Reds Designate Heath Hembree For Assignment
The Reds have designated right-hander Heath Hembree for assignment in order to open a spot on the roster for fellow right-hander Tony Santillan, who has been recalled from Triple-A Louisville, per a team announcement. Cincinnati also reinstated right-hander R.J. Alaniz from the injured list and optioned him to Triple-A. Meanwhile, the Reds announced earlier in the day that infielder Mike Freeman cleared waivers and has been assigned outright to Louisville.
Hembree’s DFA comes on the heels of a catastrophic outing in which he was tagged for five runs in just two-thirds of an inning. The Reds might’ve been able to look past that meltdown had he continued pitching as well as he did throughout the month of July, but the past several weeks have been a struggle for the veteran Hembree, to say the least. He’s yielded runs in seven of his past nine outings — a total of 13 in a span of just seven innings.
That dismal slump has ballooned Hembree’s ERA to a grisly 6.38 mark, but Hembree has previously been more solid out of the Cincinnati ‘pen and spent several weeks pitching quite well as their primary closer while top relievers Tejay Antone, Michael Lorenzen and Lucas Sims were on the injured list. (Antone is still on the IL.) Hembree logged seven saves and posted a 1.42 ERA with a 19-to-5 K/BB ratio from June 28 through July 24. He’d had some early struggles as well, but that strong stretch dropped his ERA into the low-4.00s and gave the impression he’d righted the ship.
Clearly, that wasn’t the case, but there’s still plenty of reason that another club might be intrigued by Hembree. Among the 321 pitchers who have thrown at least 40 innings this year, Hembree’s 38 percent strikeout rate is the game’s seventh-highest mark. He’s tied for 15th in that same set of pitchers with a 27.4 K-BB% and sits 18th with a 2.84 SIERA.
Hembree has been done in by a ghastly 51.3 percent strand rate that sits more than 20 percent worse than the league average. That’s in part due to a sky-high 2.13 HR/9 mark; he’s yielded 10 long balls in his 44 2/3 innings this season, although seven of them have come in his hitter-friendly home park. Another club with a more spacious home setting might take a look at Hembree’s K-BB profile and generally solid track record from 2015-19 and opt to place a claim on outright waivers. His contract comes with a very reasonable $800K base salary in the Majors, though he’s already unlocked another $225K of incentives on top of that base, I’m told. Hembree would be an affordable change-of-scenery candidate for a team in need of bullpen depth — be it on a waiver claim or on a new contract if goes unclaimed and reaches the market.
Blue Jays Acquire Mallex Smith
The Blue Jays have acquired outfielder Mallex Smith from the Reds, per Baseball America’s Chris Hilburn-Trenkle. Presumably, as is the case with most post-deadline swaps, the Jays simply sent cash back to Cincinnati in return.
Smith was eligible to be traded by virtue of the fact that he’s playing the 2021 season on a minor league deal and had not been summoned to the Majors or previously outrighted by another club this season. The 28-year-old opened the season on a minor league deal with the Mets but didn’t appear in a game for them. He suffered a broken foot early in his tenure with the organization and was cut loose in mid-June. He signed with Cincinnati quickly thereafter and was soon ready to suit up for the Reds’ top affiliate in Louisville.
It hasn’t been an especially productive season so far for Smith in Triple-A, as he’s posted just a .231/.296/.292 batting line in 22 games and 71 plate appearances since healing up enough to take the field. He’s swiped four bases in six tries with Louisville, and his ability to continue piling up those steals is his primary asset.
From 2017-19, Smith batted .262/.332/.367 in 356 games with the Rays and Mariners, connecting on 10 home runs, 54 doubles, 23 triples and stealing 102 bags in 128 attempts (79.7 percent). He posted back-to-back 40-steal seasons in 2018-19 — including a ’19 season in which his 46 stolen bases led all of Major League Baseball.
Smith isn’t likely to be an immediate option for the Jays in the outfield. Toronto has Lourdes Gurriel Jr., George Springer, Teoscar Hernandez, Corey Dickerson and Randal Grichuk all on the Major League roster at the moment, so outfield isn’t exactly a position of need. That said, rosters will expand to 28 players in September, and Smith will not only provide some cover in the event of injuries but also a potential pinch-running and defensive specialist if the Jays see fit to use one of those extra roster spots in that manner.
