Astros Outright Jon Singleton
TODAY: Singleton cleared waivers and has been outrighted off Houston’s 40-man roster, the team announced. It isn’t yet known if Singleton will accept the assignment or elect free agency.
JULY 28: The Astros are designating first baseman Jon Singleton for assignment, according to an announcement from Singleton’s wife Linzy on social media this afternoon. Additional roster maneuvering will be necessary to replace Singleton on the club’s active roster, but it’s not clear what the corresponding transaction will be at this point.
Singleton, 34 in September, was added to the club’s roster last week alongside Shay Whitcomb in the wake of an injury to third baseman Isaac Paredes last week. Singleton ultimately appeared in just three games for the Astros this year, during which he went 1-for-9 with at the plate with one strikeout and no walks. He began the season in the Mets’ minor league system but signed a minor league deal with Houston back in July. Between those two club’s Triple-A affiliates, Singleton has slashed a solid .224/.373/.451 this year with 16 homers in 306 trips to the plate.
The veteran first baseman previously was rostered by the Astros last year as their regular first baseman after the departure of Jose Abreu. Singleton provided a league average bat for the Astros at the position as he slashed .234/.321/.386 with a wRC+ of 104 across 119 games. It was a solid enough performance to earn Singleton consideration for the club’s 2025 roster, but Houston eventually pivoted away from Singleton due to incoming first baseman Christian Walker. With Walker at first base and Yordan Alvarez expected to serve as the club’s everyday DH, there was no path to playing time for Singleton in Houston. Injuries have opened up playing time since then, but the Astros have generally preferred to opt for younger or more versatile options like Taylor Trammell and Cooper Hummel when filling out their roster this year.
Singleton has plenty of history with the Astros organization. A top prospect in the Phillies’s system who was dealt to Houston in a trade for Hunter Pence, Singleton signed a five-year, $10MM extension with the Astros before he even made his MLB debut. The deal was widely viewed as a coup for the Astros at the time, but Singleton struggled upon arriving in the big leagues back in 2014 and slashed just .171/.290/.331 across two seasons in the majors. He did not resurface in the big leagues until the 2023 season and spent time playing both in the minors and for independent leagues during his years away from the majors.
The loss of Singleton leaves them without another lefty bat on the roster. Pending the corresponding move for Singleton’s exit, the Astros only have Trammell (as well as switch-hitters Hummel and backup catcher Victor Caratini) capable of batting from the left side on their roster. As for Singleton, the Astros will have until the trade deadline on July 21 to attempt to work out a trade involving him or else he’ll be passed through waivers. If he clears waivers unclaimed, he’ll have the opportunity to accept an outright assignment from the Astros and remain in their minor league system or test free agency.
Rangers Acquire Danny Coulombe
The Rangers are acquiring left-hander Danny Coulombe, according to a report from Jeff Passan of ESPN. The club subsequently announced the move, with left-handed pitching prospect Garrett Horn headed to the Twins in exchange for Coulombe.
Coulombe, 35, made his big league debut back in 2014 with the Dodgers. He was a fairly pedestrian middle reliever with the Dodgers and A’s throughout his 20s, and posted a 4.27 ERA and 4.09 FIP across his first five seasons in the majors before being outrighted off the A’s roster back in 2018. He spent the 2019 season in the minors and re-emerged with the Twins during the 2020 campaign. Since then, he’s looked like an entirely different pitcher with a 2.40 ERA and 2.96 FIP across 161 1/3 innings of work between the Twins and Orioles.
Coulombe has not only avoided taking a step back as he’s aged, but he’s actually looked better than ever in his mid-30s. Over the last three seasons, Coulombe has posted a 2.17 ERA with a 2.59 FIP while striking out 27.6% of his opponents and walking just 5.9%. He’s paired that quality strikeout stuff and strong command with a knack for missing barrels with a minuscule 4.5% barrel rate to go with a 36.2% hard-hit rate, and his 3.07 SIERA in that time is on-par with top-shelf leverage relievers like David Robertson and Emmanuel Clase. This year, he’s been even better, with a microscopic 1.16 ERA and 1.96 FIP in 31 innings of work for Minnesota.
