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Devin Mesoraco Undergoes Shoulder Surgery

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MAY 10: Surgery revealed more significant damage than had been anticipated, manager Bryan Price told C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer (Twitter link). Expectations now are that Mesoraco will require a six-month recovery timeline.

MAY 6, 2:54pm: Mesoraco says he expects to be out for a minimum of four months, which essentially means he’l be down for the rest of the year, C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports on Twitter.

2:36pm: The Reds announced this afternoon that catcher Devin Mesoraco, who was placed on the DL earlier this week, will undergo surgery next Tuesday to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder (Twitter link). While Cincinnati did not give a definitive timeline for Mesoraco’s recovery, there would seem to be a chance that the injury ends up costing him the remainder of the season. Pablo Sandoval, for instance, underwent the same procedure just last week and has been announced as out for the duration of the season.

This marks the second consecutive season in which Mesoraco will lose most of the year to an injury that ultimately requires surgery. Last year it was a balky hip that ultimately needed surgical repair. The Reds briefly experimented with using Mesoraco in the outfield before conceding to the surgery, but that didn’t last long, and he was ultimately limited 23 games and 51 plate appearances. The 2016 campaign will be even more brief for Mesoraco, who has appeared in just 16 contests this season and collected just 43 plate appearances.

Suffice it to say, this isn’t what the Reds had in mind when signing Mesoraco to a four-year, $28MM contract on the heels of a 2014 breakout, though there weren’t any signs that he’d suffer through a breakdown of this magnitude. Mesoraco hit .273/.359/.534 with 25 home runs in that breakout ’14 season, and as a former first-round pick and widely regarded Top 100 prospect in his age-26 season, it seemed like he’d finally tapped into the potential scouts always saw in him. Now, he’ll hope to once again work his way back to health and give the Reds a healthy, productive season in 2017. Mesoraco earned $2.4MM last season and is earning $4.9MM in 2016. He’ll take home another $7.2MM next season and $13MM in 2018 before hitting the open market as a free agent.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/9/16

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Here are the day’s minor moves from around the league…

  • The Cubs have purchased the contract of righty Alex Sanabia from the Mexican League Tijuana Toros, MLBTR’s Zach Links has learned. Sanabia will head to Triple-A Iowa to bolster the club’s rotation depth. The 27-year-old has seen action in parts of three MLB seasons with the Marlins, throwing 138 2/3 innings over 24 starts and four relief appearances and posting a sturdy 4.15 ERA with 5.6 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9. Sanabia had a rough go of things with the Angels’ top affiliate last year, but has given the Toros 30 innings of 3.60 ERA ball with 6.0 K/9 against a stingy 0.9 BB/9.
  • Left-hander Ryan O’Rourke has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A by the Twins, tweets Mike Berardino  of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The 28-year-old has appeared in 36 games for Minnesota over the past two seasons but struggled to a 5.83 ERA. While O’Rourke misses plenty of bats (8.9 K/9), he also has struggled with his control, as evidenced by the 20 walks he’s issued in 29 1/3 big league innings. Lefties, however, have been befuddled by him, batting just .149/.286/.234 in 58 plate appearances.
  • The Orioles announced today that right-hander Scott McGough has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Norfolk. Baltimore designated the 26-year-old, who was claimed off waivers from the Marlins earlier this year, for assignment last week. McGough made his big league debut in Miami last season but allowed seven runs in 6 2/3 innings. He’s been roughed up for a dozen runs in 8 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level this season but had an excellent 2015 campaign, posting a 1.93 ERA in 37 1/3 innings across three minor league level.
  • The Red Sox have signed former A’s first baseman Nate Freiman to a minor league deal and assigned him to Double-A Portland, according to an announcement from the independent Atlantic League. Freiman, 29, has been playing for the Atlantic League’s Long Island Ducks and hitting quite well through a small six-game sample (8-for-21, two homers, one double, two walks). Freiman showed good pop and handled left-handed pitching well for the 2013-14 A’s (.279/.326/.470 in 233 PAs), but his production evaporated at the Triple-A level last season when he hit just .220/.279/.321 in 305 PAs.
  • The Nationals acquired minor league catcher Martin Medina from the Blue Jays in exchange for cash considerations, per Baseball America’s Matt Eddy. The 26-year-old was originally drafted by the White Sox in the 20th round back in 2011, but Chicago flipped him to Toronto last summer (also for cash considerations). He’s a career .244/.314/.334 hitter in the minors and has caught 30 percent of opposing base-stealers, but he’s yet to progress beyond the Double-A level.
  • Also via Eddy, the Braves have released right-hander Rob Wooten from Triple-A Gwinnett. The long-time Brewers reliever signed a minors pact with Atlanta this winter and had a nice showing with Gwinnett, yielding just three runs on seven hits and no walks with seven strikeouts in 7 1/3 innings. The rest of Wooten’s career has come with the Brewers organization. He owns a 4.07 ERA with 8.3 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9 in 185 2/3 Triple-A innings and a 5.03 ERA with 7.0 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9 in 68 big league frames.
  • One more from Eddy, who adds that the Reds traded outfielder Pin-Chieh Chen to the Dodgers in exchange for cash considerations. The 24-year-old Chen, signed by the Cubs as a free agent out of Taiwan prior to the 2010 season, has climbed as high as Double-A in the minors, spending parts of four seasons at that level and compiling a .236/.344/.327 batting line there. Baseball America rated him as Chicago’s No. 31 prospect prior to the 2012 season but didn’t rise higher than that on their prospect rankings.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/8/16

