Red Sox Designate Ryan Weber For Assignment
The Red Sox have designated right-hander Ryan Weber for assignment, manager Alex Cora told MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo and other reporters. Michael Chavis has been called up from Triple-A to take Weber’s spot on the active roster.
Weber’s contract was only just selected from Triple-A yesterday, and his lone appearance for the Sox ended up being a nightmare. Called into the game after starter Martin Perez was chased in the second inning, Weber was left to soak up innings in mop-up duty, and he allowed 11 runs over 5 2/3 innings in Boston’s 18-4 loss to the Blue Jays.
Now in his third season with the Red Sox, Weber posted a 4.73 ERA/4.66 SIERA over 83 2/3 innings in 2019-20. Weber is something of a groundball specialist, with a 52.3% grounder rate over his 163 career frames in the majors and only a 15.1% strikeout rate. He is versatile enough to work as a proper starting pitcher or as a multi-inning swingman type, though with limited effectiveness (Weber has a 5.30 career ERA).
Chavis has been shuttled back and forth a few times this season between Boston’s MLB roster and either the alternate training site or Triple-A Worcester. Chavis has hit .273/.273/.485 in 33 plate appearances this season, as the former top prospect is still trying to establish himself at the big league level. He’ll factor into Boston’s bench mix, and some playing time at first base could open up if Bobby Dalbec continues to struggle (though Dalbec has been looking a bit better over his last four games).
Red Sox Select Ryan Weber, Designate Brandon Brennan
The Red Sox announced they’re selecting the contract of right-hander Ryan Weber. Fellow righty Brandon Brennan has been designated for assignment to open active and 40-man roster space.
Weber makes his return to Boston, where he saw big league action in 2019-20. The sinkerballer pitched to a 4.73 ERA/4.89 FIP in 83 2/3 innings over that time. Weber doesn’t miss many bats, striking out a minuscule 15.3% of opponents with the Red Sox. He’s thrown plenty of strikes and kept the ball on the ground at an above-average clip, though. Weber was outrighted off the roster last offseason and began this year with Triple-A Worcester. He’s made seven appearances (six starts) with Worcester, managing a 4.63 ERA with a 22.4% strikeout rate and solid 6.8% walk rate.
The Sox claimed Brennan off waivers from the Mariners in early May. He spent his first month in the organization at Worcester, tossing 8 1/3 frames of two-run ball. Brennan struck out eleven against five walks at Triple-A, earning him a call-up yesterday. The 29-year-old worked three scoreless innings out of the bullpen in last night’s loss to the Blue Jays. Unfortunately for Brennan, his 42-pitch workload took him out of commission for the next day or two. The Red Sox ultimately decided to bring in a fresher arm in his place.
Boston will have a week to trade Brennan or place him on outright waivers. He still has all three minor league option years remaining, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see another club bring him in. A former Rule 5 draftee, Brennan has a 4.21 ERA/4.61 SIERA over 57 2/3 MLB innings.
Matt Barnes Open To In-Season Extension Talks
Red Sox closer Matt Barnes is in the midst of a career year at the perfect time, with free agency looming just a few months down the road. However, while many free-agents-to-be set an Opening Day deadline for extension talks with their current club, Barnes made clear this week that he’s “absolutely” open to talking about a new contract during the season (link via Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com). Barnes added that while the two sides talked during Spring Training and even exchanged numbers, the Red Sox haven’t made an offer since.
Barnes, 31 next week, has the second-highest strikeout rate among all qualified relievers at a whopping 49.5 percent, trailing only division rival Aroldis Chapman for the MLB lead. He’s worked 26 1/3 innings for the Sox this season and notched a tidy 2.73 ERA but with an even better 1.36 FIP and 1.33 SIERA.
Barnes has long been a solid late-inning option with well above-average strikeouts, but he’s taken his game to new heights in 2021. The breakout isn’t accompanied by a major uptick in fastball velocity or spin rate — both are actually down a bit from 2019 — or by the implementation of a new pitch.
The biggest change for Barnes looks attributable to the best command the right-hander has ever had. His 7.4 percent walk rate is far and away the lowest of his career. Barnes walked 12.7 percent of his opponents from 2018-20, but he’s slashed that this season in large part by emphasizing strike one; he’d thrown a first-pitch strike at just a 58 percent clip in his career prior to 2021, but that number has skyrocketed to 72.6 percent this season — a mark that ranks fourth-best among 182 qualified relievers. He’s inducing chases on pitches out of the strike zone at a career-high 37.6 percent, and his opponents’ 46.5 percent contact rate on those chases is the second-best mark of his career (trailing his 44.4 percent mark in 2018).
