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Orioles Designate Dilson Herrera, Activate Chris Davis

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The Orioles have designated infielder Dilson Herrera for assignment, the team announced. The O’s reinstated first baseman Chris Davis from the 10-day injured list in a corresponding move.

The 26-year-old Herrera, whom the Orioles signed to a minor league contract last winter, joined their big league roster exactly a week ago. Herrera wound up going hitless with four strikeouts in six plate appearances. The former Met and Red now owns a .199/.290/.386 line with 11 home runs in 272 PA as a big leaguer.

Davis, meanwhile, will get yet another chance to try to put his career back on track in Baltimore. The former star slugger, 34, was a solid part of the O’s roster as recently as 2016, but his output has gone in the tank since then. Davis began this year with a .152/.173/.184 slash and no homers in 52 trips to the plate before landing on the shelf with a left knee injury. He’s in the fifth season of a seven-year, $161MM contract.

Orioles Promote Dean Kremer

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The Orioles announced this morning they are bringing up right-handed pitching prospect Dean Kremer. He’ll start this afternoon’s game against the Yankees, making his MLB debut in the process.

Originally acquired as one of five players Baltimore picked up from the Dodgers at the 2018 trade deadline for Manny Machado, the 24-year-old Kremer has a solid 2.69 ERA with 9.9 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 in 137 career innings at Double-A. He was bombed for 19 runs in his four Triple-A starts last season, but he did rack up a strong 21 strikeouts against four walks in his brief time at the minors’ highest level.

Kremer is generally seen as one of the better prospects in the Baltimore system. The Athletic’s Keith Law, Fangraphs’ Eric Longenhangen and Baseball America all recently placed him between ninth and thirteenth among Orioles’ farmhands. Those reports all peg his likely future as a solid back-of-the-rotation starter.

In order to protect him from last year’s Rule V draft, Kremer had already been added to the 40-man roster over the offseason. The threshold for players to accrue a full year of MLB service has long since passed, so if he’s in the majors for good, the Orioles control Kremer through 2026.

Orioles Claim Carson Fulmer

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The Orioles have claimed right-hander Carson Fulmer off waivers from the Pirates, the team announced.  The Fulmer move was one of a series of transactions made this afternoon by the O’s, who also called up righty David Hess from their alternate training site, sent right-hander Evan Phillips to the alternate site, and added infield prospect Rylan Bannon to the 60-man player pool.  This is all in addition to the most notable news of the day for the club, as breakout star Anthony Santander is headed to the injured list with a potentially season-ending injury.

Fulmer will be joining his fourth organization in less than two months, as the 26-year-old has already been a waiver claim for both the Pirates and Tigers since being originally designated for assignment by the White Sox back on July 23.  Fulmer is out of options, which is why teams have been unable to just send him to their alternate training sites without another club pouncing on the right-hander on the waiver wire.  Within this whirlwind of movement, Fulmer has amassed 6 2/3 innings pitched this season, all with Detroit, with a 6.75 ERA.

The eighth overall pick of the 2015 draft, Fulmer has yet to live up to expectations in the majors, with a career 6.57 ERA, 1.34 K/BB rate, and 8.0 K/9 over 101 1/3 career IP with the Tigers and White Sox.  Given his prospect pedigree and relatively young age, it isn’t hard to see why the Orioles (and other clubs) have been interested in taking a look at Fulmer as a potential post-hype breakout player.

Bannon, 24, was an eight-round pick for the Orioles in the 2017 draft.  A product of Xavier University, Bannon has a .280/.375/.481 slash line and 43 home runs over 1234 career minor league plate appearances, which included 90 PA and 20 games with Baltimore’s Triple-A affiliate in 2019.  It remains to be seen if the O’s have Bannon in mind for a September call-up, though he will provide depth as both a second baseman and third baseman if he does make his MLB debut this year.

Anthony Santander Has Strained Oblique, Could Miss Remainder Of Season

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Orioles outfielder Anthony Santander is headed to the 10-day injured list after suffering a strained oblique, according to Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. Manager Brandon Hyde said that Santander will miss “significant time” due to the injury, and with just about three weeks left in the regular season, that could mean the end of Santander’s 2020 campaign.

Santander, 25, had been in the midst of a breakout season, to the extent that one can “break out” in a 60-game season. He’s rocking a .890 OPS (which would be a career-best by a wide margin) and has been the Orioles’ most valuable player by Baseball-Reference’s version of WAR. With 11 home runs in 37 games, he’s maintained his penchant for hard contact while cutting down and strikeouts and taking more walks.

He’s done all of the above while grading out as an above-average defender in right field, painting a picture of Santander as one of the bright young stars leading the O’s on the path back to contention. Unfortunately, they’ll be without him for most—if not all—of the remainder of 2020, a season in which Baltimore has surprised many with a competitive 17-21 record.

