Marlins Claim Odrisamer Despaigne From Orioles
The Marlins have claimed right-hander Odrisamer Despaigne off waivers from the Orioles, reports Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet (via Twitter). Baltimore designated the spot starter/long reliever for assignment last week and placed him on waivers on Tuesday.
Despaigne, 29, appeared in 16 games and totaled 27 1/3 innings for the Orioles this season after coming over from the Padres in an offseason trade. The Cuban-born righty initially signed with San Diego for a $1MM signing bonus and delivered a solid rookie campaign, posting a 3.36 ERA with 6.1 K/9, 3.0 BB/9 and a 52.1 percent ground-ball rate in 16 starts (96 1/3 innings). Since that time, though, it’s been a struggle for Despaigne at the big league level, as he logged a 5.80 ERA in 125 2/3 innings last season in addition to his 2016 struggles.
Despaigne doesn’t possess premium stuff but instead relies on a number of offerings, including a four-seam fastball, a cut fastball, a sinker, a slider, a curveball and a changeup, per PITCHf/x data available at Fangraphs. He did average a career-best 92.8 mph on his heater when working exclusively in relief this season, so perhaps additional exposure in that setting could yield better results. He’ll provide Miami with some rotation and bullpen depth over the final couple weeks of the season but won’t be postseason eligible in the event that Miami stages a comeback and secures a Wild Card spot.
With fewer than two years of big league service time, Despaigne won’t be eligible for arbitration following the season. As such, he’ll remain controllable through the 2021 campaign.
Injury Notes: Altuve, Bregman, Pearce, Gsellman
A look at some notable injury situations around the league…
- Ominous news for Astros fans tonight, as both Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman exited the game with injuries, per a pair of club announcements. Altuve was lifted from the game due to discomfort in his right oblique, while Bregman exited early due to right hamstring discomfort. Julia Morales of ROOT Sports tweets that both players will be re-evaluated on Friday — the Astros have an off-day tomorrow — but manager A.J. Hinch isn’t optimistic that either will be able to play in the series opener in Seattle on Friday. Houston topped the Rangers in an 8-4 win tonight, but the loss of either Altuve or Bregman would be devastating, particularly with a critical series against the Mariners on tap. Seattle is currently ahead of Houston in the Wild Card standings, though the Mariners themselves are currently two games back in the race.
- Orioles infielder/outfielder Steve Pearce has been shut down indefinitely after receiving a platelet-rich plasma injection in his ailing right elbow, reports MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko. Manager Buck Showalter revealed little about the injury to reporters, though Kubatko writes that the Baltimore skipper stated that Pearce could still return “in some capacity” later this month. The Orioles currently hold one of the two AL Wild Card spots, though having a bat of Pearce’s caliber in the mix would increase their chances of retaining that lead and of advancing in the postseason. Beyond that, Pearce is a free agent following the season, and September elbow troubles don’t figure to do him any favors in terms of earning power. The 33-year-old’s production has tailed off since being traded back to the O’s, but he still owns a terrific .288/.374/.492 slash on the season.
- ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin reports that Mets rookie right-hander Robert Gsellman has been playing through some degree of a labrum tear in his left (non-throwing) shoulder. Gsellman’s injury prevents him from being able to swing a bat, which obviously poses a problem for a National League pitcher — specifically one that has made three starts for the team late in the season. Per Rubin, doctors will wait until the offseason before determining if Gsellman needs surgery to correct the issue or if an offseason of rehab will allow the shoulder to heal. The 23-year-old Gsellman has a 3.92 ERA in 20 2/3 innings for the Mets since debuting earlier this summer.
Minor MLB Transactions: 9/14/16
Here are today’s minor moves from around the league…
- The Royals announced that they’ve requested unconditional release waivers on outfielder Reymond Fuentes, who was designated for assignment six days ago. Fuentes, 25, made Kansas City’s Opening Day roster after Jarrod Dyson opened the year on the DL due to an oblique injury and batted .317/.364/.341 in 44 plate appearances. His work at the Triple-A level, though, left plenty to be desired, as he batted just .254/.325/.317 with no homers and 17 steals in 65 games. The former first-round pick (28th overall by the Red Sox in 2009) was a key piece of the trade that sent Adrian Gonzalez from San Diego to Boston (though Anthony Rizzo was the headliner) and does have a history of performing well in the upper levels of the minors prior to this season.
