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Bryan Holaday

Diamondbacks Sign Seven To Minor League Deals

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The Diamondbacks announced the signing of seven players to minor league deals: Bryan Holaday, Seth Frankoff (previously reported), Bradley Roney, Sam Moll, Drew Weeks, Christian Lopes, and Jamie Ritchie, per Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (via Twitter).

Out of this group, only Holaday, Frankoff and Moll have appeared in the majors. Holaday carries the most experience, having amassed 768 plate appearances with multiple teams (including 33 with the Orioles last season). The 33-year-old owns a .238/.283/.333 line with 10 home runs in the bigs. Moll, 29, has only appeared in MLB in one season – 2017, when he totaled 6 2/3 innings as a member of the Athletics. He has pitched to a much larger sample size of 131 innings in Triple-A and logged a 4.19 ERA.

Among the players here who haven’t reached the majors, Lopes earned the highest marks as a prospect, as Baseball America ranked the former seventh-round pick 23rd in the Blue Jays’ farm system in 2013. Lopes is now 28, though, and didn’t move beyond Triple-A ball with the Jays or the Rangers. He hit .272/.364/.426 with five HRs over 228 PA with the Rangers’ Triple-A team in 2019.

 

Orioles, Bryan Holaday Agree To Minor League Deal

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9:20am: The Orioles have announced the signing.

9:12am: The Orioles have agreed to a minor league pact with veteran catcher Bryan Holaday, Craig Mish of FNTSY Radio reports (via Twitter). The Lagardere Sports client will presumably head to Major League Spring Training as a non-roster invitee in hopes of landing a backup job in Baltimore.

Holaday, 32, spent the past two seasons in the Marlins organization and saw action at the MLB level in each campaign, hitting a combined .237/.297/.335 with five homers and 11 doubles in 295 trips to the plate. He threw out 34.9 percent of attempted thieves on the bases in his two years with Miami (22-for-63) and rated solidly in terms of pitch blocking, per Baseball Prospectus. After turning a corner in the framing department in 2018, his numbers backed up toward their (below-average) career norms in 2019.

At present, it seems likely that the Orioles will rely on Chance Sisco and Pedro Severino as their primary options behind the dish, but it’s possible that the club could want Sisco to log everyday at-bats in Triple-A Norfolk if he doesn’t show well in Spring Training.

Sisco, a second-round pick in 2013, has long rated as one of the Orioles’ best prospects (and one of baseball’s best catching prospects), but he’s yet to find much success in the Majors. Injuries limited him to a combined 394 plate appearances between Triple-A and the big leagues in 2019, which surely didn’t help his cause. He has one minor league option year remaining, so the O’s could still send the 24-year-old to Triple-A for refinement if they wish. Severino, on the other hand, is out of minor league options.

Elsewhere on the 40-man roster is 29-year-old Austin Wynns. He’s regarded as a solid defender but hasn’t hit much in the upper minors or in the Majors. Like Sisco, he has a minor league option remaining. Holaday will have to beat out both Sisco and Wynns to get a look out of camp. If not, he could head to Triple-A and give the organization an eight-year MLB veteran to provide depth in Norfolk.

Bryan Holaday Elects Free Agency

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The Marlins announced Friday that veteran catcher Bryan Holaday cleared waivers and has elected free agency in lieu of accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A New Orleans. He’ll be free to sign with any club this winter.

Holaday, 32 next month, has spent the past two seasons in the Marlins organization. The veteran backup took a backseat to young Jorge Alfaro in Miami this season but was productive when he got the call, hitting .278/.344/.435 in 129 plate appearances. That production is demonstrably better than Holaday’s typical output, however, as evidenced by his lifetime .241/.287/.340 line through 735 MLB plate appearances between Detroit, Texas, Boston and Miami.

