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Cheslor Cuthbert

White Sox Ian Hamilton Out With Shoulder Soreness

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The Chicago White Sox have made a number of roster moves. Reliever Ian Hamilton has been placed on the injured list with shoulder soreness, while Leury Garcia moves to the 45-day IL. Bernardo Flores and Cheslor Cuthbert are getting the call to join the major-league team, per The Athletic’s James Fegan (via Twitter).

Garcia held a significant role in the early going for the Southsiders, but he is out until October with a torn ligament in his thumb. He started the year at second before sliding to short to cover for Tim Anderson’s IL stint. Across 16 games, the veteran Garcia held the line with a triple slash of .271/.317/.441.

Hamilton, 25, projects for a high-leverage role in the Chicago bullpen at some point in the future, but he’ll have to stay healthy first. In four appearances this season, he allowed a pair of runs across 4 innings, though he walked 5 in that span. Hamilton had an exceptionally rough 2019, first injuring his shoulder in a car accident in March, and later taking a line drive to the jaw that ended his season in June. Listed by MLB.com as Chicago’s #18-ranked prospect, Hamilton can hit triple digits on the radar gun with a sinking fastball, but for now, an overabundance of caution is understandable given the 2019 season Hamilton endured.

Flores’ stay won’t be long, as he’s joining the White Sox as the 29th man for today’s doubleheader, per Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times. To see the full advantage of the roster move, the lefty Flores should have a better chance than not of seeing action out of the bullpen sometime during the twin bill. The 24-year-old has appeared in 3 games for the White Sox this season, tossing 5 innings and allowing just a pair of earned runs.

Cuthbert is a corner infielder formerly of the Kansas City Royals. This is his second call-up of the season, the first resulting in just a single at-bat. Over six seasons in KC, Cuthbert slashed .250/.300/.378 across 1,160 plate appearances.

White Sox Outright Cheslor Cuthbert

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The White Sox have outrighted infielder Cheslor Cuthbert, James Fegan of The Athletic was among those to cover on Twitter. He has cleared waivers after recently being designated for assignment.

The 27-year-old Cuthbert had hoped to carve out a role in Chicago after parts of five seasons with the division-rival Royals. But he’ll now have to earn his way back after taking a lone plate appearance on the 2020 season. He will remain with the organization as part of the 60-man player pool.

Cuthbert’s peak to this point came in a 2016 season in which he took 510 plate appearances for a competitive Kansas City outfit that was then seeking to defend a World Series title. He popped a dozen home runs and finished with a .274/.318/.413 slash, good for a just-below-average 95 OPS+, but has struggled badly with the bat ever since.

White Sox Place Reynaldo Lopez On IL; Select Ryan Goins & Designate Cheslor Cuthbert

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The White Sox announced that they have placed righty Reynaldo Lopez on the injured list with a shoulder strain. His timeline is not yet known. Fellow righty Ian Hamilton will take the active roster opening.

The South Siders have also made a switch in the infield. They’ve selected the contract of Ryan Goins and designated Cheslor Cuthbert for assignment.

Lopez was bludgeoned for four earned runs in less than an inning of work in his 2020 debut. He had been hoping for a full and healthy campaign to rebound from a rough ’19 effort and set the stage for his first trip through arbitration.

Fortunately for the Chicago organization, the team’s top backup plan is still in place. Veteran southpaw Gio Gonzalez will step into the rotation opening.

Goins was just added to the White Sox mix after being released by the Athletics. The 32-year-old is a proficient defender but only a .230/.279/.335 career hitter.

Cuthbert, 27, had only received one plate appearance in the early going. He caught on with the White Sox after wrapping up a six-season run with the Royals, over which he turned in a .250/.300/.378 batting line.

White Sox Designate Carson Fulmer For Assignment, Sign Ryan Goins To Minor League Deal

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The White Sox set their Opening Day roster Thursday, announcing that they’ve designated former top-10 pick Carson Fulmer for assignment. Chicago also signed old friend Ryan Goins to a minor league deal and assigned him to its alternate training site and selected the contracts of four players: infielder Cheslor Cuthbert, outfielder Nicky Delmonico, left-hander Ross Detwiler and right-hander Codi Heuer. Additionally, veteran utilityman Andrew Romine was released by the organization.