The Orioles recalled outfielder Mason Williams to the active roster not long after he was designated for assignment and subsequently outrighted to the team’s alternate training site. He’ll serve as a depth outfielder, with DJ Stewart likely assuming the bulk of the right field duties in Baltimore. Stewart is hitless in 16 at-bats this season, though an absurd 32.1% walk rate has carried him to a .385 OBP despite those struggles. A regular outfield role in Santander’s absence should be a good opportunity for Stewart, who has played in just 71 Major League games since debuting in 2018.

Orioles Add Zac Lowther To Player Pool

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  • The Orioles announced that lefty Zac Lowther has been added to their player pool in Bowie. Lowther, 24, was the Orioles’ second-rounder in 2017 and posted a 2.55 ERA with 9.4 K/9, 3.8 BB/9, 0.49 HR/9 and a 40.1 percent ground-ball rate in 148 innings. He’s generally considered to be among the Orioles’ 15 best prospects.

Orioles Place Alex Cobb On Injured List, Outright Mason Williams

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The Orioles announced Friday that righty Alex Cobb has been placed on the injured list. Right-hander Branden Kline has been selected from the team’s alternate training site in his place. Additionally, outfielder Mason Williams cleared waivers and was assigned outright to the alternate site, while infielder Ramon Urias has been added as the 29th man for today’s twin bill.

No reason was provided for Cobb’s IL placement, and manager Brandon Hyde would only state that the club is “following protocol” and hopes Cobb can return soon (Twitter link via MASNsports.com’s Steve Melewski). That will surely lead to Covid-19 speculation, although it’s worth reminding that a player can be placed on the Covid-19 IL not only for testing positive but also for exhibiting symptoms or coming into contact with someone who has since tested positive. Righty Tom Eshelman will start in Cobb’s place today.

Cobb, 32, is in the midst of what has been a mostly solid rebound campaign. He was torched by the Blue Jays in his most recent start but still carries a 4.33 ERA with 6.1 K/9, 3.1 BB/9, 1.27 HR/9 and an impressive 55.9 percent ground-ball rate. He was viewed as a possible trade candidate prior to the deadline earlier this week, though Baltimore surely would’ve had to pay down the bulk of his contract in order to facilitate a deal; Cobb is being paid a $14MM salary in 2020 (prorated to $5.04MM) and is also set to be paid $15MM in 2021 — the final season of his four-year, $57MM deal.

The 28-year-old Kline was hit hard in his debut campaign last year, yielding a 5.93 ERA with a 34-to-19 K/BB ratio and nine homers allowed in 41 innings. Last year’s poor showing aside, however, Kline has had some success in the upper minors. The 2012 second-rounder missed all of the 2016-17 seasons but came back with a brilliant 1.64 ERA, 9.7 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 through 65 2/3 minor league frames. He’ll give the O’s some depth in the ’pen with Cobb sidelined for a yet-to-be-determined period of time.

Williams, 29, went 2-for-11 with the O’s in a small sample before he was removed from the roster. The former Yankees prospect had a solid showing with the 2018 Reds when he hit .293/.331/.398 in a career-high 132 plate appearances, but he hasn’t had much success (or opportunity) at the MLB level outside that 51-game stint. He’ll stay on hand as depth in the team’s 60-man player pool and is eligible to rejoin the club later this season, should a need arise.

Orioles Select Dilson Herrera’s Contract, Designate Mason Williams

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The Orioles have selected the contract of infielder Dilson Herrera to their big league roster, the team announced.  In corresponding move, outfielder Mason Williams was designated for assignment to create a 40-man roster spot.  The O’s also called up outfielder DJ Stewart from the alternate site.

Herrera signed a minor league deal with the O’s during the offseason, and he is now set to appear in his fourth Major League season of his decade-long pro career.  Breaking in with the Mets in 2014-15, Herrera’s only MLB action since was a 53-game stint with the Reds in 2018.  Herrera has only a .203/.293/.394 slash line over 266 career plate appearances in the Show, but he can provide the Orioles with multi-positional bench depth all over the infield (particularly at second and third base) and even maybe in the corner outfield slots.

Williams was another of Baltimore’s minor league winter signings, and posted a .545 OPS over seven games and 11 PA this season.  Once a highly-touted prospect while coming up in the Yankees’ farm system, Williams hasn’t been able to translate that promise into production, though he has also received only 245 career Major League plate appearances.  Williams has hit .281/.318/.382 for the Orioles, Reds, and Yankees since the start of the 2015 season.

AL East Trade Deadline Recap

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With the deadline in the rearview mirror, we’ll look back at each AL East team’s trade activity over the past month.

