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Red Sox Release Jake Faria

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The Red Sox have released right-hander Jake Faria, reports Alex Speier of the Boston Globe. He had already been outrighted off the 40-man roster last week. He’ll now return to the open market entirely.

Faria pitched once for Boston this season, allowing five runs in two innings as a mop-up reliever. That marked his first big league outing in two years. Faria has otherwise spent the season with Triple-A Worcester. He’s started nine of 19 appearances there, allowing a 6.47 ERA over 55 2/3 innings. Faria has a below-average 17.5% strikeout percentage while walking 13.3% of opponents.

The 29-year-old has pitched in parts of five big league seasons. He had success as a rookie with the Rays in 2017 but has generally struggled since then. Faria owns a 4.87 ERA in 205 MLB innings and a 4.80 mark through parts of seven Triple-A campaigns.

Red Sox Acquire Mauricio Llovera From Giants

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The Red Sox acquired reliever Mauricio Llovera from the Giants, per a club announcement. Minor league righty Marques Johnson is going to San Francisco in return. The Sox transferred Kaleb Ort from the 15-day to the 60-day injured list to create space on the 40-man roster for Llovera, whom San Francisco had recently designated for assignment.

Llovera, 27, has pitched for the Giants in each of the past two seasons. The right-hander got into 17 games last year, working to a 4.41 ERA through 16 1/3 innings. San Francisco non-tendered him at the start of the offseason but brought him back on a new minor league pact.

The Venezuela native worked to a 3.92 ERA over 20 2/3 frames in a hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. San Francisco selected his contract in early July, deploying him in five big league contests. He worked 5 1/3 frames, allowing a run on four hits with five strikeouts and two walks.

Llovera has exhausted his option years, meaning the Giants couldn’t send him back to the minors once they called him up. They designated him for assignment on Saturday to make room in the bullpen for Luke Jackson to return from the injured list. Llovera’s upper minors production intrigued the Sox enough they’re willing to install him in the middle innings.

Boston also can’t option him to the minors, so he’ll be on the MLB roster once he reports to the club. He’s the third upper level right-handed relief arm added to the organization within the past two days. The Sox acquired Nick Robertson and Justin Hagenman from the Dodgers in the Enrique Hernández trade. Both those pitchers were assigned to Triple-A Worcester as upper minors depth.

In return for a pitcher who’d been squeezed off the roster, San Francisco picks up a low minors reliever. Johnson was an 11th-round selection out of Long Beach State last season. He owns a 6.55 ERA through 34 1/3 innings across 28 outings at Low-A. Johnson has punched out 27.9% of opponents but is walking batters at an alarming 15.6% clip.

Ort has been out since July 5 with inflammation in his throwing elbow. He’s now ineligible to return to the MLB roster until the first week of September. The 31-year-old has a 6.26 ERA over 23 innings on the season.

Red Sox, Eddy Alvarez Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Red Sox are in agreement with utilityman Eddy Alvarez on a minor league contract, tweets Chris Cotillo of MassLive. He’ll join their top affiliate in Worcester.

Alvarez, 33, had spent the season in Triple-A with the Brewers after signing an offseason minor league deal. The left-handed hitter put together a nice showing for their top affiliate, posting a .283/.397/.473 line over 257 plate appearances. He walked at an excellent 14% clip against an average 22.6% strikeout rate while playing each of second, third, shortstop and both corner outfield positions.

Nevertheless, Milwaukee declined to add him to the MLB roster. Alvarez opted out of the deal a couple weeks ago and will take another crack at the majors in the Sox’s organization. He earned brief MLB looks with the Marlins and Dodgers between 2020-22, hitting .183/.262/.262 with one homer in 50 games.

Alvarez is a much more accomplished Triple-A hitter. The Miami native has a .286/.390/.468 line over parts of seven seasons at the top minor league level. He’ll bring that strong upper minors track record and defensive flexibility as a depth option for Boston.

Dodgers Acquire Enrique Hernandez

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Enrique Hernandez is back with the Dodgers. Los Angeles announced they’ve acquired the utilityman (along with cash considerations) from the Red Sox for relievers Nick Robertson and Justin Hagenman. Boston is reportedly paying down $2.5MM of the approximate $3.6MM remaining on Hernandez’s contract.

