorpe needed a bigger challenge. Rather than promote him to the Triple-A level and test him there, the club opted to promote him directly to Chicago. Thorpe impressed in his first big league start as he struck out four across five innings of one-run ball, though his second outing against the Diamondbacks saw the right-hander allow seven earned runs on six hits and five walks in 3 1/3 innings of work.
The ups and downs of Thorpe’s first two starts would continue throughout his first taste of big league action. He rattled off a stretch of five excellent starts throughout the end of June and start of July where he posted a microscopic 1.23 ERA despite a diminished 17.9% strikeout rate that stood out as a potential red flag. Those concerns promptly came to pass, as what would prove to be Thorpe’s final two starts of the year saw him lit up to the tune of a 22.24 ERA as he surrendered 14 runs on just 5 2/3 innings across the pair of outings. In that time, he allowed four walks and four home runs while striking out just one batter.
Given those deep struggles, it’s perhaps somewhat reassuring that the heralded prospect has been dealing with significant physical issues that could help to explain not only his lackluster 5.48 ERA in his first taste of big league action but also the diminished strikeout rates he posted throughout his first year in the White Sox organization. That relative lack of strikeouts was paired with a fastball that averaged just 91.1 mph in the majors this year, a noticeable decrease compared to scouting reports that noted his ability to routinely sit at 92 and touch 95 with his heater.
With the White Sox in the midst of a lost season in which they’re flirting with the worst record in major league history and Thorpe currently expected to be ready for action in time for Spring Training next year, perhaps the youngster’s upcoming surgery is a sign that fans on the south side have a healthy, more effective Thorpe to look forward to next year. In the meantime, the Sox figure to rely on a rotation featuring Garrett Crochet, Jonathan Cannon, Chris Flexen, Nick Nastrini, and Davis Martin down the stretch.
Rockies Outright Noah Davis
The Rockies announced a flurry of roster moves this afternoon, including the selection of left-hander Ty Blach‘s contract that was first reported last night. Additionally, Colorado has placed right-hander Cal Quantrill on the 15-day injured list and announced that they’ve outrighted right-hander Noah Davis to Triple-A. It’s the first public indication that Davis had been designated for assignment, but his removal from the 40-man roster makes room for the addition of Blach.
Davis, 27, has pitched for the Rockies in each of the past three seasons. The club’s 11th-round pick in the 2018 draft has struggled badly throughout his big league career so far, accumulating a 7.71 ERA with a 5.66 FIP in 51 1/3 innings of work in the majors. While some of those struggles can surely be chalked up to the perils of calling Coors Field your home ballpark as a pitcher, it’s worth noting that Davis hasn’t pitched much better during his time at the Triple-A level. In 123 innings of work with the club’s Albuquerque affiliate, the right-hander has posted a lackluster 5.05 ERA with a 19.1% strikeout rate against an 11.9% walk rate. Those deep struggles in both the majors and the minors have seemingly convinced Rockies brass that a change of scenery would be best for both parties, and Davis will now be eligible for minor league free agency if not added back to the 40-man roster before the start of the offseason. Until then, he’ll remain with the club as a potential non-roster depth option.
As for Quantrill, the right-hander was announced last night as scratched from his scheduled start today due to right triceps inflammation, with Blach scheduled to take his place. It wasn’t clear last night whether or not Quantrill would wind up heading for the IL, but he’s now set to be out for at least the next two weeks. Given his placement on the IL is retroactive to August 29, the right-hander will be eligible to be activated from the shelf as soon as September 13.
It’s unclear if he’ll be ready to go that quickly, but there’s plenty of reason for optimism as manager Bud Black told reporters (including Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post) that he expects Quantrill to return to action at some point this season. The 29-year-old right-hander sports a below-average 4.63 ERA (99 ERA+) with a 5.04 FIP in 138 innings of work this year, but prior to a brutal run of five starts prior to the trade deadline was sporting far more palatable ratios of 4.09 and 4.71 through his first 114 1/3 innings of work in a Rockies uniform.
