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Angels Outright Gerardo Reyes

By Leo Morgenstern | September 18, 2023 at 7:23pm CDT

The Angels have sent right-handed pitcher Gerardo Reyes outright to the Triple-A Salt Lake Bees. This is the second career outright for Reyes, giving him the option to reject the assignment in favor of free agency, although it is unclear if he plans to do so. With only six games remaining on the Triple-A schedule, he might prefer to play out the rest of the year, hoping to get in one or two more games before electing minor league free agency in the offseason.

Reyes has been in the Angels organization since August 2020. He appeared in two games for the big league club in 2022 and eight this season, posting a 6.94 ERA across a total of 11 2/3 innings pitched. Unfortunately for the 30-year-old, he didn’t look much better in the minors this year, pitching 36 innings and giving up 25 earned runs. His high strikeout rate is impressive, but he walks far too many batters and has had trouble keeping the ball in the yard. The righty was recalled and then optioned five times this year – the maximum number – before he was designated for assignment on September 14.

Still just 30 years old with a fastball in the 96-97 mph range, Reyes should have interested suitors once he elects free agency, whenever that may be. Prior to his time with the Angels, he spent time in the Rays and Padres organizations.

Angels Reinstate Jo Adell, Place Kyren Paris On 60-Day IL

By Leo Morgenstern | September 18, 2023 at 6:29pm CDT

The Angels have reinstated outfielder Jo Adell from the 60-day injured list, the team announced. Utility player Kyren Paris has been placed on the 60-day IL himself, freeing up space on both the active and 40-man rosters. In other news, the Angels have optioned Jordyn Adams and recalled Michael Stefanic from Triple-A.

Adell had been on the IL with an oblique strain since the All-Star break. After a particularly disappointing 2022 season, the former top prospect spent the first half of the 2023 campaign at Triple-A, where he posted a .956 OPS and a 121 wRC+. He earned the call back to the big leagues in early July following Mike Trout’s hamate fracture, but he only managed to play four games before landing on the IL himself. With 12 games left on the schedule, he will have a brief opportunity to impress the Angels brass before the offseason.

Paris felt soreness in his left thumb ahead of Sunday’s matchup against the Tigers, and it has since been diagnosed as a torn ligament. With so little time remaining in the season, his placement on the 60-day IL is hardly more than a formality; the Angels will have to add him back to the 40-man roster during the offseason.

However, the season-ending injury comes as particularly disappointing news for Paris, who was enjoying his first taste of big league action at just 21 years old. Selected out of high school in the second round of the 2019 draft, he has quickly risen through the ranks in the Angels system. After a strong 2023 campaign at Double-A with the Rocket City Trash Pandas, he bypassed Triple-A and earned a major league call-up when rosters expanded on September 1. While the youngster struggled to adjust to big league pitching (he slashed .100/.200/.100 in 15 games), he showed off his versatility across the diamond, taking reps at shortstop, second base, and center field. Paris currently ranks as the no. 5 prospect in the organization, per MLB Pipeline. He will retain his prospect status next season.

Adams, the Angels no. 15 prospect according MLB Pipeline, has appeared in 17 games at the MLB level, slashing .128/.125/.128 in 40 trips to the plate. He will be replaced on the active roster by Stefanic, who has been on fire this season at Triple-A, posting a .930 OPS and a 139 wRC+. With Adell returning and Paris headed to the IL, it’s no surprise the Angels have swapped out Adams, an outfielder, for Stefanic, an infielder.

Twins Designate Jordan Luplow For Assignment

By Leo Morgenstern | September 18, 2023 at 5:04pm CDT

The Twins have reinstated center fielder Michael A. Taylor from the 10-day injured list, the team announced. To open up a spot on the 28-man roster, outfielder Jordan Luplow has been designated for assignment.

Taylor had been on the IL with a hamstring strain since September 3. Willi Castro covered center in his stead, with Andrew Stevenson making the occasional start (in addition to some late-game appearances as a defensive replacement). Castro has hit well over the last two weeks, posting an .827 OPS in 56 trips to the plate, and Stevenson boasts a plus glove, but the Twins will be happy to have their regular center fielder back in the lineup. Not only is Taylor a Gold Glove winner, but he is enjoying his best offensive campaign in years. The 32-year-old has an OPS above .700 for the first time since 2017, and his 99 wRC+ is just shy of league average. The righty was hitting especially well before his hamstring injury took him down, slashing .257/.318/.574 with 10 home runs since the All-Star break.