That’s a massive addition to a Rangers bullpen that has enjoyed solid seasons from players like Chris Martin and Robert Garcia. The Rangers weren’t hurting for bullpen help this season as they have been in previous years, but in a season where their offense has under-performed across the board and their rotation is stacked with elite options further strengthening the relief corps is an understandable path to take.
Coulombe was surely an extremely attractive piece for the Rangers in part because of his bargain salary. Coulombe is making just $3MM total this year, meaning the Rangers will have to pay him only around $1MM for the remainder of the season. That’s a crucial factor for a club that has remained stalwart in its desire to duck under the $241MM luxury tax threshold this year. Texas is just barely under that threshold at this point, with RosterResource suggesting they have a payroll of just over $235MM for luxury tax purposes. That’s likely slightly below where they’ll ultimately end up given the possibility of contract bonuses and incentives that will impact the final line.
As for the Twins, they’ll receive a young lefty pitcher as they continue their fire sale. A sixth-round pick in the 2024 draft by the Rangers last year, Horn has made nine starts between rookie ball and the Single-A level this season. The 22-year-old has posted a strong 2.92 ERA across 24 2/3 innings of work with a 35.4% strikeout rate, though that dominance isn’t exactly unexpected for a 22-year-old in the lowest levels of the minor leagues. Still, Horn is an intriguing addition for a Twins farm system who Baseball America ranked as the #25 prospect in the Texas system this year. His mid-90s fastball is impressive, but his curveball is viewed as average at best and his changeup is completely undeveloped. He’s unlikely to be more than a reliever in the majors unless his secondary pitches develop substantially, but mid-90s velocity from the left side has a place in the majority of big league bullpens.
Royals Trade Freddy Fermin To Padres For Ryan Bergert, Stephen Kolek
The Padres are acquiring catcher Freddy Fermin from the Royals, according to a report from ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Right-handers Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek are headed to Kansas City in exchange for Fermin. The clubs have since announced the deal.
Fermin, 30, heads to San Diego after parts of four seasons with the Royals. After a three-game cup of coffee in 2022, Fermin debuted in a more substantial way the following year when he appeared in 70 games as a complement to Salvador Perez behind the plate. Fermin did quite well for himself in that rookie campaign, as he slashed .281/.321/.461 with a 108 wRC+ with strong grades for his defense behind the plate. It was enough to earn him a larger role with the club, and he began to take more starts behind the dish while Perez increasingly spent his time at DH or first base.
Fermin went on to appear in 111 games last year and put together a solid enough season. While his offense took a step back amid increased playing time, he still managed a wRC+ of 92 and earned strong marks for his blocking and throwing arm behind the plate. Things have taken a turn for the worse this year, however. Fermin has been lackluster at the dish with a .255/.309/.339 (78 wRC+) slash line, and his defensive metrics have taken a step back as well. He’s been worth just 0.4 fWAR in 67 games, but even that somewhat meager performance outpaces the Padres’ current catching tandem. Elias Diaz (67 wRC+) and Martin Maldonado (62 wRC+) have both been even less impressive than Fermin behind the plate this year, and Maldonado in particular has paired that weak offense with some of the worst catcher defense in the entire sport despite his reputation as an elite game caller.
Getting an upgrade on both at and behind the plate who comes with four years of team control was evidently worth paying a significant price for the Padres. In exchange for surrendering Fermin, the Royals have brought in two young starters who have already broken into the big leagues in Bergert and Kolek. Bergert is the prize of the duo, still in his rookie season with a 2.78 ERA in 35 2/3 innings of work spread between seven starts and four relief outings. His peripherals are a bit less encouraging, as his 22.8% strikeout rate is somewhat outweighed by an elevated 12.1% walk rate, but he remains a controllable arm capable of pitching both out of the rotation or in relief as needed.