Sox fans will surely be glad to see Yoan Moncada activated from the injured list and placed on the Opening Day roster after previously being out with Covid-19. The White Sox also called up right-hander Jimmy Lambert and catcher Zack Collins from their alternate site.

It’s a disappointing outcome for the Sox and Fulmer alike. The former Vanderbilt star was at one point considered during his junior year to be a possible No. 1 overall pick, but he’s simply never put it together in the Majors. I explored the Fulmer conundrum at length during the league’s shutdown, looking at the right-hander’s lengthy history of struggles in the Majors and upper minors. Fulmer was touted as one of the surest big leaguers in that year’s draft, as even his critics felt he was a high-probability late-inning bullpen piece. Those with reservations about taking him at the top of the draft weren’t so much worried that he’d bust completely but that he’d thrive “only” as a reliever rather than a starter.

Fast forward a half decade, and Fulmer is an out-of-options righty with a career 6.56 ERA in the Majors and 5.39 ERA in Triple-A. As detailed in the previously linked piece on him, there are plenty of positive indicators in his arsenal, and I personally have wondered how he might fare working at the top of the zone with his four-seamer, but the win-now White Sox clearly didn’t feel he was among their 30 best options. Perhaps his struggles will be pronounced enough that he’ll clear waivers, but one can also imagine a non-contender rolling the dice on his once touted arm.

Of the players selected to the 40-man roster today, Delmonico and Detwiler have both appeared for the Sox in the past. Delmonico will give them a left-handed bench bat with sparse MLB success, while Detwiler can soak up some innings if need be — either as a spot starter or long reliever. Cuthbert was once a high-end Royals prospect but has never hit much in five MLB seasons. Heuer, meanwhile, was Chicago’s sixth-round pick in 2018 and posted dominant numbers in the minors last year. He has long-term bullpen potential for them, and the Sox are surely excited to get a glimpse of how he’ll fare against MLB opposition.

As for Goins, he’ll return to the organization for a second season after hitting .250/.333/.347 in 52 games with the Sox last year. The longtime Blue Jays infielder doesn’t have much of a track record at the plate — he’s a career .230/.279/.335 hitter — but he can play all over the infield and is generally considered a strong up-the-middle defender.

White Sox Sign Cheslor Cuthbert

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1:35PM: The White Sox have officially announced Cuthbert’s signing.  It is a minor league deal, with an invitation to the team’s Major League Spring Training camp.

1:07PM: The White Sox have reached an agreement with free agent infielder Cheslor Cuthbert, according to reporter Robert Murray (Twitter link).  Cuthbert hit the open market in early December after the Royals chose not to tender him a contract.

Cuthbert was projected to earn $1.8MM in his second year of arbitration eligibility, though Kansas City decided to move on in the wake of a season that saw Cuthbert hit .246/.294/.379 with nine homers over 330 PA.  It was a performance almost exactly on par with the .250/.300/.378 slash line Cuthbert has posted over 1160 career plate appearances, all with the Royals from 2015-19.

Most of Cuthbert’s time in K.C. was spent as a third baseman, and he stepped into a virtual everyday role in 2016 when Mike Moustakas spent much of the season on the injured list.  Despite posting some solid numbers that year, Cuthbert’s production badly tailed off in the subsequent three seasons and he became little more than a bench piece.

Aside from his work at the hot corner, Cuthbert also has played a lot of first base and a handful of games at second over his career.  Second base could potentially be Cuthbert’s best path to playing time in Chicago, as while star rookie Nick Madrigal is expected to make his MLB debut at some point in 2020, the White Sox will need some kind of veteran stopgap until Madrigal is ready.  Yolmer Sanchez was non-tendered, leaving rookie Danny Mendick as the current top choice for the Opening Day lineup.  It seems likely that Cuthbert could be one of many veteran infielders brought into Chicago’s Spring Training camp to compete for the second base job, and Cuthbert’s versatility could give him a path to staying on the roster as a utility infielder once Madrigal is called up.