Meanwhile, Luplow was also hitting well with the Twins, so his DFA comes as a bit of a surprise. In 26 games, he had a .751 OPS and a 111 wRC+, with a particularly impressive 13.2% walk rate. However, nearly all of his production came against left-handed pitching. Facing southpaws, he was rocking a .927 OPS, while against righties that number was a meager .473. It’s understandable why Minnesota did not want to guarantee a roster spot to a player with such drastic splits, especially with the switch-hitting Castro also on the roster. Still, the fact that the Twins chose to keep Stevenson instead of Luplow suggests they’re prioritizing defense over offense on their bench.

This is the third DFA of the season for Luplow, who began the campaign with Atlanta. He was DFA’d by the Braves and claimed off waivers by the Blue Jays in April. The 29-year-old played only seven games for the big league team in Toronto, spending most of his time in the organization at Triple-A. He was DFA’d again in August and claimed by the Twins, with whom he played 26 games at the MLB level.

With the trade deadline long since passed, the Twins will have to put Luplow on waivers in the coming days. If he is claimed, he would not be eligible to join his new team’s postseason roster, but he could help a contending team in need of a right-handed bat over the final two weeks of the season. The team that claimed him would only have to pay the remaining portion of his $1.4MM salary – approximately $104K. If he clears waivers, Luplow will have the option to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency, although he is just shy of the five years of service time required to reject the assignment without forfeiting the remainder of his guaranteed salary.

Reds Designate Hunter Renfroe For Assignment

By Darragh McDonald | September 18, 2023 at 2:25pm CDT

The Reds announced that they have reinstated outfielder Stuart Fairchild from the COVID-19 injured list with outfielder Hunter Renfroe designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

Renfroe, 31, joined the Reds just over two weeks ago. He began the year with the Angels, who went for it at the deadline but then fell out of contention in August. Since they no longer had the ability to trade anyone, they put six players on waivers in an attempt to save some money and dip under the luxury tax. Renfroe was one of those players, allowing the Reds to grab him for nothing other than taking on the remainder of his salary. They also grabbed Harrison Bader from the Yankees in a similar scenario, allowing them to add two outfielders for the stretch run without giving up any talent in return.

Unfortunately, Renfroe has struggled immensely since coming to Cincinnati, hitting .128/.227/.205. It’s still a surprise to see the club move on so quickly. Those poor results have come in a small sample of just 44 plate appearances, a time in which he has a .154 batting average on balls in play that would be bound for regression. Nonetheless, it seems the club has decided to quickly cut bait.

Earlier today, the Reds placed Bader on the injured list, meaning they are now without either of their waiver pickups from a few weeks ago. The club was willing to add roughly $2.76MM to their payroll in order to get those two outfielders for the final month of the schedule but will now be proceeding without either of them, at least until Bader can get healthy again.

With the trade deadline having passed, the Reds will put Renfroe on waivers in the coming days. Whether or not he will garner any interest will be an interesting situation, as it’s an unusual time of year for such a player to be on the wire. With the season winding down and Renfroe an impending free agent, only a contending club would have any incentive to put in a claim. But even for a contender, Renfroe wouldn’t be postseason eligible since it’s after the September 1 cutoff. He still has about $893K left on his $11.9MM salary, with any claiming club having to take that on just to add Renfroe for the less than two weeks left in the regular season. If he were to clear, he has more than enough service time to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency while retaining what’s left of his salary.

Recent struggles aside, Renfroe’s career offensive production is notable. Dating back to his 2016 debut with the Padres, he has hit 177 home runs and has slashed .239/.300/.478 for a wRC+ of 106. However, his defense is considered subpar, which subtracts some of the value of his bat. Despite that power potential, his glovework and poor plate discipline have capped his value and turned him into a journeyman in recent years. After sticking with the Padres through 2019, he’s since been traded to the Rays, Red Sox, Brewers and Angels, before landing with the Reds via waivers.