Defensively, Holaday has been average or better in terms of controlling the running game throughout his MLB career, as his 30 percent caught-stealing rate checks in a bit north of the 28 percent league average over his Major League tenure. He typically draws above-average marks for his pitch-blocking skills but has long been regarded as a slightly below-average framer (positive marks in 357 innings with the Marlins in 2018 notwithstanding). Catching depth is seemingly always in demand throughout the league, so Holaday will have his share of interested teams, though he’ll likely have to settle for a minor league pact and an invite to MLB camp — be it with the Marlins or a new organization.

Marlins To Select Bryan Holaday

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2:08pm: Mish tweets that Wallach has been diagnosed with a concussion, which prompted Holaday’s return to the club. A 40-man roster move will still need to be made.

2:01pm: The Marlins will select the contract of veteran catcher Bryan Holaday prior to this weekend’s series against the Nationals, Craig Mish of SiriusXM reports (via Twitter). Miami has a full 40-man roster and will thus need to make a corresponding move.

There’s no known injury issue with either Jorge Alfaro or Chad Wallach at the moment, and Alfaro has already been listed in today’s lineup for the Marlins. Wallach has been reasonably productive in a limited sample, so it seems unlikely that he’d be optioned out in favor of a veteran like Holaday. In all likelihood, an injury or perhaps a trip to the bereavement list could be the reasoning behind the move, but the Miami organization has yet to make a formal announcement.

Holaday, 31, is no stranger to the Marlins organization, having appeared in 61 games for the Fish last season. He hit just .205/.261/.258 through 166 plate appearances in his time as a Marlin but has had a better showing so far in Triple-A: .247/.385/.387 with more walks (17) than strikeouts (12) in 118 plate appearances. Holaday has never been much of a threat at the plate, evidenced by a lifetime .234/.274/.320 slash in the Majors, but he’s a veteran of seven MLB campaigns who has a career 32 percent caught-stealing rate.

Bryan Holaday, Pedro Alvarez Opt Out Of Marlins Deals

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8:50pm: First baseman Pedro Alvarez has also opted out of his deal, per MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro, who adds that outfielder Harold Ramirez will not exercise his out clause. Both Holaday and Alvarez have 48 hours to decide whether to go to Triple-A New Orleans, Frisaro notes. Alvarez has raked this spring with a .324/.400/.647 line in 34 at-bats, but the former star prospect hasn’t been much better than a league-average hitter across 3,321 major league PAs with the Pirates and Orioles. The 32-year-old struggled mightily across 127 PAs in Baltimore last season, when he hit a meager .180/.283/.414.

5:17pm: The Marlins are releasing catcher Bryan Holaday, who exercised the opt-out in his minor league contract, per Craig Mish of SiriusXM.

Holaday spent the 2018 campaign in Miami serving as the primary backup to star J.T. Realmuto, whom the team traded to the Phillies in the offseason. With Realmuto out of the picture, Holaday has been competing with Chad Wallach to work as a reserve behind Jorge Alfaro this season. But it appears Wallach has won the battle over Holaday, who hit .276/.364/.310 in 29 at-bats during spring training. That was an improvement over the .205/.261/.258 line Holaday authored over 166 PAs last year with the Marlins.

Offensive issues have been the norm for the 31-year-old Holaday, a .234/.274/.320 hitter in 606 PAs, though he has held his own at times behind the plate. Just last year, Holaday threw out a league-leading 45 percent of would-be base stealers (17 of 38) and, per Baseball Prospectus, offered above-average marks as a pitch framer and blocker.

Marlins Re-Sign Bryan Holaday To Minor League Deal

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The Marlins have agreed to re-sign veteran catcher Bryan Holaday to a minor league contract, tweets Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald. He’ll be invited to Major League Spring Training and again compete for a roster spot.

Holaday, 31, spent the 2018 season as the primary backup to star catcher (and trade candidate) J.T. Realmuto. The well-traveled veteran appeared in 61 games for Miami and tallied 166 plate appearances, though he struggled considerably, hitting just .205/.261/.258 in that time.