Blue Jays Claim Dillon Tate
The Blue Jays announced this afternoon that they’ve claimed right-hander Dillon Tate off waivers from the Orioles and optioned him to Triple-A. Right-hander Paolo Espino was designated for assignment to make room for Tate on the 40-man roster.
Tate, 30, was taken by the Rangers as the fourth overall pick in the 2015 draft and was a part of two blockbuster trades before he made his MLB debut. First, he was swapped from Texas to the Bronx in the deal that made Carlos Beltran a Ranger in 2016, and then two years later he was dealt from the Yankees to the Orioles at the 2018 trade deadline as part of the package that sent Zack Britton to New York. Once he joined his third organization, Tate made his big league debut in fairly short order when he debuted with Baltimore during the 2019 season. That first season in the majors did not go especially well, as he pitched to a lackluster 6.43 ERA in 21 innings of work.
After struggling to start his big league career, Tate managed to settle in over the next few years to become a reliable member of the club’s bullpen. From 2020 to 2022, the right-hander pitched to a solid 3.65 ERA with a 3.88 FIP in 141 appearances, becoming a stable middle relief option for Baltimore. That includes a particularly strong performance during the 2022 season, when the Orioles surged back over .500 for the first time since the 2016 season. That year, Tate was excellent with a 3.05 ERA and 3.28 FIP in 73 2/3 innings of work. While he struck out just 20.5% of opponents that year, he made up for that with a walk rate of just 5.5% and an elite 57.4% groundball rate.
Unfortunately, things went off the rails for Tate following that excellent 2022 season. Elbow and forearm issues wiped out the right-hander’s 2023 season in its entirety, and when he returned earlier this year he didn’t appear to be the same pitcher he was in 2022. In 33 1/3 innings with the big league club this year, Tate struggled to a 4.59 ERA and saw his strikeout rate drop to just 15.5% while his groundball rate dropped to a diminished (but still excellent) 50.9% figure. Those lackluster results and shaky peripherals were enough to convince the club to designate Tate for assignment just a few days ago, and now he’ll look to get back on track with the Orioles’ division rival Blue Jays. If Tate’s time in Toronto goes well, they’ll have the opportunity to retain the right-hander for the 2025 season via arbitration.
As for Espino, the 37-year-old righty has spent the 2024 season with the Blue Jays after signing a minor league deal with the club back in December. He’s pitched 8 2/3 innings for the club to brutal results with an 8.31 ERA and 9.06 FIP across three appearances, and his 5.18 ERA in 17 starts at the Triple-A level hasn’t been much better. The veteran hurler sports a 5.12 ERA and 5.06 FIP in 265 2/3 career innings of work spread across parts of six seasons since he made his big league debut back in 2017, and figures to return to Triple-A with Toronto to continue eating innings in the likely event that he clears waivers.
Angels Recall Reid Detmers, Considering Six-Man Rotation
The Angels have recalled left-hander Reid Detmers to the major league roster to fill one of the spots created by today’s roster expansion, as first reporter by Russell Dorsey of Yahoo Sports.
Detmers, 25, hasn’t pitched in the majors since early June after being optioned to Triple-A following a brutal start to the season that saw him post a 6.14 ERA and 4.40 FIP in his first 12 starts of the season. The lefty has worked to a lackluster 5.54 ERA in 14 starts at the Triple-A level since then, but has shown signs of life recently with a 1.29 ERA and an eye-popping 36.3% strikeout rate in 21 innings of work across his last three starts. That trio of dominant performances was evidently enough for the club to decide to return him to the majors for the stretch run in hopes he can re-establish himself as a quality big league rotation arm ahead of the 2025 campaign.