Guardians Place Tanner Bibee On Injured List

By Darragh McDonald | September 18, 2023 at 1:00pm CDT

The Guardians have placed right-hander Tanner Bibee on the 15-day injured list due to right hip inflammation, per Zack Meisel of The Athletic. Right-hander James Karinchak has been recalled in a corresponding move. With only two weeks remaining on the schedule, this move brings Bibee’s season to an end.

The Guards came into 2023 with their sights set on contention after winning the Central last year, but it seems they will ultimately fall short of that goal, currently seven games back of the Twins in the division and further out in the Wild Card picture. A significant issue for the club’s disappointing season has been the starting rotation. Shane Bieber, Triston McKenzie and Cal Quantrill all missed significant time due to injuries, while other pitchers struggled to fill the void.

The club fell in the standings and seemed to wave a white flag when they traded Aaron Civale to the Rays at the deadline. But they hovered close enough to contention in August that they grabbed Lucas Giolito off waivers from the Angels to try to mount a late-season charge that hasn’t really come to fruition.

The club was forced to turn to rookies like Bibee, Gavin Williams and Logan Allen in order to fill the void earlier in the year. Bibee has been the relative workhorse of the staff, with his 25 starts and 142 innings pitched both leading the club amid all the turmoil. It was a very successful first season for him, as he posted a 2.98 earned run average in that time, striking out 24.1% of opponents while limiting walks to a 7.7% clip.

Since he’s going to miss the remainder of the year, those stats will now go down as the totality of his work for the season. The Guardians should now be able to go into the winter with their 2024 rotation picture looking strong, at least on paper. Bieber and McKenzie are both currently on rehab assignments and will hopefully have better injury luck next year. McKenzie will qualify for arbitration this winter while Bieber is set for his final arb year. Bieber has been speculated as a trade candidate since the Guards frequently trade away pitchers as they get more expensive and closer to free agency, but his value is at a low ebb due to his health concerns and diminished results this year. He’ll also be making a significant salary, due a raise on this year’s $10.01MM figure.

But alongside those two and Quantrill, who is also arb eligible, the Guards should be encouraged by the development of their rookies. In addition to Bibee’s aforementioned results, Allen posted a 3.60 ERA over 23 starts while Williams has a 3.29 ERA in his 16 outings. That gives them six viable starters in next year’s mix.

Without Bibee, the Guards may need another starter to slot into the rotation for the final two weeks alongside Williams, Allen, Giolito and Quantrill. As mentioned, Bieber and McKenzie are on rehab assignments and could be reinstated. Joey Cantillo, Hunter Gaddis and Cody Morris are also on the 40-man and in Triple-A, though Morris has been pitching shorter stints out of the bullpen lately.

Reds Place Harrison Bader On IL, Select Connor Phillips

By Darragh McDonald | September 18, 2023 at 11:59am CDT

The Reds announced a series of roster moves today, with left-hander Alex Young reinstated from the COVID-19 injured list and right-hander Connor Phillips selected to the roster. In corresponding moves, outfielder Harrison Bader was placed on the 10-day injured list with a right groin strain while righty Carson Spiers was optioned to Triple-A. To open a 40-man spot for Phillips, righty Graham Ashcraft was transferred to the 60-day injured list.

It’s unclear when or how Bader sustained his injury. He started yesterday’s game and made three trips to the plate and was replaced in the seventh inning. TJ Friedl batted for left fielder Nick Senzel that inning and then took over in center, with Will Benson taking Bader’s spot in the order and taking over in left. In addition to the unknowns of when the issue cropped up, the severity isn’t clear either. But with just two weeks left in the season, it’s possible Bader’s season is in jeopardy.

Regardless, it’s an unfortunate blow for the Reds and Bader personally. The club claimed him off waivers from the Yankees at the end of August, adding about $783K in salary to their books just have one month of his services. He hasn’t been having a good year at the plate, now hitting just .232/.274/.348 between the two clubs, but still provides value thanks to his speed and defense. He has 20 stolen bases on the year, despite playing just 98 games, while continuing to get great reviews for his glovework in the outfield.