As for Kolek, the right-hander made his big league debut with the Padres as a reliever last year. He struggled to a 5.21 ERA in 46 2/3 innings of work but posted strong underlying metrics with a 55.9% ground ball rate, a 3.57 FIP, and a 3.41 SIERA. That was enough to convince the Padres to move him into a rotation role for this year, and so far he’s made 14 starts for San Diego with roughly league average results. In 79 2/3 innings of work, Kolek has pitched to a 4.18 ERA with a 4.23 FIP. While he’s struck out just 16.7% of his opponents against a 7.7% walk rate, his 50.6% ground ball rate is still impressive and has allowed him to miss barrels throughout his time in the majors.
With both Bergert and Kolek under team control for the next half-decade, that should give the Royals plenty of flexibility at the back of their rotation both for the short-term (with Kris Bubic, Cole Ragans, and Michael Lorenzen all on the injured list) as well as the long-term, as players like Bubic and Lorenzen reach free agency while Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha get older. While losing Fermin from the club’s catching situation will hurt in the short term, a combination of Perez and Luke Maile is still on the roster while top catching prospects Carter Jensen, Blake Mitchell, and Ramon Ramirez all remain in the minor leagues to help shore up the club’s catching situation in the coming seasons.
Nationals Receiving Interest In Multiple Hitters
The Nationals are receiving calls on a number of hitters, according to a report from TalkNats. The Red Sox have been in contact with the club about first basemen Josh Bell and Nathaniel Lowe, while the report adds that Washington has also received calls from clubs inquiring after the availability of second baseman Luis Garcia Jr. and outfielder Alex Call. According to Matt Gelb of The Athletic, the Phillies have shown interest in Call’s services, though it’s unclear if that interest continues even after Philadelphia landed outfielder Harrison Bader in a deal with the Twins.
That Boston would inquire after the Nationals’ pair of first basemen is hardly a surprise. The Red Sox have had a hole at first base ever since Triston Casas went down with a season-ending injury at the beginning of May, and since then the club has relied primarily on Romy Gonzalez and Abraham Toro to handle the position. The duo has done reasonably well with that opportunity, and Gonzalez in particular has flourished in a part-time role with a 1.041 OPS against left-handed pitching. Improvements can be made, however, and bringing either Bell or Lowe into the fold would constitute a substantial upgrade.
Bell would presumably be the cheaper of the two to acquire. The 32-year-old is on a one-year deal that guarantees him $6MM total this season. While Bell was once a solidly above average bat at first base, with a .262/.351/.459 (116 wRC+) slash line over his first seven seasons in the majors and a handful of even more impactful seasons than that, in more recent years he’s settled in as just about an average hitter in the big leagues. Since the start of the 2023 season, Bell has hit .243/.322/.406 (102 wRC+). This year, his wRC+ sits at 101 with an 18.1% strikeout rate, an 11.1% walk rate, but just 13 homers in 96 games. Notably, Bell’s numbers feature substantial splits. He’s posted a 120 wRC+ against right-handed pitching this year, compared to a wRC+ of just 30 against lefties. That could make him the ideal platoon Partner for Gonzalez given his excellent numbers against southpaws.
Lowe, meanwhile, has had a down year in D.C. but comes with an additional season of team control as he’s eligible for arbitration this winter. After slashing a strong .274/.359/.432 (124 wRC+) and earning both Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards across four seasons in Houston, Lowe was traded to the Nationals this past offseason and has struggled to adjust to his new team. In 108 games for the club this year, he’s posted a lackluster .226/.294/.386 slash line with a wRC+ of 94. Like Bell, he also sports pronounced platoon splits; while he’s posted a decent 108 wRC+ against right-handed hitters, that mark drops to just 49 against fellow lefties. With Casas expected back in 2026, Lowe may not necessarily be as attractive an option for the Red Sox as Bell would be, though he could also become a trade chip for Boston in the offseason if he bounces back down the stretch if acquired.
