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Brian O'Grady

Padres Sign Brian O’Grady To Major League Contract

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The Padres announced that they have signed outfielder Brian O’Grady to a major league contract. O’Grady cleared waivers with the Rays a couple weeks back and became a free agent.

O’Grady first joined the Reds as an eighth-round pick in the 2014 draft, eventually reaching the majors for the first time in 2019 after posting respectable numbers throughout his time in the minors. O’Grady was especially effective in Triple-A ball from 2018-19, when he slashed .286/.360/.553 with 36 home runs in 649 plate appearances.

Despite his success at the minors’ highest level, O’Grady hasn’t gotten much of a chance to establish himself in the majors, where he has batted .213/.302/.447 with two homers in 53 trips to the plate. After he collected 48 PA with the Reds in 2019, the team traded him to the Rays last offseason. The 28-year-old didn’t factor in much for Tampa Bay, though, and now he’ll try to earn a spot on a Padres club that already has Trent Grisham, Tommy Pham, Wil Myers, Greg Allen, Jorge Mateo and Jorge Ona as outfielders on its 40-man roster.

Hunter Renfroe, Brian O’Grady Become Free Agents

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Rays outfielders Hunter Renfroe and Brian O’Grady have cleared waivers and become free agents, Juan Toribio of MLB.com tweets. The Rays designated both players for assignment last week.

Renfroe was a relatively high-profile acquisition for the Rays last winter, when they landed him in a trade with the Padres. He was coming off a 33-home run season at that point, but Renfroe wasn’t nearly that productive in his lone campaign with the Rays. The 28-year-old slashed just .156/.252/.393 (76 wRC+) with eight home runs in 139 plate appearances in 2020. Consequently, neither the Rays nor any other team deemed him worthy of a projected $3.5MM arbitration salary for next year.

O’Grady, also 28, became a Ray when they got him from the Reds before last season. He amassed 48 plate appearances with the Reds in 2019 and batted .190/.292/.429 with two home runs. O’Grady only totaled five PA with the Rays in 2020, however.

Rays Designate Hunter Renfroe For Assignment

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The Rays have designated outfielders Hunter Renfroe and Brian O’Grady for assignment, per a club announcement. The moves help to clear a path for the addition of infielder Taylor Walls, outfielder Josh Lowe and righty Drew Strotman to be selected to the 40-man roster.

Renfroe, 28, was Tampa Bay’s primary right fielder this season and a relatively high-profile addition via trade last winter. However, the former Padres slugger hit just .156/.252/.393 this season and was projected to earn more than $3.5MM in arbitration, making him an obvious non-tender candidate for the low-payroll Rays. There’s little reason not to free up a 40-man spot early if Tampa Bay were planning to let Renfroe go in a few weeks anyhow.

Miserable 2020 season aside, Renfroe’s not far removed from being a solid performer with the Padres. He has long run high strikeout rates and hasn’t drawn many walks, contributing to generally low on-base percentages. But Renfroe slugged 85 homers between 2017-19 and has typically rated as a strong defender in the corner outfield. That may not be enough for another team to acquire Renfroe via trade or waivers, but some teams figure to look into bringing him in despite his difficult most recent season. Renfroe is controllable through 2023 via arbitration, so any acquiring club would have the luxury of keeping him around for a while should he figure things out offensively.

O’Grady, also 28, was acquired in a trade with the Reds last offseason. The first baseman/corner outfielder only picked up five plate appearances in 2020 but has a robust track record at the plate in the minors.

Rays, Reds Finalize Trades For Jose De Leon, Brian O’Grady

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The Rays and Reds have worked out the final details of a pair of offseason trades between the two clubs, as per multiple reporters (including MLB.com’s Juan Toribio).  Back in November, the two clubs engaged in two trades, one that sent right-hander Jose De Leon to Cincinnati and (a week later) another that sent first baseman/outfielder Brian O’Grady to Tampa Bay.  Both trades saw the players exchanged for either cash considerations or a player to be named later, and today’s news confirms that the two teams have agreed to accept money to complete the transactions.

Cincinnati optioned De Leon to the minors two weeks ago, after the righty posted a 6.75 ERA over 2 2/3 Spring Training innings.  When and if the season gets underway, the 27-year-old De Leon will continue to work to get back to the form that made him a highly-touted top-40 prospect prior to the 2016 and 2017 seasons.  De Leon’s progress was halted, however, by Tommy John surgery in March 2018.  He returned to throw 56 minor league and four Major League innings in 2019.

O’Grady was also optioned to Triple-A just earlier today, which was expected given that the Rays already have a number of left-handed hitting first base options.  O’Grady’s ability to handle all three outfield positions could end up being his clearer path to playing time in Tampa Bay, as the Rays are forever looking for players with defensive versatility.  An eighth-round pick for the Reds in the 2014 draft, O’Grady made his MLB debut in 2019, making 48 plate appearances (and hitting .190/.292/.429) over 28 games.  The 27-year-old O’Grady has a .252/.354/.453 slash line over 2276 career PA in the minor leagues.

Rays Option Seven Players To Triple-A

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The Rays cut seven players from their 26-man roster today, as per a team announcement (Twitter link).  Outfielder Randy Arozarena, right-hander Trevor Richards, left-hander Anthony Banda, infielders Nate Lowe and Mike Brosseau, first baseman/outfielder Brian O’Grady and two-way player Brendan McKay are were all optioned to Triple-A.