From a service time perspective, Detmers’s demotion lasting most of the year has allowed the Angels to lock in an additional year of team control over the southpaw, who now won’t become a free agent until after the 2028 season has concluded. Prior to this season, the tenth-overall pick in the 2020 draft had already made 58 starts in the big leagues across three seasons but had accrued just over two years of service time. He’s currently set to accrue just over three months of service time this year, a figure that will put him just under the 172-day threshold to earn a full service year even after factoring in the 64 days toward his third year of service he entered the campaign with.
With the left-hander now back in the majors, the Angels have six healthy rotation arms in the fold as Detmers joins veterans Tyler Anderson and Griffin Canning as well as youngsters Caden Dana, Jack Kochanowicz, and Samuel Aldegheri. Detmers, Dana, Kochanowicz, and Aldegheri all would make sense to retain as the Halos evaluate their young talent ahead of a 2025 season that could see any number of them pitching in the Opening Day rotation, while Tyler Anderson’s status as the club’s veteran workhorse with a 3.55 ERA in 162 1/3 innings of work this year makes him all but guaranteed to remain in the rotation down the stretch.
It’s fair to wonder if those realities indicate that right-hander Griffin Canning is running out of time as a member of the club’s rotation, particularly given his lackluster 5.19 ERA and 5.17 FIP in 144 innings of work this year. With that being said, however, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com noted yesterday that the club is considering utilizing a six-man rotation down the stretch instead of bumping any of their current starters out of the rotation to accommodate Detmers. The Halos famously used a six-man rotation regularly from 2021 to 2023 to accommodate the needs of two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani, but the club indicated this winter after Ohtani departed for the Dodgers that they intended to return to a traditional five-man rotation now that they weren’t accommodating the needs of a generational talent.
Despite that reluctance, it could make some sense for the Angels to utilize a six-man rotation down the stretch. After all, it would allow them to work in some extra rest for arms like those of Anderson and Canning that have taken on fairly heavy workloads this year without kicking them to the bullpen, and it could provide flexibility for the club as they look to evaluate their young arms ahead of the 2025 campaign. Most importantly, today’s expansion of rosters from 26 to 28 players means the club has an extra pitcher to work with, so a six-man rotation wouldn’t require the club to play a man short in the bullpen.
Twins Select Diego Castillo, Michael Helman; Activate Brooks Lee
The Twins announced a flurry of roster moves this afternoon as they selected the contracts of right-hander Diego Castillo and utility hitter Michael Helman to the big league roster. The club also placed outfielder Manuel Margot on the 10-day IL and activated infielder Brooks Lee from the 10-day IL. To make room for Castillo and Helman on the 40-man roster, left-hander Caleb Boushley was designated for assignment while right-hander Chris Paddack was transferred to the 60-day IL.
Castillo returns to the Twins for his second stint in the majors this year. The 30-year-old righty signed with Minnesota on a minor league deal over the offseason and was selected to the roster at the end of May. He ultimately made just five appearances for the club before being designated for assignment despite a solid 2.57 ERA thanks to worrying peripherals, highlighted by a 10% strikeout rate and an eye-popping 23.3% walk rate. Castillo elected free agency but returned to the Twins on a fresh minor league deal shortly thereafter, and since then has been pitching for the club’s Triple-A affiliate in St. Paul.
Even so, the results have not been good. While his numbers at Triple-A have been skewed by a disastrous performance where he surrendered five runs while recording just one out last month, he’s still posted a 4.00 ERA with nearly as many walks (6) as strikeouts (7) in nine innings of work since then. While Castillo was among the more reliable late-inning arms in the game from 2018 to 2022 with a 3.12 ERA and 3.69 FIP over that time, it seems extremely unlikely that he’ll be able to recapture that form down the stretch with Minnesota. That being said, his presence on the roster should allow the club to keep its key relief arms like Jhoan Duran and Griffin Jax fresher down the stretch by soaking up lower-leverage innings.