Hernandez, 31, is struggling through one of the worst seasons of his career, batting just .222/.279/.320 in 323 plate appearances. The offseason injury of Trevor Story — which required elbow surgery — prompted the Sox to move Hernandez from center field to shortstop. The results weren’t pretty, with Hernandez returning to a position he’d barely played since 2018 and posting some of the lowest defensive grades of any player at any position (-6 Defensive Runs Saved, -13 Outs Above Average in just 484 innings).

The extent to which the defensive struggles also impacted Hernandez’s mindset at the plate can’t be known, but his production hasn’t dipped to this level since the 2016 season. He’s hitting .260 against left-handed pitching — albeit with a lowly .314 OBP and .338 slugging percentage — but has been a nonfactor against right-handed pitching (.209/.266/.314).

Struggles on both sides of the ball notwithstanding, Hernandez is a career .259/.346/.465 hitter against southpaws. The Dodgers will hope that a return to the team he called home for the majority of his career can bring about a turnaround at the plate and/or on the field. Los Angeles has hit well against lefties as a team, but that’s generally been in spite of poor production from a cast of outfielders that has looked lost against southpaws.

All of David Peralta, Trayce Thompson and Jason Heyward have struggled in that regard. James Outman is getting on base at a .366 pace against lefties but not hitting for power and striking out at a 34% clip. Chris Taylor has gotten on base at a lowly .268 rate but at least hits lefties for power.

There’s no guarantee that Hernandez will improve the team’s overall production against southpaws, but he’s a low-cost roll of the dice as a bench player who’s had success in just this type of limited role before — with this very team, no less. Given that the Dodgers have been cycling through journeyman like Yonny Hernandez and Jake Marisnick on the bench, there’s some sense to seeking lower-cost stability. Hernandez figures to be a boon in the clubhouse at the very least, and any big early hits following the swap will clearly be well-received by a fanbase with which he was popular during his last tenure. There’s minimal risk in displacing Hernandez, though the Dodger faithful will surely be hoping this trade is merely a footnote among a larger slate of deadline transactions rather than a focal point of the front office’s approach to upgrading the roster.

For the Red Sox, with Story nearing a return, they’ll subtract Hernandez from their glut of middle-infield and outfield options. Jarren Duran’s emergence in center field put a serious dent in Hernandez’s role with the team — particularly with Masataka Yoshida and Alex Verdugo locked into the corners. Yu Chang is a more versatile infield defender, meanwhile, and the Sox apparently prefer to continue giving the more controllable Christian Arroyo opportunities over Hernandez — a pending free agent playing on a one-year, $10MM contract extension he signed last winter.

Per Roster Resource, the Dodgers had a $228MM payroll and $245MM luxury-tax bill prior to the trade. Tacking on roughly $1.1MM won’t put them anywhere near the third tier of luxury-tax penalization, which begins at $273MM and is the point at which teams see their top pick in the following year’s draft pushed back by 10 spots. As a third-time luxury tax offender in the midst of the first penalty bracket, the Dodgers would pay a 50% dollar-for-dollar tax on all overages. As such, Hernandez’s remaining $1.1MM actually amounts to about $1.65MM in terms of total expenditure.

In return for picking up the bulk of the tab, Boston lands a couple pitchers who add desired right-handed middle relief depth. Robertson, 25, is on the 40-man roster and has made nine big league appearances for Los Angeles this season. The rookie righty has allowed 10 runs (seven earned) over his first 10 1/3 frames. He’s fanned 13 against four walks, though, missing bats at a decent 11.4% clip. Robertson is a fastball-changeup pitcher who has averaged a little under 95 MPH on his heater in his brief MLB look.

He’s having an excellent year in Triple-A. Over 28 1/3 innings with the Dodgers’ top affiliate in Oklahoma City, the 6’6″ hurler owns a 2.54 ERA. Robertson has punched out an excellent 37.5% of batters faced at the top minor league level, where he’s also inducing grounders on half the batted balls he allows. The former seventh-round pick owns a 3.54 ERA with a 30% strikeout rate over parts of four minor league campaigns. He’ll start his Boston tenure on optional assignment to Triple-A Worcester but could be recalled to work out of the big league bullpen at any point.