Injury Notes: Winker, Lindor, Phillies, Brewers
Jesse Winker‘s return to the Reds lineup was short-lived, as the outfielder left today’s game prior to the bottom of the third inning. Winker went 0-for-2 with two flyouts in his first two plate appearances before re-aggravating the mild intercostal strain that sidelined him for Cincinnati’s previous two games. A previous MRI didn’t reveal any damage, though manager David Bell told reporters (including The Athletic’s C. Trent Rosecrans) that Winker will be re-evaluated prior to tomorrow’s game against the Cubs.
While the Reds are in the thick of the wild card race, the team will surely be careful with one of their top bats to prevent a longer-term injury. Winker has hit .307/.395/.560 with 24 home runs over 481 plate appearances this season, and he entered today’s action as the NL leader in doubles (32) and total bases (235). The Reds are in the midst of a grueling stretch of 29 games over 30 days, so there isn’t any built-in time for Winker to really get a break, and a trip to the injured list might be necessary to fully correct the issue.
More on other injury situations from around baseball…
- Francisco Lindor participated in just about a full range of baseball activities prior to today’s game against the Dodgers, and Mets manager Luis Rojas told reporters (including MLB.com’s Bill Ladson) that Lindor could potentially be activated off the injured list when New York begins its next homestand on August 24. Lindor will travel with the Mets on their road trip and continue to work out, so the club will monitor his progress and then determine whether a minor league rehab assignment is necessary, or if Lindor could return to the active roster without the benefit of any minor league tuneup games. A Grade 2 oblique strain sent Lindor to the IL on July 17, so even a return by that Mets homestand would be a pretty decent turn-around time for the shortstop, given how more severe oblique problems can sometimes linger.
- Zach Eflin (right knee tendinitis) threw a live batting practice session today, while Vince Velasquez (right middle finger blister) and Sam Coonrod (forearm tendinitis) threw live BP sessions yesterday. The Phillies pitchers are at different stages in their recoveries, and Velasquez and Coonrod will each begin minor league rehab assignments on Tuesday. Eflin’s next step could be another simulated session before he starts his own rehab assignment, though the right-hander told NBC Sports’ Jim Salisbury and other reporters that he “felt great” during today’s 28-pitch session.
- The Brewers are almost all the way out of a COVID-19 outbreak on their roster, and two of the remaining sidelined players (Adrian Houser and Jandel Gustave) are nearing returns. As Brewers manager Craig Counsell told The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Todd Rosiak and other reporters, Gustave is working out with the team and Houser is expected to join the club when the Brew Crew begin a series with the Cardinals on Tuesday.
Trevor Bauer Was Subject Of Previous Protection Order
Trevor Bauer was the subject of an ex parte temporary civil stalking protection order sought by and granted to an Ohio woman in June of 2020, according to a report by Gus Garcia-Roberts and Molly Hensley-Clancy of The Washington Post. The order was in effect until dismissed by the petitioner that July 23. According to the Post’s report:
“An Ohio woman sought the order in June 2020 after repeated threats from the then-Cincinnati Reds pitcher, according to her lawyer and records separately obtained by The Post. Photographs independently obtained by The Post also show bruises on the woman’s face and blood in her eyes, which her attorney said was caused by Bauer punching and choking her during sex without consent. Those allegations are similar to ones made by a woman in Los Angeles this summer when she applied for a temporary restraining order.”
The Post report details an alleged incident from 2017, when Bauer was with the Indians. The authors elaborate:
“A police report obtained by The Post shows that in 2017, during an incident at Bauer’s apartment, the Ohio woman attempted to show officers photos of injuries to her eyes that she said were caused by Bauer, who played for Cleveland at the time.” The woman’s attorney tells the Post she specified to police at the time that those injuries were the alleged result of Bauer choking her without consent during sex. According to the Post, Bauer was the one who initially called police that night, telling officers the woman had assaulted him — an allegation she denied. Additionally:
“The Post also obtained copies of messages Bauer allegedly sent the woman, which her lawyers said prompted her to seek an order of protection. ‘I don’t feel like spending time in jail for killing someone,’ reads one. ‘And that’s what would happen if I saw you again.'” The Post also obtained photos of injuries the woman sustained, which her lawyer tells The Post she says “were from Bauer striking her without her consent during sex in 2018,” in the words of the Post writers.
The ex parte nature of the order indicates it was granted without hearing from Bauer’s side. (That’s also true of the temporary restraining order granted against Bauer in California to which the Post alluded). Ohio law allows petitioners to obtain a restraining order against individuals who have caused the petitioner to believe they “will cause physical harm to the other person or a family or household member of the other person or cause mental distress to the other person or a family or household member of the other person,” so long as the petitioner can demonstrate good cause — including, but not limited to, a threat of bodily harm. Court records don’t specify any allegations made against Bauer at that hearing.