- The Orioles will select the contract of slick-fielding shortstop Paul Janish prior to tomorrow’s contest, reports Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. Baltimore will need to make a 40-man roster move in order to accommodate the 33-year-old Janish, who has batted .248/.333/.280 at the Triple-A level this season and a combined .242/.282/.303 in 71 PAs with the Orioles over the past two seasons.
AL Notes: Gomes, Pearce, Despaigne, Judge, Sale, Medlen
The Indians expect to welcome back catcher Yan Gomes on Friday, Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer reports on Twitter. Gomes had been sidelined with a separated shoulder that was considered a threat to end his campaign, but it seems he’ll have a chance to come back online in advance of a likely postseason berth. That’s welcome news for Cleveland, which has struggled to find production from the catching position. Of course, Gomes himself has scuffled to a .165/.198/.313 batting line, but the club can at least hope he’ll return to providing quality glovework while hopefully swinging out of his malaise.
Here’s more from the American League:
- Orioles utility slugger Steve Pearce is set to visit Dr. David Altchek tomorrow for his arm injury, Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports. Pearce’s elbow/forearm issues have failed to abate, leaving the club unsure of his status as the postseason push intensifies. The 33-year-old has managed only 70 trips to the plate since he was picked up at the trade deadline, with his production trailing off with the injury.
- Meanwhile, the Orioles have placed righty Odrisamer Despaigne on waivers, per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (Twitter links). Given that Despaigne was designated on the fifth, Kubatko suggests that the O’s were trying to work out a deal before settling for the wire. The 29-year-old carries a 5.60 ERA over his 27 1/3 innings on the year, with 5.6 K/9 against 4.9 BB/9, so he doesn’t figure to hold much appeal at present.
- The Yankees have ordered an MRI for outfielder Aaron Judge after he came down with an oblique injury, Jack Curry of YES Network reports (Twitter links). It remains to be seen whether the 24-year-old will be able to make it back to finish out his late-season promotion. He has struggled thus far in the majors, with 41 strikeouts in 93 plate appearances, and New York will surely hope to get him as much work as possible to assess his readiness to contribute in 2017.
- White Sox ace Chris Sale has already seen his name tossed around quite a bit in trade talks, and he figures to be an intriguing trade candidate this winter, but he tells Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago that he hopes to stay in Chicago. “I don’t worry about that stuff,” Sale said. “That will shake out on its own. I wear this uniform with a lot of pride. I hope I can continue to do that.” Of course, the South Siders will not part with the star southpaw lightly, if at all. The 27-year-old has turned in another strong campaign, putting up a 3.03 ERA with 9.1 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 over 201 2/3 innings.
- Righty Kris Medlen hopes to return to the Royals in 2017, MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan reports on Twitter. The former standout hurler struggled badly in limited action this year, and hasn’t pitched since May owing to shoulder issues. That makes it an easy decision for the team to pay him a $1MM buyout rather than picking up his $10MM option, but something else could be worked out if Kansas City sees cause for optimism. “I feel like I’m not done yet with this team,” said Medlen. “I feel like I owe them something.”
Orioles Activate Chris Tillman
In welcome news for the playoff-contending Orioles, the club has reinstated right-hander Chris Tillman from the 15-day disabled list. Tillman, who landed on the shelf Aug. 24 with bursitis in his throwing shoulder, will start Sunday against Detroit.
[RELATED: Updated Orioles Depth Chart]
Aside from Kevin Gausman, no Orioles starter has been superior to Tillman this season. The 28-year-old leads the team in innings (153) and is second to Gausman in ERA (3.76), though metrics like FIP (4.29), xFIP (4.49) and SIERA (4.57) indicate that Tillman has been fortunate to prevent runs at his currently above-average mark. Nevertheless, Tillman is a quality option, one the Orioles will likely need if they’re going to earn a postseason berth this year.
Baltimore is a solid 77-64, two games behind American League East-leading Boston and a game up on the Tigers in the wild-card race, but the club has gone just 26-28 since the All-Star break. Orioles starters have been in the middle of the AL pack in ERA (4.35) and toward the bottom in K/BB ratio (2.22) since the second half of the season started, and Tillman has been subpar in both categories (4.76 and 1.87) during that span. Ideally for the Orioles, he’ll revisit his first-half form (3.41 ERA, 2.28 K/BB) in the coming weeks.