Call, 30, was acquired from Cleveland back in 2022. He’s been a steady contributor in a part-time role for the Nationals since then with a .243/.342/.373 slash line (103 wRC+) in D.C. overall. That figure is dragged down by an abysmal 2022 season where he was used as a regular, however, and as a bench player this year Call has excelled with a .274/.371/.386 (121 wRC+) slash line in 237 trips to the plate. While Call lacks much power, he strikes out just 15.2% of the time while walking at an above-average 11.0% clip. He primarily profiles as a corner outfielder but has experience at all three outfield spots as well as DH. He could be a valuable addition for a team looking for a right-handed outfield bat, such as the Padres. Gelb suggests the Phillies have some interest in call, and he could be a fit even after their acquisition of Bader earlier today. After all, Johan Rojas has underwhelmed this year and both Max Kepler and Brandon Marsh are best suited to a platoon role where they can sit against lefties.
As for Garcia, the 25-year-old posted a 110 wRC+ last year as the club’s everyday second baseman but has taken a slight step backwards this year. In 370 plate appearances across 96 games, Garcia has posted a .261/.300/.405 (95 wRC+) slash line with a 14.9% strikeout rate but lackluster defense. Garcia would be an intriguing addition given that he’s under team control through the end of the 2027 season. Garcia hasn’t directly been tied to any clubs, but one speculative fit could be the Astros, who are known to be looking for another bat and preferably would like to add a left-handed hitter. The Giants and Royals are among the other teams for whom adding Garcia could make some sense.
Tigers Acquire Kyle Finnegan
The Tigers announced the acquisition of right-hander Kyle Finnegan from the Nationals. Detroit sent righty pitching prospects Josh Randall and R.J. Sales back to Washington. The Tigers transferred newly-acquired reliever Paul Sewald to the 60-day injured list in a corresponding roster move. Sewald has been out since mid-July with a shoulder strain and is not expected back until the middle of September.
Finnegan, 33, has been the Nationals’ primary closer in each of the past three seasons after sharing the role with Brad Hand and Tanner Rainey in 2021 and ’22. A 2024 All-Star, the righty has racked up 108 saves over the past five seasons but does not have the elite run prevention numbers typically associated with the closer role. For his career, he’s posted a 3.66 ERA and 4.16 FIP across 329 1/3 innings of work. Those numbers have been trending downward as well, with a 3.87 ERA and 4.24 FIP since the start of the 2023 season. He’s struck out just 21.5% of batters in that time while walking 8.6%, and while his walk rate has stayed steady this year his strikeouts have dipped further to a clip of just 19.6%.
Overall, it’s closer to a middle relief profile than that of a top-of-the-line closer, but Finnegan’s experience in the ninth inning could still be valuable for a club like the Tigers without an established ninth-inning guy. Will Vest is currently getting the majority of the opportunities in the ninth, but perhaps Finnegan could help ease the load on Vest’s shoulders. There are some things to like in Finnegan’s numbers this season, as well; he’s generating grounders at a strong 48.2% clip, his 64.1% strand rate suggests poor sequencing luck that could lend to strong results going forward, and his 38.8% hard-hit rate is his best figure since 2021.
Finnegan joins what increasingly appears to be a bulk approach to overhauling the bullpen in Detroit. In addition to the veteran closer, the Tigers have traded for Randy Dobnak, Rafael Montero, and Paul Sewald to bolster their bullpen in recent days. Dobnak and Montero are both generally regarded as fringe relievers at this stage of their careers, while Sewald has impressive strikeout rates and closing experience but is expected to be on the injured list with a shoulder strain until September.
Finnegan figures to be the most impactful piece of the group, but he’s a clear step down from some of the more well-regarded arms that have been bandied about as available this summer like David Bednar and Pete Fairbanks, to say nothing of elite closers like Jhoan Duran and Mason Miller who have already been moved. That’s not to say a bigger splash couldn’t be coming down the pipeline at some point before the deadline this afternoon, but with the price tag on top relievers soaring it’s at least possible that Scott Harris’s front office isn’t interested in giving up top talent to acquire bullpen help.