The Reds will now proceed without Bader for at least the next 10 days, with Friedl likely taking on most of the center field playing time as Benson, Senzel, Nick Martini and Hunter Renfroe share the corners. The club is sitting on a record of 78-73, bunched into an extremely tight National League Wild Card race that seems destined to come down to the wire.

Bader is an impending free agent and will head into the open market at an inopportune time, given his slumping offensive production and mounting injury concerns. He hit .258/.327/.457 over 2020 and 2021 for a wRC+ of 110 but slipped to .250/.294/.356 and a wRC+ of 85 last year, while his aforementioned performance this year amounts to a wRC+ of just 70.

Meanwhile, he’s made trips to the IL over the past three years due to a right rib hairline fracture, right foot plantar fasciitis, a left oblique strain, a right hamstring strain and now this groin strain. He was only able to play 103 games in 2021, 86 last year and 98 so far this year. If he heals up and the Reds make the postseason, perhaps he has time to change the narrative. But for now, it seems he will be trying to market himself at a time when prospective clubs will have various concerns about his long-term projections.

Phillips, 22, came up to the big leagues earlier this month as a COVID replacement. He made two starts with an earned run average of 8.31 before being returned to the minors and has now had his contract selected in the more traditional fashion. In 105 innings in the minors this year, he has a 3.86 ERA, striking out 33.3% of opponents but also walking 12.3%. He’ll jump into a Cincinnati rotation that has been beset by various injuries this year, with each of Ashcraft, Justin Dunn, Vladimir Gutierrez, Nick Lodolo and Connor Overton currently on the 60-day IL. That leaves them with Hunter Greene, Andrew Abbott, Brandon Williamson, Ben Lively and Phillips in the rotation as they make their final postseason push.

As for Ashcraft, it was reported over the weekend that he will require season-ending toe surgery, making this transfer an inevitable formality.

Royals Select Tyler Cropley

By Darragh McDonald | September 18, 2023 at 11:30am CDT

11:30am: Quatraro tells Anne Rogers of MLB.com that further testing revealed Perez does indeed have a mild concussion.

10:25am: The Royals announced that they have selected the contract of catcher Tyler Cropley. He will take the active roster spot of Salvador Perez, who has been placed on the seven-day concussion list, retroactive to September 17. To open a spot on the 40-man, catcher Freddy Fermin was transferred to the 60-day injured list.

Perez departed Saturday’s game after being struck in the mask by a foul ball. The Royals later announced that he had avoided a concussion, with manager Matt Quatraro saying that the backstop “got his bell rung a little bit” but felt fine after the game. It now seems that either the situation has changed or the club is merely deciding to be cautious in the late stages of a lost season.

The club will now be without its two primary catchers from this season, at least for a few games, as Fermin suffered a fracture of his right middle finger earlier this month. He underwent surgery last week and is done for the season, making his transfer to the 60-day injured list an expected formality.

With Perez and Fermin both unavailable, Cropley will get back to the majors. He was briefly selected to the club’s roster earlier this month when Fermin suffered his injury but he was designated for assignment a few days later, without getting into a game, when Logan Porter was promoted. He cleared waivers and was outrighted, allowing him to rejoin the roster today. At least for the time being, it seems as though Porter and Cropley will be sharing the catching duties.

Aside from that brief time on the big league roster, Cropley has split his time between Double-A and Triple-A this year. He has walked in 11.5% of his plate appearances and hit a combined .233/.329/.367 for a wRC+ of 87. He’ll make his major league debut as soon as he is put into a game.

Braves Select Lucas Luetge, Designate Dereck Rodríguez For Assignment

By Darragh McDonald | September 18, 2023 at 11:00am CDT

The Braves announced that they have selected the contract of left-hander Lucas Luetge, with right-hander Dereck Rodríguez designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

Luetge, 36, was acquired from the Yankees in an offseason trade but hasn’t secured a firm place in Atlanta. He has struggled in brief looks at the major league level, with an earned run average of 8.49 in 11 outings. That has come in sporadic fashion, as he was twice been designated for assignment and passed through waivers, with today being the second time he’s been added back to the roster.