Holaday has long struggled to get on base, but his defensive contributions in 2018 were readily apparent. He threw out a league-leading 45 percent of would-be base thieves (17-for-38) and, per Baseball Prospectus, delivered above-average marks in terms of both pitch framing and blocking.

Chad Wallach is the only catcher other than Realmuto who is presently on the Marlins’ roster, so they’ll need some additional depth whether Realmuto is traded or retained. In the event of a trade, it’s unlikely that Holaday would be in line for regular work in Miami — he’s never topped 171 PAs in a big league season — but he’ll likely be in the race for a roster spot regardless of how Miami’s offseason shakes out.

Marlins Outright Bryan Holaday, Drew Rucinski, Miguel Del Pozo

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Marlins’ backup catcher Bryan Holaday and reliever Drew Rucinski have been outrighted to Triple-A New Orleans, per the Sun Sentinel’s Wells Dusenbury. Rucinski has elected free agency.

The 30-year-old Holaday has appeared in the big leagues with the Tigers, Rangers, Red Sox, and Marlins since 2012. The veteran backstop has mostly been an emergency catching option, highlighted by an ALDS appearance for the 2014 Tigers, catching four innings to close out a Game 3 loss to Baltimore. That season was also his most prolific in the majors, appearing in 62 games for Detroit. This season, however, was a close second: 166 PA across 61 games, slashing .205/.261/.258 for the fish.

The 29-year-old Rucinski was serviceable in 32 appearances out of the Marlins’ bullpen in 2018 (0.1 fWAR, -0.6 rWAR), but there’s little to indicate he’ll be much more than an extra arm moving forward. Relying on a 6-pitch mix, Rucinski leans heavily on his cutter, which averaged 90.1 mph, per statcast. The right-hander finished 4-2 in 35.1 innings with a 4.33 ERA (4.76 xFIP).

Left-handed pitcher Miguel Del Pozo was also outrighted today, the team announced (via Twitter). Del Pozo spent 2018 in Double-A, but the Marlins have given themselves some extra breathing room, creating nine open spots on their 40-man roster with the removal of Holaday, Rucinski, and Del Pozo.

Marlins Designate Austin Nola For Assignment

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The Marlins have designated catcher/infielder Austin Nola for assignment and placed Rule 5 right-hander Brett Graves on the 60-day disabled list, tweets MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro. The Miami Herald’s Clark Spencer adds that moves clear 40-man spots for the addition of veteran catcher Bryan Holaday, infielder Yadiel Rivera and right-hander Jacob Turner, each of whom has made the Opening Day roster.

Nola, the 28-year-old brother of Philies right-hander Aaron Nola, has yet to reach the big league level after coming off the draft board as a fifth-round selection of the Marlins back in 2012. While he began his pro career playing shortstop, the elder Nola eventually gathered a fair bit of experience at second base and third base before making the even larger jump to catcher last season in the upper minors. To his credit, Nola halted 27 of 65 stolen base attempts against him (42 percent).

Versatility in the field aside, Nola simply hasn’t produced much at the plate as a pro. He’s a career .243/.330/.320 hitter in parts of six minor league seasons, including a .259/.320/.353 slash in 750 plate appearances at the Triple-A level.

Notable Roster Decisions: Wednesday

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The latest noteworthy roster decisions across Major League Baseball as Opening Day draws ever closer…

  • The Brewers announced that they’ve selected the contract of Ji-Man Choi, who’ll make their Opening Day roster. (Sung Min Kim of Fangraphs and River Ave. Blues first tweeted that Choi had made the roster.) That means both Choi and the out-of-options Jesus Aguilar will make a roster which also includes first base options Eric Thames and Ryan Braun. However, as Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel points out (via Twitter), the composition is likely to change quickly — possibly as soon as Friday. Choi has an option remaining, Haudricourt notes. More interestingly, Haudricourt adds that the Brew Crew is pursuing an external pitching addition, and if said move goes through, then Choi could quickly be optioned to Colorado Springs to clear a 25-man roster spot. Also of particular note for the Brewers is that Wade Miley was reassigned to minor league camp and won’t be making the club.