Given how the Rays so often shuttle players from Triple-A and the big leagues, it’s safe to assume all seven of these names will wind up seeing action for the club this season, should the season get underway.  Tampa Bay is perhaps better equipped than most teams to handle the challenges posed by a potential shortened schedule and an effort to fit as many games as possible into an abbreviated period of time, as the Rays’ strong farm system gives them a lot of extra depth, and many of their players (especially pitchers) are already used to frequent trips up and down the ladder.

Since Lowe, Ji-Man Choi, and the newly-acquired Yoshitomo Tsutsugo are all left-handed hitters, it made sense that the younger Lowe would be the odd man out of the first base/DH mix.  The same is true for O’Grady, acquired in a trade with the Reds back in November.

Arozarena is also a newcomer to Tampa Bay, having been acquired as part of the multi-player trade with the Cardinals in January that brought Jose Martinez to the Rays.  Martinez is the right-handed complement to Choi and Tsutsugo (though the Rays have been experimenting with Tsutsugo as a part-time third baseman and outfielder), while Arozarena will provide outfield depth at Triple-A.  Arozarena’s chances of making the Opening Day roster were lessened when the Rays picked up Manuel Margot from the Padres, though Arozarena’s ability to play all three outfield positions will very likely make him the first call-up should an injury or need arise in the Rays’ outfield.

The delayed start to the season should give Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow time to get fully healthy, which meant McKay and Richards were suddenly expendable.  Since the Rays still plan to occasionally spell their starters by using openers, Richards will probably get action either in a traditional starting role or as a bulk pitcher behind an opener — he served in both capacities after being acquired by the Marlins at last year’s trade deadline.  In fact, it could be easy to see a scenario where Richards and “Two Way McKay” are combined together in a piggyback outing, with the intriguing McKay (one of the game’s top prospects) also serving as an X-factor at the plate.

Rays Acquire Brian O’Grady, Designate Jesus Aguilar For Assignment

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The Rays have acquired outfielder/first baseman Brian O’Grady from the Reds, per club announcements. The Cincinnati organization will receive a player to be named and cash in the swap.

First baseman Jesus Aguilar was designated for assignment to create roster space. He had been projected to earn $2.5MM in arbitration.

O’Grady is a left-handed hitter who earned his first shot at the majors last year. He scuffled in limited opportunities but otherwise showed well in 2019. Over 489 Triple-A plate appearances, O’Grady slashed .280/.359/.550 with 28 home runs. The 27-year-old is optionable and affordable, making him a potential depth piece for Tampa Bay.

Aguilar had simply not performed as hoped when he was picked up in the middle of the 2019 season. He turned in a .261/.336/.424 batting line in 107 plate appearances — not enough to motivate the club to commit to his salary and continue to tie up a roster spot. Aguilar’s big 2018 season makes him an intriguing buy-low target for clubs interested in first base/DH help.

Reds Place Joey Votto On IL

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The Reds announced today they have placed first baseman Joey Votto on the 10-day injured list with a lower back strain. Brian O’Grady has been recalled to replace Votto on the 25-man roster.

So continues a shockingly difficult season for the former NL MVP. Votto’s .262/.352/.410 line is the first below-average offensive performance of his career. In an era where seemingly every hitter is a threat to launch 20 home runs, Votto’s power has taken a massive dip over the past two seasons, as he’s sitting on 12 homers for the second consecutive year. As recently as 2017, though, Votto hit 36 homers and was arguably the Senior Circuit’s best hitter.

While Votto still has elite plate discipline (albeit not quite to the levels he once did), that lack of impact has to be concerning to Cincinnati, which still owes him $107MM over the next four seasons. There’s reason to believe the 35 year-old can still be a valuable player (projections, at least, believe he’s still a quality hitter based on his track record), the end of that extension certainly doesn’t seem favorable for an organization finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel after a difficult decade.

O’Grady is a 27 year-old first baseman with five career MLB plate appearances, so he’s unsurprisingly not near the top of any Reds’ farm rankings. Nevertheless, he’s had a strong run at Triple-A the past year and a half.

Reds Place Derek Dietrich On IL, Select Brian O’Grady, Designate Blake Trahan

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The Reds announced a series of moves today, driven by ongoing shoulder inflammation for infielder Derek Dietrich. He’ll head to the 10-day injured list.

To fill the opening, the Cincinnati organization selected the contract of first baseman/outfielder Brian O’Grady. That necessitated a 40-man opening, which was created by designating infielder Blake Trahan for assignment.

It isn’t known how long the Redlegs expect to go without Dietrich, who has been in a cold spell for some time now. He remains a key piece for the team, particularly after Scooter Gennett was sent packing at the deadline.

In Dietrich’s steady, O’Grady will receive his first shot at the majors. The 27-year-old has appeared in exactly 100 games this year at Triple-A, slashing .277/.351/.562 and popping 27 long balls. That’s a big power outbreak for the former eighth-round draft pick, even after accounting for the wild offensive environment in the International League.

As for the 25-year-old Trahan, who received a cup of coffee last year, the bat just hasn’t come around. He’s carrying an ugly .230/.280/.324 line in 323 plate appearances at the highest level of the minors. The 2015 third-rounder has failed to produce at a league-average rate in the upper minors in prior seasons.

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