Baltimore Orioles

Boston Red Sox

New York Yankees

Tampa Bay Rays

Toronto Blue Jays

Mets Acquire Miguel Castro From Orioles

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The New York Mets swung another deal just before the trade deadline, acquiring Miguel Castro from the Orioles, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter). The Orioles will receive southpaw Kevin Smith, per Robert Murray (via Twitter). In addition, the Mets will be sending a player to be named later or cash to Baltimore, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com.

The Mets completed a flurry of deals at the last minute, also acquiring catcher Robinson Chirinos and third baseman Todd Frazier from the Rangers. In Castro, the Mets are getting another power arm from the right side to help out late in games. The 25-year-old owns a 4.02 ERA/3.71 FIP across 16 appearances this season. He strikeout to walk numbers have blown up in the 15 2/3 innings he’s logged this year with 13.8 K/9 to 2.9 BB/9. Those numbers are far better than his career norms, so at least some regression is to be expected. With just another month to go in the season, the Mets are betting the overall profile holds up.

Castro was set to make $1.05MM before prorating for the shortened season in his first season of arbitration eligibility. The Mets will retain his rights for two more seasons after 2020. Given the injury to Dellin Betances and Edwin Diaz’s struggles since joining the Mets, Castro figures to see some high-leverage opportunities over the final month of the season. Retaining his control for two years beyond this season is a win for the Mets as well. They have continually sought bullpen reinforcements in recent seasons.

Smith was the Mets’ 12th-ranked prospect per Baseball America and MLB.com. The 6’5″ Smith spent 2019 between High-A and Double-A tossing 117 innings across 23 starts with a 3.23 ERA. That showing prompted Smith to jump up the Mets prospect boards before the start of 2020. Smith, 23, could be given a look as early as this season, given the trend of debuting youngsters we’re seeing throughout baseball, but it’s more likely Smith stays in the development pool for now.

The Orioles sent a number of pitchers out in trades before the deadline, also dealing Mychal Givens to the Rockies and Tommy Milone to the Braves. They continue to rebuild under second-year GM Mike Elias.

Rockies Acquire Mychal Givens From Orioles

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The Orioles have dealt relief pitcher Mychal Givens to the Rockies, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network. Along with Tommy Milone, Givens is the second key pitcher the Orioles have traded away today. In return, the Orioles will receive Tyler Nevin, Terrin Vavra, and a player to be named later, as first reported by Mark Feinsand of MLB.com.

Givens has returned to the setup role after struggling as Baltimore’s closer for much of last season, converting just 11 of 19 save opportunities. 2019 was clearly Givens’s worst season since debuting in 2015, but this year he’s once again showing the form that allowed him to excel as Zack Britton’s right-hand man just a few years ago.

Through his first 13 innings of work this year, Givens is sporting a 1.38 ERA and an even 1.00 WHIP, which is supported by career-best strikeout numbers and a 3.17 K:BB ratio. His strikeout rate has climbed up to 38%, and while his walk numbers are up slightly from years’ past, it’s not enough to induce panic. Opponents’ batted-ball results are much improved over last year, aligning more closely with Givens’s 2017 season, when he was at his best. Givens relies heavily on a four-seam fastball that sits right around 95 mph, also utilizing a mid-80s slider and a changeup.

By acquiring Givens, the Rockies hope to strengthen a bullpen that is currently producing to the tune of a 5.81 ERA, the third-worst in all of baseball. For what it’s worth, that number is quite a bit higher than the unit’s 4.22 FIP, which is roughly middle-of-the-pack, but the fact is that the Colorado ’pen has not done well to prevent runs this year. With Scott Oberg out for the year and Wade Davis on the injured list, it’s a thin unit that has had to rely on inexperienced arms like Yency Almonte, Carlos Estevez, and Jairo Diaz.

At first blush, it looks like a pretty solid haul for the O’s in exchange for their top reliever. In Vavra and Nevin—two 23-year-olds—Baltimore is getting the Rockies’ No. 7 and No. 14 ranked prospects, respectively (courtesy of MLB Pipeline). Nevin is strictly limited to corner positions (experimenting with the outfield last year after beginning his career at third base), and is a bat-first player with solid plate discipline and the ability to make hard contact to all fields. His 13 home runs at Double-A last year tied a career high.

Vavra, meanwhile, was the Rockies’ third-round draft choice in 2018, and projects as a middle-infield type, with second base perhaps his best fit at the Major League level. He’s likewise known for his bat, a line-drive hitter with advanced bat-to-ball skills who walked as often as he struck out last year. A switch-hitter, his hitting talent has been on display in the year and a half since he was drafted, though he’s only reached as high as A-ball.

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