MLB placed Bauer on paid administrative leave in July 2021 after the Pasadena Police Department began investigating the assault allegations made by the woman in California. Bauer’s administrative leave period was extended through August 20 this week, an agreement between MLB and the MLB Players Association. The parties are set for a multi-day hearing (during which Bauer will have an opportunity to respond to the woman’s allegations) next week on the status of the California TRO.
Under the terms of the joint MLB-MLBPA Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy, Major League Baseball has the authority to issue discipline regardless of whether criminal charges are ultimately filed. An MLB spokesperson is quoted in the piece as saying that “MLB takes these and all allegations very seriously,” but that they can’t comment because of the ongoing investigation. The Post reports that an MLB investigator was seeking information related to the 2017 incident in early July.
Chelsea Janes, also of The Washington Post, says that the Dodgers declined to comment on whether or not they were aware of this previous allegation before signing Bauer in February of 2021. A spokesman for the Indians told the Post the team didn’t have any knowledge of the incident in 2017.
Bauer, on his own Twitter account, addressed the allegations with a statement from himself as well as one from his representatives. Additionally, “In a statement to The Post, Bauer’s lawyer and agent, Jon Fetterolf, and agent Rachel Luba called the allegations of physical abuse against Bauer ‘categorically false.'”
For the full details, read the Washington Post article and Bauer’s response.
Injured List Activations: Schmidt, Frankoff, Blandino
A trio of players were reinstated from the 60-day injured list and optioned to their teams’ respective Triple-A affiliates.
- The Yankees activated right-hander Clarke Schmidt and optioned him to Scranton-Wilkes/Barre. The 25-year-old is one of the game’s better pitching prospects, but he’s been sidelined all year by an elbow strain. Schmidt, who briefly made his big league debut last season, tossed 8 2/3 innings on a rehab assignment and will continue to build up in the minors. Because of last year’s canceled minor league season, Schmidt has still yet to pitch at the Triple-A level. A 40-man roster spot was opened when reliever Clay Holmes was placed on the COVID-19 injured list due to virus-like symptoms.
- The Diamondbacks activated right-hander Seth Frankoff and optioned him to Reno. The move fills Arizona’s 40-man roster. Frankoff signed a minor league deal over the winter and was selected to the big league club in April. The 32-year-old made four appearances and tossed 14 2/3 innings of 9.20 ERA/5.72 SIERA ball before landing on the IL with forearm soreness in early June.
- The Reds reinstated infielder Alex Blandino and optioned him to Louisville. Reliever Art Warren was transferred from the 10-day to the 60-day IL to create a 40-man roster spot. Blandino, who has been out since June 5 with a fractured right hand, has a .200/.317/.257 line across 82 plate appearances this season. Warren landed on the IL with a left oblique strain on July 15. He’s now out until at least mid-September.
Central Notes: Kimbrel, White Sox, Cubs, Donaldson, Boyd, Warren, File
White Sox GM Rick Hahn and Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer began trade discussions on July 9, ESPN.com’s Jesse Rogers reports, and it wasn’t until July 20 that the two sides reconnected for what became more intensive talks that led to a pair of major trades. In separate deals, the Sox acquired Ryan Tepera on July 29 and then a deadline-day blockbuster that saw Craig Kimbrel head to the south side of Chicago.
Nick Madrigal emerged as the top piece in the Kimbrel deal, though it wasn’t until the day of the trade that the White Sox also added right-hander Codi Heuer to make it a two-player package. That was enough to put the Sox ahead of a competitive market, and in Kimbrel, the team landed a player that Hahn and executive VP Ken Williams had both prioritized as a key acquisition to bolster the bullpen.
More on both the AL and NL Central divisions…
- Josh Donaldson continues to be bothered by soreness in his right hamstring, and he didn’t see any action for the second consecutive game. Over the Twins‘ last 10 games, Donaldson has started twice and come off the bench three times, and manager Rocco Baldelli said the club is “still going to wait and see” if Donaldson can avoid the injured list. “JD is still a little sore and we are still working our way through, just figuring out a timeline as far as when he’ll be able to return,” Baldelli told Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press and other reporters.