This is the best version of Barnes that the Red Sox have seen, and his breakthrough has no doubt played a role in the Red Sox beating virtually all preseason expectations with a 37-25 record with nearly 40 percent of the season in the books. Barnes is tied for fifth in Major League Baseball with 14 saves, has only blown two opportunities this season, and has only been scored upon in five of his 26 appearances.
All of that positions Barnes quite nicely as the open market looms. There’s no established, dominant presence among this winter’s group, which leaves Barnes looking like a candidate to hit the market as the top name available. Fellow breakout right Kendall Graveman could give him some competition in that regard, but Barnes is undeniably well-positioned for the time being.
Barnes is earning every bit of a $4.5MM salary thus far in 2021, but he’d obviously be in line for a sizable raise on that rate over a multi-year deal in free agency. This past offseason wasn’t a great year for relievers as a whole. Only Liam Hendriks topped two years in length or $9MM in annual value (on a multi-year deal). His $54MM guarantee from the White Sox is one of the largest sums ever promised to a reliever, but Blake Treinen‘s two-year, $17.5MM deal was the next-largest contract for any bullpen arm.
A year prior, the top bullpen arms on the market were lefties Will Smith (three years, $40MM) and Drew Pomeranz (four years, $34MM). In 2018-19 we saw each of Joe Kelly, Adam Ottavino, Familia and Zack Britton score three-year pacts with average annual values ranging from $8-13MM.
If Barnes can sustain this output, history suggests he’d be able to target seeking a contract of at least three years in free agency. An annual salary approaching or even exceeding $10MM — perhaps by a decent margin — wouldn’t seem outlandish if he continues punching out nearly half of his opponents. Barnes’ track record of this level of dominance is relatively short, but that was also true of many of the relievers who cashed in over the past three offseasons (Hendriks and Pomeranz chief among them).
There’s no indication that the Red Sox are planning a run at extending Barnes just yet. Luxury-tax concerns have underscored nearly every move the team has made for the past couple years. That said, Sox are under the line this year and could structure any contract as a new deal beginning in 2022 so as not to impact their 2021 bottom line (as they did when extending Chris Sale a couple years back). The Red Sox have about $127MM in luxury-tax obligations on the 2022 ledger, per Jason Martinez of Roster Resource. Critically, we don’t know what the luxury barrier will be in 2022 or if the luxury-tax system will even exist in its current state. That, of course is dependent on the ongoing collective bargaining talks. Whatever happens, Barnes made clear the ball is in the team’s court.
“We haven’t had any discussions since spring training,” said Barnes. “If the Red Sox want to make an offer and they want to start those conversations… I’ve always been a firm believer that listening to information is always free.”
Minor MLB Transactions: 6/7/21
The latest minor moves from around baseball…
- Reds righty Hector Perez cleared waivers and was outrighted off their roster, Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets. Perez, who celebrated his 25th birthday on Sunday, had been in limbo since the Reds designated him on June 2. He began this year by pitching to a 9.35 ERA in 8 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level before his designation.
Earlier:
- The Red Sox outrighted Colten Brewer to Triple-A after the right-hander cleared waivers. Brewer was designated for assignment last Thursday. After a pretty solid 2019 season out of Boston’s bullpen, Brewer has struggled to a 6.75 ERA in 26 2/3 frames over the last two years, including a single inning of work this season that saw him allow four earned runs.
Pitcher Notes: Gray, Kikuchi, Peralta, Brasier
Rockies right-hander Jon Gray went on the injured list yesterday with the ominous-sounding diagnosis of elbow soreness/forearm tightness in his throwing arm. Fortunately, an MRI revealed no structural damage, manager Bud Black told reporters (including Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post). That’s fantastic news for player and team alike. Gray is scheduled to reach free agency at the end of this season, so his finishing the year healthy is of upmost importance as he looks to market himself around the league. His contractual status, coupled with the Rockies 23-36 record, also makes him one of the game’s most obvious trade candidates in advance of the July 30 deadline.