AL East Notes: Tillman, O’Day, Rays, Green
As the Orioles look to work their way back into first place in the American League East, they’ll soon be joined by a pair of key players that have been on the disabled list, per MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko. Baltimore’s top starter, Chris Tillman, is slated to throw one final bullpen session on Friday before making a return to the rotation against the Tigers on Sunday. Notably, manager Buck Showalter said that no one will come out of the rotation when Tillman returns, as Baltimore will instead go with a six-man starting staff. Meanwhile, setup man Darren O’Day, who has been out since early August with a rotator cuff strain, threw 26 pitches today and felt good. Like Tillman, he’s lined up for a Friday bullpen session, but he’ll require a few days of rest and then a simulated game before he’s cleared to return. The Orioles are hoping that will happen at some point next week, per Kubatko.
A couple more items from the division…
- The Rays have dismissed longtime hitting coach Derek Shelton and promoted minor league hitting coordinator Chad Mottola to take his place, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Shelton had served as Tampa Bay’s hitting coach for the past seven seasons and spent five years as the Indians’ hitting coach prior to that. The timing of the move is somewhat strange, Topkin points out, but the thought process behind the switch is to allow Mottola to begin building his rapport with the Rays’ hitters as soon as possible. Mottola will serve as the team’s hitting coach at least through the end of the 2017 season, he adds. President of baseball ops Matt Silverman and manager Kevin Cash indicated to Topkin that perhaps Shelton’s message had grown stale. Said Silverman: “…the connections with the players, we think that there is a possibility and a hope that some of that can improve with a different person in that chair, with a different voice, different relationships, a fresh start.”
- Chad Green won’t pitch again for the Yankees this season, but the rookie right-hander looks to have emerged relatively unscathed from a potential brush with Tommy John surgery, writes Chad Jennings of the Journal News. Green has a strained flexor tendon, but exams by team physician Dr. Chris Ahmad revealed that there was no damage to his ulnar collateral ligament. Green will spend the next several weeks rehabbing his flexor injury but is anticipating a normal offseason and plans to be ready for Spring Training. Acquired in the offseason trade that sent Justin Wilson to the Tigers, Green made his big league debut this season with the Yankees. While he posted very strong strikeout and walk rates (10.3 K/9, 3.0 BB/9), the 25-year-old also had an issue with homers, surrendering 12 long balls in just 45 2/3 innings. The result was a 4.73 ERA, though metrics like xFIP and SIERA, which normalize a pitcher’s homer-to-flyball rate, feel that Green should’ve been in the 3.60 to 3.70 range in his brief sample.
L.A. Notes: Shoemaker, Weaver, Tolliver, Dodgers’ Pen
All signs are that Angels righty Matt Shoemaker is progressing well after being struck in the head by a line drive and requiring surgery to control internal bleeding. The overriding concern, needless to say, is with his long-term health. Fortunately for the hurler, he seems to be improving enough that it is reasonable to consider what kind of path he might take to return to the mound. As Pedro Moura of the Los Angeles Times writes, Shoemaker has been able to communicate with his family, friends, and teammates throughout the ordeal. Speaking generally on the subject, a neurosurgeon explains that this is a positive sign. Depending upon the specifics and his continued improvement, the 29-year-old will hopefully be able to return to “living normally” in three to six weeks and could plausibly be ready to begin Spring Training on time. MLBTR extends its best wishes to Shoemaker and his family.
Here’s more out of Los Angeles:
- Though we have heard suggestions to the contrary, Moura says that he’s getting the sense that Angels righty Jered Weaver will look to pitch at least one more year. Indications from Weaver and those who know him do not suggest that he is preparing for retirement, says Moura, though his plans could be dependent upon whether he is able to secure a starting job. Weaver has only ever played for the Halos, and GM Billy Eppler has praised his efforts this year, but it remains unclear what kind of interest the team will have in the veteran hurler.
- The Angels‘ recent claim of Ashur Tolliver may represent a nice pick-up for the club, as Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com explains. Multiple other teams put in claims on the southpaw, and scouts tell Kubatko they were surprised the Orioles were willing to put him on the wire. As Kubatko notes, the 28-year-old is something of a late-bloomer who has shown a live arm.