They managed to avoid paying a premium for Finnegan’s services in this deal. In exchange for Finnegan, the Nationals will receive a pair of pitching prospects. Randall is the headliner of the pair, ranked as Detroit’s 15th best prospect by MLB Pipeline. A 22-year-old who was recently promoted to High-A, Detroit’s third-round pick from the 2024 draft has posted a 3.92 ERA in 17 starts across the Single- and High-A levels this year. While Randall is currently starting, there’s some relief risk in his profile due to questions on whether or not his changeup will develop. Sales, meanwhile, was the club’s tenth-round pick in last season’s draft and is unranked within the Tigers’ top 30 prospects at Pipeline.
After posting solid numbers for UNC Wilmington as an amateur, Sales has 2.71 ERA in 66 1/3 innings of work so far this year while striking out 24.1% of his opponents. Both Sales and Randall figure to be in the mix to help out the Nationals’ pitching staff as soon as late next year, though it would hardly be a shock if either hurler didn’t debut until 2027. They join infield prospect Ronny Cruz and outfield prospect Christian Franklin as deadline additions for the Nats after that duo was acquired from the Cubs in exchange for right-hander Michael Soroka last night. Right-hander Clayton Beeter and outfield prospect Browm Martinez have also joined the organization in recent days after the Yankees swung a deal with D.C. to acquire Amed Rosario.
Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported the Tigers were acquiring Finnegan. Andrew Golden of The Washington Post had the return. Image courtesy of Jeff Curry, Imagn Images.
Tigers Acquire Paul Sewald
The Tigers are acquiring right-hander Paul Sewald from the Guardians, according to a report from Chris McCosky of The Detroit News. According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, Cleveland will receive a player to be named later or cash from Detroit to complete the deal. Buster Olney of ESPN reports that the Tigers are taking on the remainder of Sewald’s contract in its entirety, which Olney estimates is about a $2MM commitment.
Sewald, 35, was one of the better closers in the league with the Mariners just a few short years ago. After debuting with the Mets all the way back in 2017 and spending some time in New York as an up-and-down middle reliever with mediocre results, Sewald came to Seattle in 2021 and pitched to a 2.88 ERA with a 3.34 FIP across 171 2/3 innings of work with the club while racking up 52 saves across parts of three seasons. He was swapped to the Diamondbacks at the 2023 trade deadline and began to struggle after leaving the Pacific Northwest. While he remained a closer for the majority of his time in Arizona and managed to pick up an additional 29 saves during that time, his results were pedestrian as he pitched to a 4.08 ERA with a 4.29 FIP. After striking out 35.0% of his opponents with the Mariners, that figure dropped to just 25.7% during his time with Arizona.
That middling performance in the desert left Sewald to enter free agency last winter in a less than ideal spot. He ended up signing with the Guardians on a one-year, $7MM guarantee back in January but has not lived up to that contract so far. The right-hander has been placed on the injured list due to a right shoulder strain two separate times this year; once back in April and once just two weeks ago. He’s only managed to make 18 appearances around those injury woes, and hasn’t exactly impressed during those outings with a 4.70 ERA and 4.07 FIP across 15 1/3 innings of work. Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press writes that Sewald is currently expected to return in early September, meaning he’ll be a late-season addition to the club’s bullpen at best.
All of that explains why the Tigers were able to take Sewald off Cleveland’s hands for little more than salary relief, but it’s still not hard to see why Detroit would be intrigued. The veteran righty is still punching out batters at a high level, with a 29.0% strikeout rate this year. He was managing to keep his walks under control as well, allowing free passes at a 6.5% clip that leaves him with his best K-BB% since 2022. A .297 BABIP that’s slightly elevated by his standards and an extremely low 65.2% strand rate suggest there could be some poor fortune when it comes to batted balls and sequencing baked into Sewald’s lackluster results, offering optimism for better days ahead. Perhaps most importantly, the elevated home run rates that have dogged Sewald throughout his career could be mitigated in Detroit given the cavernous outfield of Comerica Park.