A few more notes on pitchers around the league:
- Mariners left-hander Yusei Kikuchi left last night’s start against the Angels in the fifth inning after being struck on the right knee by a David Fletcher line drive. The team announced he’s been diagnosed with a knee contusion/bone bruise. Kikuchi, who had to be helped off the field, was able to put some weight on his leg after the game manager Scott Servais told reporters (including Corey Brock of the Athletic). Servais suggested he didn’t believe there was any sort of fracture, and Kikuchi’s feeling “better than expected” today (via Brock), although it’s still possible he’ll need an IL stint. Kikuchi has been the Mariners best starter this year, tossing 66 2/3 innings of 3.92 ERA/3.64 SIERA ball.
- Brewers righty Freddy Peralta has been one of the best pitchers in baseball. The 25-year-old is among the league’s top fifteen hurlers in ERA (2.25), SIERA (3.11), and strikeout/walk rate differential (26.1 percentage points). Will Sammon of the Athletic looks back at the December 2015 trade that sent Peralta, then a low minors pitching prospect, from the Mariners to the Brewers as part of the return for first baseman Adam Lind. Matt Kleine, now the Brewers vice president of baseball operations, initially spotted Peralta on the Mariners back fields in 2013. Intrigued by his fastball shape and athleticism, Kleine pushed the Milwaukee higher-ups to bring in Peralta via trade, and the opportunity presented itself when the Mariners expressed interest in Lind. Sammon breaks down Peralta’s continued progression and evolution (including the development of a slider and changeup to diversify his once fastball-heavy repertoire) in a piece that’ll be of interest to Brewers fans.
- Red Sox reliever Ryan Brasier, who has been rehabbing from a left calf strain, was hospitalized after being struck in the head by a comebacker during a simulated game in Fort Myers this week. He has since been released, although Brasier suffered a concussion and an ear laceration, notes Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe (Twitter link). That will halt his rehab process for the time being, although it’s certainly a relief he escaped more serious injury after the scary incident.
AL Notes: Orioles, Twins, Red Sox, Astros
John Means left his start today in the first inning with what’s currently being identified as “left shoulder fatigue,” per Rich Dubroff of Baltimorebaseball.com. Said Means after the game, “This is something I’ve been battling the last few weeks. Not really during the games, but after games. I felt it more so in warmups when I was out there, the last couple of pitches when I really started to let it eat.” The O’s lefty will undergo an MRI on Sunday morning. Elsewhere in the American League…
- The Twins have not gotten the kind of production they need from Matt Shoemaker this season. The 34-year-old veteran gave up eight earned runs while recording just one out against the Royals on Friday. For the season, Shoemaker’s 7.28 ERA/5.98 FIP rank last by a fair margin among starters with at least 50 innings this season. He will continue to make his turns in the Twins’ rotation for now, per the Athletic’s Dan Hayes.
- Even if the Twins wanted to make a move, they’re somewhat hampered by recent injuries in their minor leagues. Minor league hurlers Lewis Thorpe and Matt Canterino were placed on the injured list today, per Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com (via Twitter). They are dealing with a left shoulder strain and right elbow strain, respectively. Canterino, pitching in High-A, was not likely to help out at the big league level this season, but Thorpe already has 14 innings in four appearances (three starts) with the Twins this season. He has pitched exclusively out of the pen at Triple-A.
- J.D. Martinez was a late scratch from the Red Sox’ lineup with a sore wrist, per Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe (via Twitter). He appeared to jam his wrist sliding into second base during play on Friday. The injury does not appear to be serious. Per Christopher Smith of Masslive.com, manager Alex Cora commented on the situation, saying, “…we’ll take care of him today, get treatment. If he feels good and we need him late in game, then probably we’ll use him.”
- Aledmys Diaz will undergo X-Rays after being hit by a pitch and suffering a left hand contusion, per Mark Berman of Fox 26 (via Twitter). Diaz would be missed. He’s posted a solid .281/.339/.439 line in 124 plate appearances this season.
Red Sox Acquire Three Prospects To Complete Andrew Benintendi Trade
Nearly four months after trading Andrew Benintendi to the Royals as part of a three-team swap also involving the Mets, the Red Sox announced that they’ve acquired outfielder Freddy Valdez from the Mets and right-handers Grant Gambrell and Luis De La Rosa from the Royals as players to be named later, officially completing the trade. The Red Sox acquired outfielder Franchy Cordero (from the Royals) and minor league righty Josh Winckowski (from the Mets) at the time of the trade, which also sent outfielder Khalil Lee from Kansas City to New York.