Hagenman has never played in the majors. Like Robertson, he’s having a strong year in Triple-A. Through 55 innings spread over 25 appearances, the 26-year-old righty has a 2.78 ERA. He’s punching hitters out at a solid 27% clip while keeping his walks to a tidy 5% rate. The Penn State product went unselected in last year’s Rule 5 draft after posting a 6.08 ERA in Triple-A; he’d be eligible for the Rule 5 again next winter but has a good chance to earn a spot on the Sox’s 40-man roster before then after his much better second season at the top minor league level.

David Vassegh of SportsNet Los Angeles noted this afternoon the Sox and Dodgers were discussing Hernandez trades. Ken Rosenthal and Fabian Ardaya of the Athletic first reported the Dodgers were acquiring Hernandez. Alex Speier of the Boston Globe reported the Red Sox would receive two upper minors relief pitchers. Chris Cotillo of MassLive first suggested Robertson and Hagenman were potentially involved in the deal. Tom Caron of NESN confirmed Hagenman’s inclusion, while Jeff Passan of ESPN first confirmed the package was Robertson and Hagenman. Speier was first to report the cash considerations.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Red Sox, Frank German Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Red Sox are in agreement with reliever Frank German on a minor league contract, reports Chris Cotillo of MassLive (Twitter link). He’d been released by the Reds two weeks ago.

German has bounced between a few organizations in 2023, now returning to the only one with which he’s appeared at the big league level. The right-hander pitched in five games for Boston last season. The Red Sox designated him for assignment during the offseason, spurring a trade to the White Sox. He landed with Cincinnati via waiver claim a couple months later before being cut loose.

The hard-throwing hurler has had a tough go in Triple-A this year. German carries an 8.55 ERA in 20 minor league frames on the season. He’s walked 15.1% of batters faced and surrendered six home runs. Cotillo notes that the Sox will send him to their complex in Florida before assigning him to a minor league affiliate.

Tough 2023 aside, there’s little harm for Boston in rolling the dice yet again. German’s fastball sat just under 98 MPH during his big league stint last year. He’s never had issues missing bats in the minors but has yet to consistently find the strike zone.

Red Sox Reinstate John Schreiber

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The Red Sox have activated right-hander John Schreiber from the 60-day injured list. An opening on the active roster was created by the Enrique Hernández trade. Boston’s 40-man roster is at capacity after the Sox outrighted reliever Norwith Gudiño this afternoon.

Schreiber has been out since May 16 due to a teres major strain in his throwing shoulder. The injury brought a halt to what had been an excellent start to his season. The low-slot righty has allowed only five runs (four earned) through 17 innings. He’s striking out 30% of opponents with a massive 59% ground-ball percentage.

A former waiver claim from Detroit, Schreiber had a breakout season with Boston in 2022. Through 65 innings, he worked to a 2.22 ERA with a 28.8% strikeout percentage and 56.3% grounder rate. He looked on his way to approximating that production before the shoulder issue. Schreiber figures to step back into a high-leverage role for Alex Cora, though he’s slated for his first major league start this evening against Atlanta. He’ll kick off a bullpen game for the 53-47 Red Sox.

Gudiño was called up over the weekend for the first time but didn’t make an MLB appearance. He’ll return to Triple-A Worcester, where he has a 5.54 ERA in 20 appearances on the season.

Dodgers, Red Sox Discussing Enrique Hernandez Deal

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The Dodgers and Red Sox are discussing a potential trade that would send veteran utilityman Enrique Hernandez back to Los Angeles, where he spent the 2015-20 seasons, David Vassegh of SportsNet Los Angeles reports. The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya reported over the weekend that L.A. had interest in a reunion with Hernandez, provided he was amenable to shifting into a more limited role than the everyday one he’s held down in Boston. Further fueling intrigue, Red Sox manager Alex Cora tells the Sox beat that the team is working on a roster move that’s holding up the reveal of today’s lineup (Twitter link via Alex Speier of the Boston Globe).