Teams Announce Final Non-Tenders

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We’ve been tracking the day’s arbitration decisions in the run-up to tonight’s deadline, which has produced a bevy of last-minute calls. In addition to those already covered elsewhere (with all projected salary figures from MLBTR/Matt Swartz projections) …

  • The Padres announced they have non-tendered Miguel Diaz and Pedro Avila. Neither hurler had yet been eligible for arbitration, so this amounts to no more than a roster cleanup. Avila had already been designated for assignment. Diaz, meanwhile, saw extensive action as a Rule V pick in 2017 but has only sporadically logged MLB time since.
  • Relievers Javy Guerra and Koda Glover were non-tendered by the Nationals, per a club announcement. Guerra would have cost a projected $1.3MM. Glover announced earlier today that he would retire.
  • The Red Sox non-tendered infielder Marco Hernandez and reliever Josh Osich, per a team announcement. Neither projected at big dollars — $700K and $1.0MM, respectively — but obviously the club felt it could put the roster spots to better use on other players.
  • The Blue Jays have non-tendered relievers Derek Law and Jason Adam, along with backstop Luke Maile. Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca (via Twitter) and Scott Mitchell of TSN (on Twitter) were on the news. Law projected at $1.3MM, while Maile was in line for a $800K payday. Adam is still pre-arb eligible.
  • The Giants announced today that they have non-tendered outfielder Joey Rickard ($1.1MM projection), southpaw Tyler Anderson ($2.625MM), and righty Rico Garcia (pre-arb). Both Anderson and Garcia were claimed from the division-rival Rockies after the end of the 2019 season.
  • In addition to other moves earlier today, the Braves have non-tendered catcher John Ryan Murphy and outfielder Rafael Ortega. Each provided depth down the stretch in 2019 for the Atlanta organization. Murphy would’ve been owed a projected $1.2MM, while Ortega remains shy of arbitration eligibility.
  • A host of players were non-tendered by the Royals, per a club announcement. Righty Jesse Hahn was cut loose along with infielders Humberto Arteaga, Cheslor Cuthbert and Erick Mejia. Among these players, Hahn (projected $900K) and Cuthbert ($1.8MM) have the most MLB experience. With these 40-man trimmings, the K.C. org should be able to place some claims and/or make Rule 5 selections in the coming weeks.
  • Righties Ian Gibaut and Wei-Chieh Huang are each heading to free agency after being non-tendered by the Rangers. Neither is anywhere near the service time needed for arbitration eligibility, so this was just an opportune time for the Texas org to drop them from the MLB roster.

Royals Designate Chris Owings, Select Cheslor Cuthbert

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The Royals announced today that they have designated utilityman Chris Owings for assignment. He’ll be replaced on the active and 40-man rosters by third baseman Cheslor Cuthbert, whose contract was selected.

Owings has just not found a groove in Kansas City since signing a $3MM deal over the offseason. The club will remain on the hook for the balance, less any pro-rated league-minimum earnings he’s able to record with another organization. Because he has more than five years of MLB service, Owings can reject an outright assignment and still keep all he’s owed.

The Royals obviously hoped for more out of Owings, who they targeted after he was non-tendered by the Diamondbacks. He’s striking out at an untenable 37.9% clip despite non-existent power. The resulting .133/.193/.222 slash line equates to an awful 7 wRC+.

With Owings departing, the Royals will welcome back a familiar face that failed to stick around previously. The 26-year-old Cuthbert has not produced much at all in his prior major-league opportunities, with a .252/.303/.378 slash over 830 plate appearances. He’s off to a nice start to the year at Triple-A, turning in .310/.370/.528 batting line and eight long balls across 219 trips to the dish.

Minor MLB Transactions: 1/11/19

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We’ll keep track of the day’s minor moves here…

  • The Red Sox have brought outfielder Bryce Brentz back to the organization on a minor league contract with an invitation to Major League Spring Training, the team revealed in announcing a series of non-roster invitations. Now 30 years old, Brentz was drafted by the Red Sox in 2010 and stuck with the organization through 2017 before landing with the Mets. He batted .264/.332/.580 with 15 homers and 16 doubles for the Mets’ Triple-A affiliate in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League last season. Brentz saw brief MLB action with Boston in 2014 and 2016, hitting a combined .287/.311/.379 in 90 trips to the plate.
  • Infielder Cheslor Cuthbert cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Omaha, the Royals announced. He’d been designated for assignment earlier in the week. Cuthbert, 26, long rated as one of Kansas City’s best prospects and showed a bit of promise in 2016 when he hit .274/.318/.413 in 510 plate appearances as a rookie. However, he’s followed that up with a dismal .215/.278/.313 slash in 270 PAs over the past two seasons. The corner infielder could yet emerge in the Majors again with a strong showing in Triple-A, of course.
  • Catcher Tomas Telis and left-handed reliever Dario Alvarez have joined the Twins on minor league contracts, writes La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Telis, 27, has spent the past three and a half seasons in the Marlins organization but struggled to produce in limited stints at the big league level. He’s a career .230/.267/.298 hitter in 267 Major League plate appearances but owns a strong .304/.349/.413 slash in nearly 1500 Triple-A plate appearances. Alvarez, 30 next week, has a 5.06 ERA in 48 MLB innings but has also racked up 61 strikeouts in that time. He’s been far too homer-prone (1.9 HR/9) and, at times, has struggled with control, but Alvarez has averaged 11+ strikeouts per nine innings in both the Majors and over a nine-year minor league career.