The 19-year-old Valdez has yet to progress to A-ball after splitting the 2019 season between the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League and Gulf Coast League. The Mets signed him for a $1.4MM bonus as a 16-year-old out of the Dominican Republic back in 2018. In his lone season of pro ball, he hit .274/.367/.448 with an 18 percent strikeout rate and an 11.4 percent walk rate.
Valdez is generally regarded as one of the Mets’ top 20 prospects, ranking 13th at The Athletic, 14th at MLB.com, 17th at Baseball America and 18th at FanGraphs. FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen calls Valdez an “absolute behemoth of a corner outfield prospect” with “thunderous” power, likening him to Indians slugger Franmil Reyes. The Athletic’s Keith Law writes that Valdez has “huge” power with above-average speed and a plus arm, though many scouting reports on Valdez raise questions about his hit tool and his defensive future.
Obviously, given Valdez’s age and the fact that he’s yet to even take a single at-bat in A-ball, he’s years from factoring into the Red Sox’ big league plans. On some levels, there figure to be comparisons to another player the Red Sox received in this trade: Franchy Cordero. Valdez, by all accounts, is a physical specimen at a young age with a tantalizing set of loud tools but has a ways to go before scouts will be sold that those tools can translate at the Major League level. As far as lower-level lottery tickets go, he’s the type that comes with considerable upside but also a fair bit of risk.
Gambrell, 23, is the more highly regarded of the two players coming over from the Royals and also much nearer to the big leagues. Kansas City’s third-round pick out of Oregon State in 2019, Gambrell has tossed 22 2/3 innings of 4.37 ERA ball in Class-A Advanced to begin the season, recording a 19.8 percent strikeout rate, 7.6 percent walk rate and 50 percent ground-ball rate in that time. Longenhagen ranked him 21st among K.C. prospects, noting that Gambrell used the off-time in 2020 to get into better shape and reported to camp in 2021 with a “totally different body” and improved velocity.
De La Rosa is even more of a lottery ticket than Valdez. Still just 18 years old, he signed as a 16-year-old in 2018 and carved up the Dominican Summer League a year later, tossing 38 2/3 innings with a 2.33 ERA, a ridiculous 52-to-7 K/BB ratio and a strong 48.9 percent grounder rate. Despite that exceptional short-season debut, De La Rosa isn’t ranked among the Royals’ best prospects, although he could certainly generate some further recognition if he can back up that dominant 2019 showing at a more advanced level.
The Athletic’s Chad Jennings first reported that the Red Sox would acquire Valdez from the Mets (Twitter link). Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe reported (via Twitter) that Gambrell and De La Rosa were also headed to the Sox.
AL East Notes: Zombro, Choi, Kluber, Blue Jays, Ward
Rays pitching prospect Tyler Zombro was struck in the head by a line drive last night during the eighth inning of Triple-A Durham’s game against Norfolk. Zombro was taken off the field on a stretcher and taken to hospital, as the game was suspended and then later officially halted.
The Rays released a statement on Zombro’s condition earlier today: “As of this morning, Tyler remains under the care of the nurses and doctors at Duke University Hospital. The updates from overnight have been positive, and he remains in stable condition. We are overwhelmed by the support for Tyler and the wishes for his full and speedy recovery from fans and the baseball community alike. We will provide additional updates as he progresses.”
We at MLBTR add our voices to the chorus of support for Zombro, and we’re hoping for all the best in his recovery.
More from around the AL East…
- Ji-Man Choi has been battling left groin tightness and might require a trip to the injured list. Choi missed Thursday’s game with the Yankees due to the issue, and Rays manager Kevin Cash told reporters (including Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times) that “I don’t think that he necessarily felt that great today” even after Choi received treatment throughout the game. Arthroscopic knee surgery in March delayed Choi’s season debut until May 16, and he has been making up for lost time with a scorching .304/.448/.522 slash line in his first 58 plate appearances. [UPDATE: the Rays have placed Choi on the 10-day IL with a left groin strain.]
- Corey Kluber‘s recovery from a rotator cuff strain is still projected to keep the righty out of action until around the last week of July, but Yankees manager Aaron Boone did provide some positive news in an update with reporters (including Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News). After receiving second and third opinions from doctors, Kluber is expected to start throwing on flat ground within a few days’ time — his initial diagnosis would have kept him from throwing whatsoever for four weeks.
