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Blue Jays Sign Carl Edwards Jr.

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The Blue Jays have signed reliever Carl Edwards Jr. to a minor league contract, per a report from Sportsnet. He has been assigned to Triple-A Buffalo.

Edwards is most well-known for his run with the Cubs. Once a well-regarded prospect in the Chicago system, he made his MLB debut late in 2015 and was an important part of the Cubs’ bullpen over the next few seasons. Despite persistent troubles with walks, Edwards was quite good at missing bats and preventing runs over his first few years. Between 2016-18, he worked to a 3.03 ERA/3.12 FIP across 154 1/3 relief innings.

He’s fallen on hard times since then, though. Edwards got off to a terrible start in 2019, and Chicago flipped him to the Padres for fellow reliever Brad Wieck at the trade deadline. Edwards couldn’t right the ship in San Diego and wound up non-tendered. The Mariners signed him that offseason in hopes of a rebound. To his credit, the righty got off to a strong start in Seattle but a flexor mass strain in his forearm ended his season after just 4 2/3 innings.

The Braves signed Edwards to a minor league deal over the winter. Atlanta selected him to the major league roster earlier this month but designated him for assignment after just one appearance, in which he allowed three runs on as many hits while recording a single out. Edwards cleared waivers and elected free agency.

Now, he’ll look to work his way back to the big leagues with Toronto. The Jays have dealt with plenty of bullpen injuries this season and are still without notables Rafael Dolis, Julian Merryweather and David Phelps (as well as presumptive closer Kirby Yates, who underwent Tommy John surgery before the regular season began). Despite the health woes, Toronto relievers have worked to a solid 2.99 ERA/3.76 SIERA this year.

Dodgers Acquire Yoshi Tsutsugo From Rays

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The Dodgers have acquired infielder Yoshi Tsutsugo from the Rays in exchange for cash considerations or a player to be named later.  Infielder Edwin Rios was moved to the 60-day injured list to create roster space for Tsutsugo.

The Rays designated Tsutsugo for assignment last Tuesday, and today’s trade closes the book on an overall disappointing 18-month tenure for Tsutsugo in Tampa Bay.  Signed to a two-year, $12MM free agent deal in the 2019-20 offseason, Tsutsugo hit .197/.314/.395 over 185 plate appearances last season, and had only two hits over 16 PA during Tampa’s postseason run.  The 29-year-old followed that rookie season up with a rough .167/.244/.218 slash line in 87 PA this season, which prompted the Rays to send Tsutsugo to the DFA wire.

Tsutsugo is still owed roughly $5.49MM of his original $7MM salary for the 2021 season, and according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter), the Dodgers will cover slightly more than $430K — the prorated share of the minimum salary.  This means the Rays will eat the roughly $5MM remaining of Tsutsugo’s salary, making his contract a fairly costly mistake considering the team’s low spending habts.

After years of big numbers with NPB’s Yokohama DeNA BayStars, Tsutsugo drew plenty of attention when he was posted by the BayStars in the winter of 2019-20.  The Dodgers weren’t one of the teams known to have interest in Tsutsugo’s services, but their interest could have been piqued given their current needs.

Tsutsugo has played third base, first base, and left field for Tampa Bay, so he fits the Dodgers’ preferred model as a multi-position player (the team’s signing of Albert Pujols notwithstanding).  While L.A. already has a number of left-handed hitting options, Tsutsugo is something of a more experienced option due to his time in Japan, even if he has relatively little time in Major League Baseball.  Tsutsugo could be seen as something of a straight replacement for Rios, another lefty bat with corner infield and corner outfield experience.  Rios will miss the remainder of the season due to surgery on his right shoulder.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/15/21

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The latest minor league moves from around baseball…

  • The Pirates outrighted Hunter Owen to Triple-A, the team announced.  The outfielder was designated for assignment earlier this week.  A 25th-round pick for the Pirates in the 2016 draft, Owen made his MLB debut this season, and is still looking for his first hit after five plate appearances over three games.
  • Right-hander Luis Madero cleared waivers and accepted his outright assignment to the Marlins’ Triple-A affiliate.  The Marlins designated Madero for assignment earlier this week, and he had the option of becoming a free agent since he had previously been outrighted during his career, back in February 2020 when he was a member of the Giants.  After signing a minor league contract with Miami in the offseason, Madero made his MLB debut by pitching three innings over two appearances this season.