Sewald is the fourth pitcher Detroit has added in recent days, joining relievers Rafael Montero and Randy Dobnak as well as starter Chris Paddack. All four of those additions are relatively low-impact veterans, with Paddack slotting firmly into the back of Detroit’s rotation while Montero and Dobnak are both little more than middle relievers. Sewald has the upside of a quality set-up man, but won’t be able to pitch at all for another month at least. Overall, it’s a volume approach to the deadline for a club that entered the summer with a clear need in the bullpen. Sewald won’t unilaterally solve the Tigers’ need for a late-inning reliever to pair with Will Vest, but he could represent a viable fallback option in case a larger deal for a more impactful piece doesn’t ultimately come together in the final hours before this afternoon’s deadline.
Joey Bart Drawing Trade Interest
Pirates catcher Joey Bart is drawing some trade interest, according to Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Hiles adds that teams interested in Bart (including at least one AL club) are valuing him as a potential bench bat to hit left-handed pitching, rather than as a starting catcher.
That’s understandable, given the season Bart has had. The 28-year-old has appeared in 64 games for Pittsburgh this season with a .244/.343/.302 (87 wRC+) slash line in 236 plate appearances. He’s combined that with below average defense across the board behind the plate and especially weak framing numbers. With that said, Bart has raked against southpaws with a .333/.424/.451 (150 wRC+) line against them in 59 plate appearances this year. Bart performing well against lefties is also consistent with his career, as his career 106 wRC+ against southpaws is 21 points higher than his mark against right-handers.
That ability to crush left-handed pitching would make Bart a strong bench option for a team that struggles against lefties like the Royals (76 wRC+), Rangers (77 wRC+), or Reds (77 wRC+). The Reds and Rangers already have a lefty-mashing backup catcher in Jose Trevino and Kyle Higashioka respectively, but the Royals would be a particularly interesting fit as Bart represents a clear upgrade over Luke Maile and could pair with Freddy Fermin in future seasons behind the plate if this is franchise stalwart Salvador Perez‘s final year in Kansas City. The Royals have a middling 54-55 record but are just three games out of a Wild Card spot and have already acquired Randal Grichuk and Adam Frazier this summer. Bart is controlled through the 2027 season, so he could be a sensible addition for teams that aren’t squarely all-in on 2025.
Bart may not fit other teams quite as perfectly as he does the Royals, but there are still some other interesting fits. The Padres are known to be in desperate need of catching help and Bart would be an offensive upgrade over either Elias Diaz or Martin Maldonado. The Rays and Mets could be other solid fits, although Tampa’s recent acquisitions of Nick Fortes and Hunter Feduccia seemingly leave them well-stocked in terms of catching talent while the Mets might be reluctant to part with the top-shelf defense backup catcher Luis Torrens is providing behind the plate.
The Pirates face an interesting dilemma regarding Bart. The 28-year-old’s 2024 season looked at the time to be a breakout performance as he slashed an excellent .265/.337/.462 (121 wRC+) with 13 homers in just 80 games, and there surely would’ve been clubs intrigued by Bart as a potential starting catcher last winter after that performance. That could make holding onto him in hopes he bounces back offensively to raise his value a worthwhile course of action, particularly given his remaining team control. On the other hand, 2024 is the only time across parts of six seasons in the majors where Bart has looked like an above-average offensive player, and with both Henry Davis and Endy Rodriguez looking for an opportunity to develop behind the plate next year perhaps the Pirates should get something for Bart now if they can and more fully devote the catcher position to their former top prospects next year.
Braves Select Carlos Carrasco
The Braves announced this morning that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Carlos Carrasco. The move comes just days after Carrasco was acquired from the Yankees. Additionally, recently-acquired Tyler Kinley has reported to the club and is now active. A corresponding roster move wasn’t necessary to accommodate Carrasco after Atlanta traded right-hander Rafael Montero to the Tigers last night.