- Pitching is the most obvious need for the Blue Jays at the trade deadline, yet Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith suggests that the Jays should also look to add bench help. As much as the returns of George Springer, Alejandro Kirk, and Cavan Biggio will help matters, adding another bat would guard against any future injuries. Specifically, a left-handed bat would also balance out a Toronto lineup that leans heavily to the right.
- Red Sox pitching prospect Thad Ward recently underwent Tommy John surgery, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports. A fifth-round pick for the Sox in the 2018 draft, Ward posted some impressive numbers in his first two pro seasons before making his Double-A debut this season (posting a 5.63 ERA over eight innings). Both MLB Pipeline and Baseball America ranked Ward as a top-ten prospect in Boston’s farm system, but the right-hander will now be on the shelf for the next 13-15 months, and his entire 2022 could be in jeopardy in the event of a rehab setback.
Red Sox Designate Colten Brewer For Assignment
The Red Sox have designated right-hander Colten Brewer for assignment in order to create 40-man roster space for righty Brandon Workman, per a club announcement. Skipper Alex Cora announced earlier today that Workman would be selected to the MLB roster and Brewer would be optioned, but the Sox have now removed Brewer from the 40-man roster entirely.
Brewer, 28, has spent parts of the past three seasons with the Sox after coming over from the Padres in a trade that sent minor league infielder Esteban Quiroz to San Diego. He pitched just one inning for Boston in 2021, yielding four runs in his lone game of the season.
The 2020 campaign was also a struggle for Brewer, who was tagged for a 5.56 ERA in 25 2/3 innings last summer. He posted a respectable 4.12 ERA in 54 2/3 innings with the Sox back in 2019, but that year’s 13.4 percent walk rate was a red flag that made it fair to question whether he’d be able to sustain that level of run prevention.
All told, Brewer has pitched 91 innings in the Majors between the Padres and the Red Sox, logging a collective 5.04 ERA (4.94 SIERA) with a 20.3 percent strikeout rate, a 13.4 percent ground-ball rate and a 50.4 percent ground-ball rate. Brewer sits about 94 mph with his go-to cutter and has, at his best, missed bats at a solid level. The past few seasons have been a struggle both in the Majors and in Triple-A, however. The Sox will have a week to trade Brewer or place him on outright waivers.
Red Sox Select Brandon Workman
The Red Sox are selecting the contract of right-hander Brandon Workman, manager Alex Cora announced to reporters this morning. Righty Colten Brewer is being optioned to Triple-A Worcester in a corresponding 26-man roster move. A 40-man roster move will be announced later today as well. Workman, who signed a minor league deal to return to the Sox after being cut loose by the Cubs, had triggered a June 1 opt-out clause in his Red Sox deal earlier this week. That gave the Sox 48 hours to either release him or add him to the big league roster, and they’ve chosen the latter.
Workman, 32, pitched just eight innings for the Cubs earlier this season, allowing nine runs (six earned) on a dozen hits and seven walks with 11 punchouts in that short time. He looked quite effective until being tagged for three runs in each of his two final appearances with Chicago. Workman was on a one-year deal worth $1MM, so the Cubs didn’t have a particularly long leash when he struggled early in the year. That he was even available on such an affordable deal was a reflection of similar struggles he endured following a trade from Boston to Philadelphia last summer.
Of course, Workman is no stranger to the Red Sox organization. Boston selected him out of the University of Texas with their second-round pick in 2010, and he spent his entire professional career in the organization up until last August’s trade. Things didn’t pan out for Workman as a starter early in his big league tenure, but a full-time move to the bullpen proved to be a career-changing decision. From 2017-20, Workman threw 157 1/3 innings out of the Boston bullpen and notched a 2.57 ERA with a hearty 29 percent strikeout rate against an 11.8 percent walk rate.
As evidenced by that elevated walk rate, control has long been an issue for Workman, but he’s managed to overcome his sub-par strike-throwing skills by missing bats at a high rate and keeping the ball on the ground at an above-average 46.8 percent clip. Outside of his rocky stints with the Phillies and the Cubs, he’s been a solid late-inning reliever. He’s unlikely to be thrown right back into the fire as the Red Sox’ closer — especially with Matt Barnes pitching so well — but it wouldn’t be all that surprising if Workman resurfaced as a viable setup option before too long. He has some work to do to right the ship, but his poor performance since last summer’s trade effectively amounts to a two-month slump.