Brewers Select Hoby Milner, Option Eric Lauer

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The Brewers have selected the contract of left-hander Hoby Milner, the team announced.  Milner will take the place of Eric Lauer on the active roster, as Lauer was optioned to Triple-A.

The move could essentially just be a way for Milwaukee to get a fresh arm in the bullpen, as Lauer threw 55 pitches over three innings in yesterday’s 6-3 loss to the Braves.  Lauer’s future also won’t be in the bullpen, as MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy notes that the team plans to stretch Lauer out as a starter since the Brew Crew will be adopting a six-man rotation for the upcoming stretch of the schedule.

Lauer has already made two starts for Milwaukee this season, to go along with two relief appearances.  The southpaw has a very solid 2.81 ERA/3.23 SIERA over 16 innings this season, as well as an above-average 24.6% strikeout rate and an outstanding 3.1% walk rate.  On the down side, Lauer has allowed five home runs over those 16 innings.

Milner signed a minors contract with the Brewers last winter and now looks to get some action in his fifth MLB season.  The lefty has a 4.53 ERA over 55 2/3 career innings with the Phillies, Rays, and Angels, with most of that experience coming in the form of 31 1/3 frames for Philadelphia in his 2017 rookie season.  Milner has struggled since that first year, despite doing a good job of limiting hard contact.

Rangers Select Hunter Wood, Designate Jack Kruger

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The Rangers announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Hunter Wood and designated catcher Jack Kruger for assignment. They also optioned lefty Wes Benjamin to Triple-A Round Rock.

Wood is now in line for his first major league action since 2019. The Rangers signed Wood to a minor league contract last offseason after he spent 2020 with the Cleveland organization, though he didn’t appear in the bigs. The 27-year-old has pitched to a solid 3.32 ERA/4.22 SIERA with a 21.6 percent strikeout rate and an 8.0 percent walk rate in 86 2/3 innings between the Rays and Indians.

Kruger joined the Rangers as a waiver claim from the Angels on May 9, but he’s back in limbo in less than a week. He didn’t even take an at-bat with the Rangers before they designated him. As a minor leaguer, the 26-year-old has topped out in Double-A ball, where he has hit .262/.309/.354 in 560 plate appearances.

Cubs Activate Ian Happ, Designate Ildemaro Vargas

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The Cubs have activated outfielder Ian Happ from the 10-day injured list and designated infielder Ildemaro Vargas for assignment, Russell Dorsey of the Chicago Sun-Times tweets.

Happ is returning after spending the minimum amount of time on the IL with a rib contusion. Before that, Happ got off to an uncharacteristically slow start with the bat, evidenced by a .167/.307/.250 line with two home runs in 109 plate appearances. Happ’s strikeout, groundball and fly ball rates have all trended in the wrong direction, which helps explain his poor production, though he has dealt with some bad fortune. The 26-year-old’s .245 batting average on balls in play is easily a career low, and he’s well above average in such Statcast categories as hard-hit percentage and average exit velocity.

This is the second time since the end of March that the Cubs have designated Vargas, who has appeared in nine of their games and taken 24 trips to the plate this season. The 29-year-old has batted .143/.250/.238 with no home runs.

Twins To Place Jake Cave On 60-Day IL, Select Rob Refsnyder

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The Twins will place outfielder Jake Cave on the 60-day injured list with a fracture in his back and select the contract of infielder/outfielder Rob Refsnyder, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

The 60-day placement means Cave won’t return until at least the middle of July, which is a blow to the Twins’ outfield depth. Cave has played all three outfield positions this year and has totaled the team’s second-most appearances in center field after starter Byron Buxton, who is on the injured list with a strained hip. Fellow outfielder Alex Kirilloff, meanwhile, has been out of commission for almost all of May with a sprained wrist, and Kyle Garlick is playing through a groin injury.