Earlier Decisions & Moves

  • The White Sox have selected the contract of left-hander Hector Santiago, giving them a full 40-man roster, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times was among those to report on Twitter. In other moves, the club sent southpaw Carlos Rodon (left shoulder rehabilitation) and catcher Kevan Smith (left ankle sprain) to the 10-day disabled list, retroactive to March 26. Santiago will now officially begin his second major league stint as a member of the White Sox, with whom he started his career in 2011 and stayed with through 2013. Santiago was successful during that span, but his career has trended downward lately – particularly last season as a Twin – which prevented him from landing a major league contract over the winter. The minors deal the 30-year-old signed with Chicago includes a $2MM salary in the bigs, which he’s now in position to earn. Santiago’s a longtime starter, but he’ll open 2018 in the Sox’s bullpen.
  • The Dodgers have optioned outfielder Andrew Toles, as Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times reports (Twitter link). Toles’ demotion means Joc Pederson is likely to be the Dodgers’ Opening Day left fielder, DiGiovanna notes. Toles had been part of a crowded corner outfield battle during spring action alongside Pederson, Matt Kemp, Enrique Hernandez, Alex Verdugo and the just-jettisoned Trayce Thompson. The fact that Toles had options remaining – unlike the expensive, apparently immovable Kemp – probably didn’t do him any favors in his bid to make the Dodgers. The 25-year-old Toles has been successful in Los Angeles since debuting in 2016, having batted .294/.341/.483 with 2.1 fWAR n 217 plate appearances. He missed all but 31 games last season, though, after suffering a torn ACL in May.
  • Outfielders Gregor Blanco and Gorkys Hernandez will open the season with the Giants, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle writes. The Giants signed Blanco, 34, to a minors pact back in January. Per that deal, he’ll earn a $1MM salary in the majors and have a chance at $500K in incentives in San Francisco, with which he previously played from 2012-16 and won a pair of World Series. Hernandez is out of options, so he was also in a do-or-die position this spring. The 30-year-old rose to the challenge, though he’ll surely need to improve on last season’s showing (.255/.327/.326 line with no home runs in 348 PAs) to keep his roster spot for all of 2018.
  • Outfielder Matt Szczur and righty Jordan Lyles will be part of the Padres’ Opening Day roster, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com tweets. The out-of-options Szczur, 28, will continue to provide outfield depth in San Diego after coming over in a trade with the Cubs last summer. Lyles, meanwhile, spent a bit of time with the Padres in 2017 and then re-signed on a major league contract in the offseason. The deal also features a club option for 2019 for Lyles, who’ll begin the year in the Friars’ bullpen. Having pitched to a 5.43 ERA/4.55 FIP across 681 combined innings (182 appearances, 107 starts) with the Astros, Rockies and Padres, Lyles hasn’t lived up to the billing he had as a prospect. He’s still just 27, however.
  • Catchers A.J. Ellis and Raffy Lopez will also be on the Padres’ roster, the team announced. Those two and starter Austin Hedges will give the Padres three backstops on their 25-man roster. Ellis, an established veteran backup, is now set to make $1.25MM after signing a minor league deal in the offseason. The 30-year-old Lopez, who brings just 83 PAs of MLB experience, also signed a minors pact over the winter.
  • The Marlins will add catcher Bryan Holaday to their 40- and 25-man rosters, per Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. Holaday, 30, signed a minor league deal with the Marlins in the offseason. He’ll be one of three catchers on their season-opening roster, joining Tomas Telis (out of options) and Chad Wallach, son of bench coach Tim Wallach. It’s not an ideal setup for Miami, which won’t have standout starter J.T. Realmuto at the outset of the season. Realmuto is on the DL with a bone bruise.
  • The Twins will roster outfielder Ryan LaMarre to open the year, Phil Miller of the Star Tribune tweets. LaMarre, an offseason minor league signee of the Twins, spent last year with the Triple-A affiliates of the Angels and Athletics, combining for a meager .628 OPS. He’s a lifetime .268/.335/.388 hitter at the Triple-A level (954 PAs) who has seen very brief MLB action with the Reds, Red Sox and A’s.
  • The Tigers announced that they’ve selected infielder Niko Goodrum’s contract, which puts their 40-man roster at capacity. Goodrum, who signed a minors deal with Detroit in November, spent 2010-17 with the Minnesota organization and batted .250/.333/.379 in 2,796 minor league PAs. He saw minimal big league action with the club (18 PAs, all of which came last season).
  • The Mariners made the DL placements of Erasmo Ramirez, Ben Gamel and David Phelps official, and they also announced that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Casey Lawrence, who will return to the team after spending parts of the 2017 campaign on Seattle’s big league roster. The M’s also optioned infielder/outfielder Taylor Motter to Triple-A Tacoma.