- While the Dodgers‘ bullpen-building efforts haven’t always been well-received, the current relief corps appears to be a top-quality unit, ESPN.com’s Doug Padilla writes. Apart from star closer Kenley Jansen, most of the pen pieces aren’t exactly household names and haven’t been used in formalized roles. Manager Dave Roberts continues to mix and match, and now has 13 arms to call upon down the stretch. The skipper’s comments on Joe Blanton, who has been excellent, are indicative of the interesting approach that Los Angeles has relied upon. “Joe’s been great for us, he really has against right-handers and left-handers,” Roberts said. “He’s done some long relief early, he’s pitched in the fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth. He’s a guy that has really solidified our bullpen, but it’s not a hard-fast rule that he’s going to be pitching in the eighth. I think that I used Joe in a lot of high-leverage situations and that might come in the seventh.”
Orioles Designate Odrisamer Despaigne For Assignment
The Orioles announced today that they’ve designated right-hander Odrisamer Despaigne for assignment in order to clear a spot on the roster for lefty reliever Brian Duensing, who has been activated from the 60-day disabled list.
[Related: Updated Baltimore Orioles Depth Chart]
The 29-year-old Despaigne was acquired in an offseason trade that sent Class-A righty Jean Cosme to the Padres. Despaigne totaled just 27 1/3 innings for the Orioles at the big league level, pitching to a 5.60 ERA with 5.6 K/9, 4.9 BB/9 and a 38.2 percent ground-ball rate. His work at the Triple-A level was considerably better, as the Cuban-born righty tossed 88 1/3 innings with 3.87 ERA, 7.1 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9. In total, Despaigne has a 4.84 ERA in 249 1/3 innings between the Orioles and Padres as a Major Leaguer.
Duensing, 33, hasn’t pitched since June 19 due to inflammation in his left elbow. The longtime Twin signed a minors pact with the O’s earlier this season and pitched just 6 2/3 innings before going down with his elbow ailment. Duensing will give manager Buck Showalter four lefties to choose from in his bullpen, as he’ll join brilliant closer Zach Britton, rookie Donnie Hart and Jayson Aquino in the relief corps. The former third-round pick carries a significant platoon split in his career, so he’s best deployed as a situational lefty. He’s held same-handed opponents to a .238/.289/.329 slash in 935 career plate appearances.
Minor MLB Transactions: 9/3/16
Here are today’s minor moves from around the league.
- The Nationals have outrighted outfielder Matt den Dekker to Triple-A Syracuse, the club announced. Washington designated den Dekker for assignment Friday. The 29-year-old has not fared well this season in either Syracuse or D.C., having hit .208/.290/.319 in 407 Triple-A plate appearances and .176/.282/.294 in 39 major league PAs. Den Dekker is only a year removed from providing useful depth at the big league level, though, as he batted .253/.315/.485 in 110 trips to the plate and saw time at all three outfield positions. The latter has once again been the case this season.
- The Diamondbacks have announced that they’ve selected the contract of 1B/OF Kyle Jensen from Triple-A Reno. The 28-year-old Jensen signed as a minor league free agent last winter and has had a strong season with Reno, batting .289/.350/.546 with 30 homers in 555 plate appearances. Jensen, who has previously played in the Marlins and Dodgers systems, has 178 home runs in eight career minor league seasons but has never appeared in the big leagues.
- The Orioles have announced that they’ve outrighted lefty Kyle Lobstein to Triple-A Norfolk. The O’s traded lefty Zach Phillips to the Pirates for Lobstein earlier this week after the Bucs designated Lobstein for assignment. The Orioles then quickly designated Lobstein themselves before he could make an appearance for them. The 27-year-old has a 5.06 ERA, 5.2 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in parts of three seasons with the Tigers and Pirates, during which he’s served as both a starter and reliever.
Angels Claim Ashur Tolliver From Orioles
The Orioles have announced that they’ve lost lefty Ashur Tolliver to the Angels on a waiver claim. The O’s designated Tolliver for assignment when they acquired Kyle Lobstein last week. (Lobstein, of course, has himself already been designated for assignment and outrighted.)
The 28-year-old Tolliver made his MLB debut this season, allowing four runs, three earned, in 4 2/3 innings of relief while throwing his fastball in the 93-94 MPH range. He fared well, however, in stops at three minor league affiliates, posting a 1.94 ERA, 9.9 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 41 2/3 total innings. The Angels currently have Jose Alvarez and Cody Ege as lefties available out of their bullpen; Tolliver will give them another left-handed option.