It’s been a dismal season for the 31-year-old Hernandez, who lost his handle on the everyday shortstop job in Boston thanks to glaring defensive ratings and a similarly alarming .222/.279/.320 batting line in 323 plate appearances. He’s earning $10MM this season after signing an extension with the Sox last summer.

For all of this year’s struggles, Hernandez carries a long track record of quality production against southpaws. He’s hitting an empty .260 against them this year (.260/.314/.338) but is a lifetime .259/.346/.465 batter when holding the platoon advantage. He’s also a plus defender in center field and a solid glove at second base; Hernandez simply seemed miscast as a regular shortstop but was thrust into that role when Trevor Story required offseason elbow surgery.

The Dodgers are hitting .227/.322/.450 as a team against left-handed pitching, resulting in a 1o9 wRC+ that ranks tenth in the Majors. However, their outfield has been pedestrian, at best, against southpaws. David Peralta and Jason Heyward — the latter of whom has just 15 plate appearances against southpaws this season — have continued their long-running platoon struggles. Trayce Thompson’s right-handed bat hasn’t held up against left-handed pitching (.143/.321/.286) and he’s been on the shelf since June. Recently signed righty hitter Jake Marisnick just hit the IL after only a handful of plate appearances. Chris Taylor is hitting for power against lefties but reaching base at just a .268 clip. James Outman has been the opposite, reaching at a .366 clip but hitting for virtually no power (.366 slugging, .085 ISO) and striking out at a 34% clip.

Hernandez would add a potentially valuable right-handed hitting bat who could fill a familiar role, splitting time around the outfield, at second base and perhaps at designated hitter.

As for the Red Sox, Hernandez could be squeezed out by his struggles at shortstop, his downturn in production at the plate and a glut of outfield and middle-infield options. Story is likely to return from the injured list before long and is currently on a rehab assignment. Yu Chang is a steadier defender at shortstop than Hernandez and figures to move around the infield once Story returns. Boston has also begun giving Justin Turner some time (27 innings) at second base. The Sox ostensibly remain committed to Christian Arroyo despite a generally middling track record. In the outfield, Mastaka Yoshida, Jarren Duran and Alex Verdugo are the starters, leaving Hernandez without a regular role.

Braves Reportedly Interested In Adam Duvall

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After two previous stints with the Braves, Adam Duvall looks to be on the club’s radar again, as MassLive.com’s Sean McAdam writes that “the Braves are said to have some interest in yet another reunion with” the veteran outfielder.  Duvall would be a rental pickup, as his one-year, $7MM deal with the Red Sox is up at the end of the season.

It remains to be seen whether or not the Sox will even part ways with Duvall, as Boston is itself in a playoff chase.  The right-handed hitting Duvall has some obvious utility for the Red Sox given that he can at least passably play any of the three outfield positions, and Boston’s starting three outfielders (Masataka Yoshida, Jarren Duran, and Alex Verdugo) are all left-handed bats.  Theoretically, Enrique Hernandez could move from the infield back into an outfield role if Duvall was moved, though Hernandez has been struggling through a rough year at the plate and could be a trade candidate himself at the deadline.

That wouldn’t stop the Braves from at least asking about Duvall, and some potential exists for Atlanta and Boston to line up on a deal that would address mutual needs on the big league roster.  Both clubs are looking for pitching, but as MLB.com’s Mark Bowman notes, the Braves might have something of a bullpen surplus once all of their relievers start to return from the injured list.  Speculatively, one of those Atlanta relievers might be of interest to the Red Sox, even if Boston needs rotation help more directly than another bullpen arm.

Since the Red Sox operated in both a buying and selling capacity at last year’s trade deadline, chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom could explore a similar strategy this year, even though the Sox are in a better position to contend than the 2022 group.  The Braves are obviously aiming to win now, and given the past creativity of president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos, any number of trade scenarios could exist between Atlanta and Boston.