While Cave has offered defensive flexibility, his offensive production has left much to be desired dating back to last season. He was a valuable offensive contributor for the Twins from 2018-19, during which he combined for a .262/.329/.466 line with 21 home runs in 537 plate appearances. But Cave had trouble at the plate last year and has put up a career-worst .167/.239/.262 line with one long ball and 35 strikeouts in 93 PA this season.

Cave’s injury will lead to another major league opportunity for the 30-year-old Refsnyder, whom the Twins signed a minor league contract in the offseason after he appeared in 15 games with the Rangers in 2020. Refsnyder has only hit .217/.305/.297 with four home runs in 457 major league PA.

Mets Select Jake Hager, Designate Trevor Hildenberger

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The Mets have selected the contract of infielder Jake Hager and designated right-handed reliever Trevor Hildenberger for assignment, according to Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News. The team also optioned outfielder Khalil Lee to Triple-A Syracuse.

Hager was the 32nd overall pick of the Rays back in 2011, but he hasn’t played in the majors to this point. The 28-year-old has seen action in Triple-A ball in five seasons, including this one, and batted .243/.291/.373 with 22 home runs in 1,112 plate appearances at that level. He got off to a sizzling start in the minors this year en route to a promotion, slashing .405/.436/.703 with three home runs in 39 PA as a member of the Syracuse club.

Hildenberger, 30, joined the Mets in the offseason on a minor league contract. They promoted the former Twin in early April, but opposing offenses scored four runs off him on on three hits and three walks over 2 1/3 innings and two appearances. That continued a difficult run in the majors for Hildenberger, who has pitched to a 5.52 ERA in 133 2/3 frames. The Mets will have a week to trade, release or pass him through waivers.

Angels Acquire Hunter Strickland

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The Rays have traded right-handed reliever Hunter Strickland to the Angels, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. Tampa Bay will receive cash considerations or a player to be named later in return, per an announcement from the Angels.

The 32-year-old Strickland joined the Rays on a minor league contract over the winter, and he wound up holding his own during his short stint with the club after it promoted him in early April. Strickland bounced back from a rough two years divided among the Mariners, Nationals and Mets to log a meager 1.69 ERA (with a less spectacular 3.76 SIERA) across 16 innings and post a 24.2 percent strikeout rate against a 9.1 percent walk rate as a Ray.

Strickland will now return to California, where he spent the first five years of his career in San Francisco. Over 226 frames as a Giant from 2014-18, Strickland recorded a 2.91 ERA/3.80 SIERA with a 22.6 percent strikeout rate and an 8.4 percent walk rate. Production along those lines (or the type of numbers he put up as a Ray) would be welcome for the Angels, whose bullpen has struggled mightily during their 16-21 start. Angels relievers own both the majors’ fourth-worst ERA (5.32) and K-BB percentage (10.7).

Braves Sign Jonathan Lucroy

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The Braves have signed catcher Jonathan Lucroy to a minor league contract, according to David O’Brien and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Lucroy will report to Triple-A Gwinnett.

The 34-year-old Lucroy had been looking for a team since the Nationals designated him for assignment April 12, though he was choosy in selecting a club. Lucroy reportedly turned down multiple minor league offers in hopes of scoring a guaranteed deal, but that was a tough sell when considering how the former star’s career has gone since his 2010-16 heyday with the Brewers and Rangers.

Lucroy spent parts of 2017-19 with five different teams – the Rangers, Rockies, Athletics, Angels and Cubs – but didn’t experience much success outside of Colorado during that span. He combined to hit .248/.315/.350 with 18 home runs and minus-0.1 fWAR across 1,263 plate appearances in those three seasons, and his once-ballyhooed pitch-framing ability eroded at the same time. As a result, he has appeared in just six games since last year (one with the Red Sox and five with the Nationals).

Lucroy will now lend some depth to a Braves team in need of it behind the plate. Starter Travis d’Arnaud underwent surgery on a torn thumb ligament earlier this month and won’t return until at least July. Likewise, Alex Jackson has been out all month with a strained hamstring. And Tyler Flowers, whom the Braves re-signed to a minors pact May 6, decided to retire Friday. Atlanta is now down to William Contreras and Jeff Mathis as its top two options at the big league level.

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