- Matthew Boyd threw a live batting practice session at the Tigers‘ Spring Training facility in Lakeland, manager A.J. Hinch told MLB.com’s Jason Beck and other reporters. Boyd hasn’t pitched since June 14 due to a triceps issue, so a move to the 60-day injured list could be in the works should Detroit require some 40-man roster space in the near future. Boyd’s BP session does represent some progress, and a proper minor league rehab assignment could follow provided Boyd doesn’t hit any setbacks. The left-hander was off to a solid start to the 2021 season, posting a 3.44 ERA over his first 70 2/3 innings.
- Reds manager David Bell provided an update on Art Warren, telling reporters (including The Cincinnati Enquirer’s Bobby Nightengale) that Warren will require roughly another month to recover from a left oblique strain. The rookie right-hander has already missed about four weeks due to the injury, which interrupted a strong beginning to Warren’s first season in Cincinnati. Warren struck out 36.2% of opposing batters while posting a 1.88 ERA over 14 1/3 innings out of the Reds’ bullpen.
- The Brewers announced that right-hander Dylan File has been activated off the 60-day injured list and optioned to Triple-A Nashville. File underwent elbow surgery in February and has yet to pitch this season, apart from some minor league rehab outings. Considering that the Brewers are dealing with several bullpen absences due to injuries and a COVID-19 outbreak, it might not be out of the question that the 25-year-old File is called up to make his MLB debut before the 2021 season is through.
Reds Activate Lucas Sims, Place Brad Brach On IL
The Reds have activated Lucas Sims from the IL, per Mark Sheldon of MLB.com. Brad Brach will be heading the other direction in a corresponding move, going on the IL with a shoulder impingement.
Sims has been out since late June with an elbow sprain. At the time, it was expected that he would miss about a month, a timeline that proved to be just a tad optimistic. The 27-year-old has been an important member of a Reds bullpen that has been a source of frustration for the club this year. His 5.02 ERA looks high but all the advanced metrics like him better. (3.26 xERA, 3.45 FIP, 3.75 xFIP, 3.19 SIERA) This optimism is borne out by his excellent strikeout rate of 34.9%, although his walk rate is a bit high at 11.9%.
As for Brach, a timeline for his injury is unknown. But a shoulder issue is always worrisome for a pitcher. The 35-year-old has thrown 29 innings for the Reds this year, with a 5.59 ERA, strikeout rate of 24.1% and walk rate of 12.8%.
NL Injury Notes: d’Arnaud, Ynoa, Flaherty, Mikolas, Sims, Antone, Senzel
The Braves are planning to activate Travis d’Arnaud from the 60-day injured list this week, possibly on Tuesday when the team begins a series with the Reds. Manager Brian Snitker told reporters (including Gabriel Burns of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution) that d’Arnaud is slated to catch all nine innings of a minor league rehab game tomorrow, representing a final step in his recovery from surgery to repair a thumb ligament. A Silver Slugger winner in 2020, d’Arnaud hasn’t played since May 1 of this season, contributing to Atlanta’s near-total dearth of production from the catcher position.
Huascar Ynoa is also working his way back from a broken hand, as Snitker said the righty threw 68 pitches in his most recent rehab outing on Friday, and is scheduled to toss roughly 85 pitches in his next outing. With a 3.02 ERA over nine starts and 44 2/3 innings, Ynoa was a nice surprise for Atlanta’s rotation prior to his injury, and he could be used as either a starter, long reliever, or both upon his return to the active roster.
More injury updates from around the National League…
- “I’m going to pitch in Pittsburgh,” Jack Flaherty told Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and other reporters, indicating that he plans to return from the 60-day IL during the Cardinals‘ upcoming series with the Pirates from August 10-12. A left oblique strain put Flaherty on the IL on June 1, leaving the Cards without their ace for a big chunk of the season. Miles Mikolas is also tentatively scheduled to return for next weekend’s series against the Royals, as Mikolas is working through a minor league rehab assignment of his own. Mikolas missed the entire 2020 season due to flexor tendon surgery, then made just one start in May before heading back to the IL due to forearm tightness.
- Some bullpen reinforcements look to be on the way for the Reds, as Lucas Sims might be activated from the 10-day IL on Sunday, and Tejay Antone could be ready sometime this week. Both relievers went on the injured list in the final week of June — Sims with a sprained right elbow, and Antone with a right forearm strain. Reds manager David Bell told Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer and other reporters that Sims has “a pretty strong chance” of returning tomorrow, while Antone’s timeline is more tentative since he was only scheduled to begin his rehab assignment today. “We want to get him back as quick as we can, but we want to do it in a way that is best for Tejay, and we can have him for the rest of the year and he doesn’t have to deal with this anymore at all, even next year or beyond,” Bell said.