Duvall is hitting .257/.320/.515 with seven home runs over 153 plate appearances this season, though a lot of that production came within an absurdly hot start.  Duvall had a 1.544 OPS and four homers in his first 37 PA, before a wrist fracture sidelined him for two months.  Upon his return, Duvall’s bat has been much quieter, with only a .194/.259/.350 slash line over his last 116 PA.  He has started to hit a little better in the last couple of weeks, and a trade (particularly to a familiar location like Atlanta) might further spark Duvall’s offense.

If a trade did happen, it would mark the fourth time in Duvall’s career that he has been traded at the deadline, with two of those prior swaps sending him to the Braves.  The Giants dealt Duvall to the Reds in July 2015, Cincinnati moved Duvall to the Braves in July 2018, and Atlanta picked him up yet again in a deal with the Marlins in July 2021.  The latter move is the most notable, as Duvall hit well for a Braves team that went on to capture the World Series.

Duvall would provide depth throughout Atlanta’s outfield, and would most likely pair with Eddie Rosario in a platoon in left field.  Both Rosario and Duvall are having some uncharacteristic reverse-splits seasons, so while it might end up being an unusual bizarro platoon, left field is Duvall’s easiest path to playing time since Ronald Acuna Jr. and Michael Harris II are entrenched in right and center field.  The left-handed hitting Harris might also be a platoon possibility, but Harris has been so hot at the plate over the last six weeks that the Braves likely want to keep him in the lineup as often as possible.

Red Sox Notes: Middle Infield, Hernandez

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  • During an appearance on The Front Office on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM, Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom reiterated that the club was looking for starting pitching at the deadline, as well as a left-handed hitting middle infielder.  Enrique Hernandez, Yu Chang, Christian Arroyo, and even part-time second baseman Justin Turner all swing from the right side, as do the injured Trevor Story and Pablo Reyes.  Story’s return from the injured list should give the Red Sox more clarity on their muddled infield picture, yet there’s also a chance Boston could both buy and sell at the deadline, as the club did last year.  To this end, pending free agent Hernandez could be expendable, and The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya writes that the Dodgers would have interest in a possible reunion if Hernandez was open to more of a part-time role.  Whereas Boston has too many right-handed bats, the Dodgers have a surplus of left-handed hitters in the outfield, so Hernandez could add both lineup balance and positional versatility as a player capable of working in multiple positions — essentially his old role when he previously played in L.A. in 2015-20.

Red Sox Select Norwith Gudino

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The Red Sox selected right-hander Norwith Gudino to the club’s roster earlier tonight, per a club announcement. Gudino is serving as the club’s 27th man during tonight’s game against the Mets after the clubs completed yesterday’s suspended game earlier today. Gudino will take the 40-man roster spot that had been previously vacated by right-hander Jake Faria, who was designated for assignment earlier this week.

Gudino, 27, would make his major league debut by getting into tonight’s game. Gudino’s professional career began with the Giants back in 2015, though he wouldn’t get his first taste of full-season baseball until 2018. That year, he posted a 4.41 ERA in 79 2/3 innings across three levels while mostly pitching out of the rotation. Gudino moved to relief in 2019, and dominated to a 0.53 ERA in 33 2/3 innings of work.

The right-hander did not pitch in 2020 due to the cancelled minor league season, but received his first taste of upper-minors action in the 2021 as he pitched to a solid 3.90 ERA in 60 innings split between Double-A and Triple-A. Unfortunately for Gudino, he’s struggled significantly the past two seasons. He posted a brutal 8.87 ERA in 47 2/3 innings at Triple-A for the Giants last year before electing free agency this past offseason and signing on with the Red Sox on a minor league deal.

His results at Triple-A with the Red Sox have improved relative to those he posted with the Giants last year, though his 5.54 ERA in 52 innings while swinging between the bullpen and the rotation still leave something to be desired. That being said, his peripheral numbers have taken a significant turn for the worse in 2023. After posting strikeout rates around 30% in the upper minors throughout his career, that figure has plummeted to just 12.2% in 2023, a figure nearly matched by his 11% walk rate.

Despite these flaws, Gudino will get a chance in the majors with Boston, where he could be called upon to provide length in a bullpen where other multi-inning options such as Nick Pivetta and Josh Winckowski are relief on for late-inning roles.

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