Carrasco, a 16-year MLB veteran, was brought in to help the Braves’ beleaguered rotation. The 38-year-old was picking up Cy Young votes for Cleveland a decade ago, but now he’ll serve as a placeholder for a Braves club that has been decimated by injuries. Carrasco’s bat-missing days are gone, but he has gone seven innings in each of his last three starts for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.
Carrasco joined the Yankees in a minor league deal in February, making the team’s Opening Day roster given injuries to Gerrit Cole, Luis Gil, and Clarke Schmidt. He made six starts and two relief appearances and was designated for assignment by the first week of May. The Yankees re-added him to the 40-man in June, but bumped him back off before he could make an appearance. Three days ago, Carrasco was flipped to the Braves for cash considerations.
Carrasco is set to start for the Braves tonight in Cincinnati, one of only three MLB games on the docket for trade deadline day. That Carrasco and other recent pickups Erick Fedde and Joey Wentz make up 60% of the Braves’ rotation speaks to the injuries the club has accumulated in a disastrous season. The Braves have a full rotation on the shelf: Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach, Grant Holmes, Reynaldo Lopez, and AJ Smith-Shawver. Smith-Shawver is out for the season with Tommy John surgery, and it’s unclear what the team will get this year from the others.
Dodgers Interested In Pete Fairbanks, Shane Bieber
The Dodgers have been connected to a number of high-profile bats this summer, ranging from Guardians outfielder Steven Kwan to Cardinals utility man Brendan Donovan. The focus has primarily been on upgrading the club’s bullpen, however, and while the L.A. has reportedly been connected to everyone from Ryan Helsley to David Bednar, those aren’t the only bullpen arms they could pursue. Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic writes that the club is seeking “at least one” right-handed reliever on the trade market, and adds that they’ve shown interest in Rays closer Pete Fairbanks. Aside from that, it seems as though the Dodgers have at least some cursory interest in dabbling in the rotation market, with MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reporting that L.A. brass has spoken to Cleveland about right-hander Shane Bieber.
Fairbanks, 31, has a 20.2% strikeout rate that’s down relative to previous years but hasn’t seen his results impacted as he’s pitched to a 2.75 ERA and 2.89 FIP. His solid 47.8% ground ball rate helps to explain that to some extent, although some advanced metrics are still skeptical considering that his 3.98 SIERA this year is the worst of his career. With that being said, Fairbanks had a 34.1% strikeout rate and a 2.66 ERA over a four year stretch from 2020 to 2023, and given that he’s just two years removed from those heights it would hardly be surprising if some suitors hope to unlock that elite production from him again in the future. Further helping Fairbanks’s value is that he’s controllable through the 2026 season by way of a club option valued at $7MM.
That combination of strong recent results, an impressive track record, and additional team control beyond this season has made Fairbanks a hot commodity on the trade market. The Rangers and Cubs have both been directly connected to him in recent days in addition to the Dodgers, while a number of other teams like the Phillies, Blue Jays, and Tigers are known to be on the prowl for bullpen help. With that said, there’s reason to wonder if the Dodgers might bow out if the market gets too hot on Fairbanks. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic notes that the Dodgers are not currently in the “high-end” relief market. With that being said, Rosenthal specifically mentions Twins closer Jhoan Duran and A’s closer Mason Miller. Both Duran and Miller are even more well-regarded than Fairbanks while also coming with more team control, so it’s entirely possible that Fairbanks is someone the Dodgers would still be willing to pay a relative premium given that his acquisition cost would likely still be incomparable to the likes of Duran and Miller.