- Nick Senzel‘s status is even more uncertain, as Bell said Senzel is “still not recovering exactly how we would want him to” after a week of rehab games. Senzel underwent arthroscopic knee surgery at the end of May, and was initially given a recovery timeline of 4-6 weeks. Things are open-ended enough that Bell said Senzel might return to the Reds within a couple of days if he shows improvement, but for now, the oft-injured Senzel is once again sidelined.
Reds Activate Mike Moustakas From Injured List
The Reds reinstated third baseman Mike Moustakas from the 60-day injured list this afternoon. He’s in the lineup tonight against the Pirates, hitting fifth and starting at third base. Utilityman Mike Freeman was optioned to Triple-A Louisville to clear an active roster spot. To create 40-man roster space, Cincinnati transferred reliever Michael Feliz from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list.
It’s a welcome time for Cincinnati to get Moustakas back, as they enter play today having closed the gap on the Padres to 3.5 games in the race for the National League’s final Wild Card spot. It’ll be Moustakas’ first game action in nearly three months, as the 32-year-old landed on the shelf with a right heel issue on May 20. He embarked on a minor league rehab assignment a few weeks later but re-aggravated the injury in mid-June.
Before the injury, Moustakas was hitting at a decent but unspectacular level. He’s managed a .241/.337/.437 line over 104 plate appearances after putting up a .230/.331/.468 mark last season, his first in Cincinnati. The Reds signed Moustakas with hopes of moving the longtime third baseman over to second. With Jonathan India now in the majors and performing very well at the keystone, Moustakas has played exclusively in the corner infield in 2021.
That’ll continue to be the case, albeit with a twist relative to earlier in the season. The Reds opened the year with Moustakas at third and Eugenio Suárez at shortstop. Suárez struggled mightily in his move up the defensive spectrum, though, and kicked back over to third after Moustakas went down (with Kyle Farmer getting the bulk of playing time at short). The generally-productive Suárez has had a miserable season at the plate as well, and he’s now set to lose some playing time. Manager David Bell told reporters (including Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer) that the Reds will platoon the lefty-hitting Moustakas and right-handed Suárez, at least for the immediate future.
Suárez was one of the game’s top power threats between 2018-19, when he hit .277/.362/.550 and popped a combined 83 home runs. That lofty offensive output fell to league average last season, and he owns a .177/.260/.379 mark over 438 plate appearances this year. Suárez has hit another 22 homers, but he’s striking out at a career-worst 30.4% clip while walking in 8.9% of his trips to the plate, his lowest rate since 2016.
With the Reds in a playoff race, it makes sense to curtail Suárez’s workload a bit as he continues to struggle. He’s still under contract for $11MM per season from 2022-24 under the terms of the extension he signed in March 2018. It stands to reason he’ll get another extended look at some point, but installing Moustakas into the lineup against right-handed pitching should give the offense a boost in the short term.
Feliz’s transfer to the 60-day IL is a formality, as he has been out since June 8 with a right elbow sprain. He’s out for sixty days from the time of his original placement, so he’ll be eligible for activation whenever he’s ready to return. Feliz is currently rehabbing with Louisville, so he should be back in relatively short order. That’s also true of fellow bullpen mate Lucas Sims, who could be back with the big league club as soon as this weekend, according to Bell (via Nightengale).
Reds Sign Ender Inciarte To Minor League Deal
The Reds signed Ender Inciarte to a minor league deal, according to a club announcement. The outfielder was recently designated for assignment and then released by the Braves. He will now report to the Triple-A Louisville Bats and attempt to earn his way back up the show.
That seems to be a somewhat unlikely scenario at this point, given that the Reds already have superior outfield options such as Nick Castellanos, Jesse Winker, Tyler Naquin and Aristides Aquino. The return of Nick Senzel, who is currently on a rehab assignment, would only further crowd the picture and make it harder for Inciarte to barge his way in.
Inciarte’s offence was near league average for the first six years of his career. From 2014 to 2019, his wRC+ was never higher than 100 and never lower than 86 in a given season. Combined with his excellent defence, that made him a valuable player, contributing 14.2 fWAR in that time. But since then, his production has fallen off a cliff, with a wRC+ of 48 since the start of the 2020 season.
This is a no-risk move for Cincy because Inciarte’s salary is being paid by Atlanta as part of the five-year extension they signed with him after the 2016 season. Even if Cincinnati eventually calls him up to the big leagues, they will only have to pay him the prorated league minimum, with that amount being subtracted from what Atlanta pays.