Marlins Place J.T. Realmuto, Dan Straily, J.T. Riddle On Disabled List

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TUESDAY: Realmuto and Riddle have indeed been placed on the DL, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports (Twitter links).  Realmuto has a bone bruise, though the problem doesn’t sound too serious, as Frisaro said he is just “not being rushed” to be ready for Opening Day.

SATURDAY: The Marlins have placed right-handed starter Dan Straily on the 10-day disabled list, according to a report from Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald. In a separate tweet, Spencer notes that catcher J.T. Realmuto and shortstop J.T. Riddle are also likely to begin the season on the DL.

Straily was recently diagnosed with a “slight elbow strain” after experiencing some elbow inflammation.While Straily has told reporters that he doesn’t feel any pain (h/t Joe Frisaro of MLB.com), he’ll reportedly refrain from throwing for the time being. His early-season absence is terrible news for an already-thin Marlins rotation that’s now projected to feature Jose Urena as its opening day starter. Roster Resource assumes that non-roster invite Jacob Turner and Rule 5 pick Elieser Hernandez will be forced into rotation roles at the season’s outset. The Marlins recently optioned offseason acquisition Sandy Alcantara to Triple-A, but it’s fair to think he could be next in line if any of the club’s starting five struggle out of the gates or suffer an injury.

Beyond rotation implications, Straily’s elbow troubles are of serious concern to a Marlins club that held onto him amidst an offseason fire sale of its top players. With Miami clearly beginning a full-scale rebuild, Straily was considered one of the club’s top remaining trade assets. Whether or not the club had any thoughts about trading him prior to this year’s deadline, a serious injury to his elbow would figure to take that option off the table.

Speaking of injured trade candidates, Realmuto hasn’t played since suffering a back contusion on March 11th. The Marlins catcher collided with Gleyber Torres on a pickoff play in the fourth inning of a Grapefruit League game. The injury hasn’t been described as serious in any outlets, so it’s certainly feasible that the club might simply be taking a cautious path with their most valuable asset. Still, a report that he’s likely to go on the DL means that any remaining chance him being traded prior to the season has reduced to near zero.

If Realmuto does end up going on the DL, non-roster invite Bryan Holaday could be called upon to fill in alongside usual backup Tomas Telis. Chad Wallach is already on the 40-man roster after being claimed from the Reds in November, so he presents another option for the Fish.

As for Riddle, he’s yet to play in a game this spring. Joe Frisaro of MLB.com recently reported that he was “a little sore” after ramping up throwing activity. Riddle underwent season-ending surgery last August after suffering a slap-tear in his left shoulder, but figured to be a part of the Marlins’ opening day roster. The odds of that are beginning to look grim. Reserve infield options for the club are few and far between, with non-roster invite Peter Mooney presenting the best option at present.

 

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