Moving on to Bieber, the Guardians are known to be “trying to move” the right-hander. He’s not yet pitched this year after undergoing Tommy John surgery early in the 2024 season, but figures to be ready to pitch at some point in August. A former Cy Young award winner with a 2.91 ERA and 2.96 FIP since the start of the 2020 season, Bieber is a legitimate front-of-the-rotation starter when healthy and could offer a huge boost to any club down the stretch and into the playoffs this year. The Cubs have been connected to Bieber already in the rumor mill, and a number of other teams like the Yankees and Blue Jays would also make sense for his services. A $16M player option ($4M buyout) for the 2026 season could complicate negotiations in theory, but it’s extremely unlikely that Bieber would exercise an option at that price point barring a significant injury given the ability of starters with his upside and track record to command far more than that even when coming off poor seasons.
The Dodgers are nonetheless a somewhat curious fit for his services given that they already have a stacked rotation that features Shohei Ohtani, Tyler Glasnow, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Blake Snell along with a bevy of viable back-end depth options. On the other hand, the club had a rash of injuries that left them struggling to field a full rotation earlier this year, and after suffering that same fate in the playoffs last season it would be understandable if the club decided to add yet another high-end arm to the mix in order to safeguard themselves ahead of a postseason where they’ll be looking to defend their World Series title. Los Angeles already has six MLB starters on the 60-day injured list, and while Snell is expected to be activated in the near future that just goes to demonstrate the fragility of modern pitchers and the importance of having excess depth.
White Sox Scratch Adrian Houser From Scheduled Start
The White Sox created some buzz around one of their top trade chips today when they scratched right-hander Adrian Houser from his scheduled start against the Phillies later today. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports that, while Houser has not been traded at this point, he’s being held out of his start “in anticipation” of him being moved at some point before the trade deadline tomorrow.
It’s hardly a shock that the White Sox expect Houser to be traded. While they aren’t quite on the record-breaking pace they set last year with a 121-loss campaign, they’ve been obvious sellers with no hope at a postseason berth all year long. Houser, meanwhile, is a veteran rental who has pitched to a 2.10 ERA with a 3.30 FIP in 68 2/3 innings of work across 11 starts since he signed with Chicago on a big league deal back in May. Houser signed with the Rangers on a minor league deal during the offseason but did not make the club’s roster out of camp.
That meager interest in Houser’s services during the offseason was a result of a rough season with the Mets last year. After pitching to a 4.00 ERA and 4.19 FIP in parts of seven seasons with the Brewers as a back-of-the-rotation starter and long reliever, Houser joined the Mets but was shelled to the tune of a 5.84 ERA and 4.93 FIP across 23 appearances (seven starts). Houser’s 19.0% strikeout rate and 9.2% walk rate with Milwaukee were hardly exciting, but that steadiness collapsed in New York as he was suddenly punching out just 14.6% of his opponents while issuing free passes at a 10.4% clip. Now that he’s performing in Chicago, however, that recent history of struggles in New York can likely be dismissed by interested clubs given Houser’s long track record of steadiness.
With that being said, it’s unlikely that interested clubs view Houser as the sort of impact addition his raw numbers would suggest. His 17.1% strikeout rate and 8.0% walk rate with Chicago are both big improvements over last year, but his K-BB% is still bottom 20 in the majors among starters with at least 60 innings of work this year. Houser’s 4.51 SIERA is also fairly unimpressive, characterizing him more as the back-of-the-rotation arm he was with the Brewers; Chris Paddack (4.49), Colin Rea (4.47), and Luis Severino (4.57) are among the other starters in a similar range.
Even if no club sees Houser as likely to maintain his current numbers, there’s plenty of value in adding an innings-eating back-end starter who has experience pitching out of the bullpen at this stage of the calendar. Many clubs like the Cubs, Yankees, and Blue Jays are known to be on the hunt for starting pitching options, and Houser figures to be a substantial more affordable option than a top rental name like Merrill Kelly or Zac Gallen, to say nothing of the controllable arms rumored to be available. That could make Houser a particularly attractive addition for a team that either is looking to mostly make marginal additions without surrendering high level prospects or has already depleted their farm system in a trade for a more significant asset.