That’s a very small sample and his work outside of that has been much better. He has a 3.91 ERA in 23 innings at the Triple-A level this year and he also posted a 2.71 ERA for the Yanks at the major league level across 2021 and 2022, tossing 129 2/3 innings in that time. He’ll give the club a third left-handed option in the bullpen, alongside A.J. Minter and Brad Hand.

Rodríguez, 31, was selected to the club’s roster just yesterday and was immediately thrust into action. Charlie Morton started the game against the Marlins and didn’t have his best outing, allowing six earned runs over 4 2/3 innings. Rodriguez was put into the game and absorbed two innings, but allowed eight earned runs in that time while throwing 54 pitches. In order to save the bullpen, the club had infielder Nicky Lopez throw an inning and a third before the game ended with a 16-2 score.

Rodríguez will now be placed on waivers in the coming days, the third time for him this year. He was signed by the Twins to a minor league deal in the offseason, getting selected to the big league club in May. After just one appearances, he was claimed off waivers by Atlanta, who mostly kept him on optional assignment. He made one appearance for them in May and another in July, getting designated for assignment after the latter. After rejoining the club yesterday and getting shelled, he has an ERA of 15.19 in the majors this year, along with a 5.91 ERA in the minors.

NL Notes: Fried, Anderson, Braves, McGough, Wiemer

By Mark Polishuk | September 17, 2023 at 10:53pm CDT

Max Fried’s next start is being pushed back, as the Braves southpaw won’t next pitch until sometime during Atlanta’s upcoming series with the Nationals that starts on Thursday. In Fried’s last outing on September 12, he developed a hot spot on his finger, and manager Brian Snitker told reporters (including Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) that the club was being cautious to prevent Fried from developing a blister. With the NL East clinched, the Braves naturally want to make sure their roster is healthy and set for the playoffs, especially a front-of-the-rotation arm like Fried.

Nick Anderson’s participation on a postseason roster has yet to be determined, as the righty has missed over two months due to a shoulder strain. Anderson will start a Triple-A rehab assignment on Tuesday, but as Toscano notes, the reliever won’t have a lot of time to ramp up since the Triple-A season ends next weekend. Atlanta will get some extra time to decide on Anderson, Jesse Chavez (also on a rehab assignment) and other players on the borderline of its roster due to the first-round bye in the playoffs, and the pitching mix figures to get particular attention. The Braves’ hurlers have been quite good for most of the season, but have a collective 5.60 ERA since August 31 — the fifth-highest in baseball in that span.

A’s Select Joe Boyle

By Nick Deeds | September 17, 2023 at 12:53pm CDT

The A’s selected the contract of right-hander Joe Boyle this afternoon, per a team announcement. In corresponding moves, right-hander Freddy Tarnok was transferred to the 60-day injured list while lefty Sean Newcomb was placed on the 15-day injured list with a strained left knee.

Boyle, who celebrated his 24th birthday last month, came over from the Reds as the return in the Sam Moll trade earlier this summer. Standing a massive 6’7” and weighing in at 240 pounds, Boyle has shown an impressive power arsenal with a triple-digit fastball and strong breaking stuff that has allowed him to strikeout a whopping 35.4% of batters faced as a professional. Unfortunately, that strong repertoire comes with little in terms of command, as the big righty has posted walk rates of 10% or higher at every full-season league he’s appeared in since being drafted by the Reds in the fifth round of the 2020 draft.

Boyle is now slated to get a chance to show off his big time stuff at the big league level, as he’ll start today’s game against the Padres. Boyle’s posted a solid 3.84 ERA across 25 starts split between the Double-A and Triple-A levels this season. That’s a particularly noteworthy feat considering he’s posted an ERA of just 2.25 in three starts at the Triple-A level with the A’s, who play in infamously inflated offensive environment of the Pacific Coast League.

Making room for Boyle on the active roster is Newcomb, who pitched quite well in a swing role for the A’s this season. Across 15 innings of work (seven appearances), Newcomb posted a 3.00 ERA with a 27.9% strikeout rate, though his whopping 14.8% walk rate indicates that the control issues that have dogged him ever since he made his big league debut with the Braves back in 2017 haven’t gone away. As for Tarnok, the right-hander underwent season-ending hip surgery toward the end of August, making today’s transfer to the 60-day IL nothing more than a formality.

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