As for Helman, the Twins’ eleventh-round pick in the 2018 draft has steadily worked his way through the minor leagues through his career before starting the season at Triple-A this year and delivering strong results. The 28-year-old has slashed .283/.367/.508 with 13 homers, 15 doubles, and ten steals in just 63 games this year at the level, and he’s done that while splitting time between shortstop, center field, second base, third base, and left field. The versatile defender figures to offer the Twins an interesting combination of power and speed off the bench for the stretch run, and his ability to play all over the field will surely come in handy as the club navigates injuries and rest for its regular players.
Also returning to the majors is Lee, the club’s 23-year-old top prospect who struggled to a somewhat lackluster .253/.309/.333 slash line in 110 trips to the plate at the big league level before going on the IL in early August. Now that he’s back in the majors, Lee figures to feature prominently in the club’s infield mix, though with Royce Lewis locking down third base and Willi Castro performing admirably in place of Carlos Correa at shortstop, it’s not clear whether or not Lee will be able to get regular reps as the Twins look to preserve their 3.5-game lead over the Red Sox for the final AL Wild Card spot.
As for the players moving off the roster to accommodate these additions, Margot’s placement on the IL is hardly a surprise after he suffered an apparent groin strain during last night’s game. After the game, manager Rocco Baldelli told reporters (including Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com) that the outfielder was “not moving well” due to the issue and would need to undergo an MRI. The results of that MRI are not yet clear, but they evidently warranted a trip to the IL for the 29-year-old outfielder, who has slashed just .250/.302/.350 in 116 games with the club this year.
Meanwhile, Paddack’s placement on the 60-day IL isn’t necessarily a surprise given the fact that he’s already been on the shelf since mid-July due to a forearm strain. A regular season return has long seemed unlikely for the right-hander, but it’s still possible he could return to action at some point in the postseason depending on how far the Twins make it this season. As for Boushley, the lefty has appeared in just two games for the Twins this year after signing a minor league deal with the club over the offseason, pitching to a 4.50 ERA in four innings of work.
Pirates Activate Ryan Borucki, Colin Holderman
The Pirates announced earlier today that they’ve activated left-hander Ryan Borucki from the 60-day injured list and right-hander Colin Holderman from the 15-day injured list. No corresponding moves were necessary, as the club had space on the 40-man roster available. Pittsburgh was able to add two pitchers to the roster when rosters expanded today as opposed to the typical additions of one position player and one pitcher because the club already had 14 position players on the roster after Andrew McCutchen‘s recent return from the IL.
Borucki, 30, emerged as one of the club’s most reliable relievers last year when he pitched to a 2.45 ERA with a 3.50 FIP in 40 1/3 innings last year. The southpaw paired a solid 21.7% strikeout rate with a strong 46.8% groundball rate and allowed free passes to just 2.6% of opponents last year. That breakout performance came on the heels of an uneven career with the Blue Jays where he struggled to a 4.47 ERA and 4.41 FIP in 151 innings of work spread across five seasons, and it made the Pirates’ decision to avoid arbitration with Borucki by agreeing to a $1.6MM salary something of a no-brainer.
Unfortunately, the club’s investment in the lefty has not paid off as he has been limited to just four appearances this year due to triceps inflammation. The southpaw has been struggling to work his way back since he first went out on a rehab assignment in late June but finally found some consistency after returning to rehab in mid-August, with a 1.80 ERA at the Triple-A level across five rehab outings. Borucki now figures to join Aroldis Chapman and Jalen Beeks as a left-handed option out of the bullpen for the Pirates down the stretch as he looks to finish the season strong with an eye toward free agency in November.
As for Holderman, the right-hander has been a steady middle relief option for the Pirates all throughout the year. In his second full season with Pittsburgh, the 28-year-old has posted a solid 3.43 ERA in 42 innings, though his 4.43 FIP and an elevated 11.3% walk rate are potential red flags that he may not be able to keep that performance up long-term. Regardless, Holderman figures to rejoin the club’s middle relief corps alongside recently-demoted closer David Bednar down the stretch.