Royals Sign Kyle Zimmer, Designate Cheslor Cuthbert

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The Royals have signed right-hander Kyle Zimmer to a one-year deal, the team announced (Twitter links).  Zimmer’s deal is a Major League deal, and MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan reports (via Twitter) that it is a split contract.  Zimmer will earn $124K in the minors and $555K (the MLB minimum salary) if he cracks the Royals’ big league roster.  In a corresponding move, the Royals have designated third baseman Cheslor Cuthbert for assignment.

After being selected with the fifth overall pick of the 2012 draft, Zimmer has yet to reach the majors, as his development has been stalled by a series of injuries.  Shoulder and elbow problems have been consistent issues, and Zimmer underwent thoracic outlet syndrome surgery in July 2016.  All in all, Zimmer has tossed just 259 minor league innings since making his pro debut in 2012, and he didn’t pitch at all last season.

In this context, it’s a little curious why K.C. felt the need to sign Zimmer to a Major League contract rather than another minor league agreement, though obviously the price is far from prohibitive and the split deal gives Zimmer a bit of extra guaranteed cash.

Despite all the injuries, Zimmer continued to be listed on multiple top-100 prospect rankings as recently as 2016, due to the potential he flashed when he was able to take the mound.  Zimmer has a 3.54 ERA, 10.8 K/9, and a 3.44 K/BB rate in the minors, though he did have a 5.79 ERA over his only Triple-A exposure, a 32 2/3-inning stint in 2017.  Zimmer worked mostly as a reliever in 2017 and that would seem like his clearest path to the majors, though just making the Show would be an achievement for Zimmer at this point given his plethora of health issues.

Cuthbert has also been plagued with injuries over the last two seasons, playing in just 88 total games for the Royals with only a .215/.278/.313 slash line over 270 plate appearances.  Cuthbert looked to breaking in as a regular in the Kansas City lineup in 2016, though his diminished play over the last two years has made him an expendable part of the Royals’ rebuild.

The Royals avoided arbitration with Cuthbert by agreeing to a $850K contract for the 2019 season, though like all arb deals, this contract isn’t guaranteed until the season actually begins.  If the Royals were to part ways with Cuthbert before the 16th day of Spring Training, they would only owe him 30 days of prorated termination pay based on his contract value (so in this case, roughly $143K).  Cuthbert is also out of options, so even if Kansas City wanted to keep him in the organization, he’d have to clear this waiver process.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: Thursday

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With the non-tender deadline looming tomorrow, there figure to be several players agreeing to pre-tender deals to avoid arbitration today. Many players who agree to terms prior to the deadline will be fringe non-tender candidates and, as such, are likelier to sign for less than they’d been projected in order to avoid a non-tender. We’ll keep track of today’s players who are avoiding arbitration in this post (with all referenced projections coming courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz)…

  • The Royals announced that they’ve agreed to one-year deals with both Cheslor Cuthbert and Jesse Hahn. Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports (via Twitter) that Cuthbert will earn $850K, while Hahn’s deal contains an $800K base salary. Both were definitive non-tender candidates, as Cuthbert batted just .194/.282/.301 in 117 plate appearances this past season. Hahn, meanwhile, didn’t pitch in 2018 due to a sprained ulnar collateral ligament that ultimately required “primary repair” surgery — a similar, but less invasive alternative to Tommy John surgery that is perhaps familiar to Royals fans after Seth Maness previously underwent the procedure.

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