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Here are Sunday’s minor moves from around the majors:

  • The Padres announced that they have placed second baseman Jemile Weeks on the 15-day DL with a right hamstring strain and recalled Jose Pirela. Prior to suffering the injury Saturday, Weeks collected 57 PAs and hit just .140/.204/.200. Pirela, also a second baseman, has slashed .306/.352/.447 at the Triple-A level in 2016. He was with the Padres earlier this season and appeared in four games, racking up five PAs and a double.
  • Catcher Adam Moore, whom the Indians designated for assignment earlier this week, will stay in the organization after accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A Columbus, tweets Tribeinsider.
  • The Astros reinstated catcher Max Stassi from the DL and optioned him to Triple-A Fresno, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle was among those to report (Twitter link). Prior to undergoing surgery on the hamate bone in his left wrist in mid-March, Stassi was expected to team with Jason Castro to form the Astros’ catching tandem. The club is now preparing Evan Gattis for a role behind the plate, however, lessening the need for Stassi – whom Baseball America ranked as Houston’s 19th-best prospect entering the season.
  • The Cubs have activated right-hander Neil Ramirez from the bereavement list and optioned righty Spencer Patton to Triple-A Iowa, the team announced. Ramirez has amassed six innings of three-run ball this year (seven strikeouts, four walks), while Patton made his sole big league appearance of the year Saturday and faced two batters – one of whom walked, the other of whom doubled.
  • The Athletics have optioned right-hander Jesse Hahn to Triple-A Nashville and recalled righty J.B. Wendelken, per a team announcement. Hahn threw 17 2/3 innings in the minors this year before the A’s recalled him at the end of last month. He made two starts with Oakland, allowing four earned runs in 12 innings while walking six and striking out four. Hahn had a rough start Saturday, surrendering eight hits, four earned runs and four walks in 5 1/3 innings of work in a loss to Baltimore. Wendelken, 23, is now in position to make his major league debut after racking up 315 2/3 innings in the minors, where he has posted a 4.08 ERA, 9.2 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9.
  • The Reds announced that they have sent outfielder Scott Schebler to Triple-A Louisville and recalled outfielder/first baseman Kyle Waldrop. Schebler’s demotion is the result of the Reds wanting to give him playing time, which he hadn’t been receiving enough of in the majors lately because of the success of left fielder Adam Duvall. Schebler hit just .188/.246/.344 with a home run in 69 plate appearances prior to his demotion. Waldrop, not to be confused with the former major league reliever of the same name, has hit .276/.322/.437 in 2,445 career minor league PAs. The 24-year-old got his first taste of big league action last season, though he accrued only one at-bat.

Reds Option J.J. Hoover To Minors, Promote Steve Delabar

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The Reds have announced a variety of roster moves, among them the demotion of righty J.J. Hoover, who started the season as their closer, to Triple-A Louisville. They also recalled righty Drew Hayes from Louisville, selected the contract of veteran righty Steve Delabar, placed righty Jon Moscot (shoulder) on the 15-day DL, and transferred catcher Devin Mesoraco (shoulder) to the 60-day DL.

Hoover had a disastrous beginning to his season, allowing 18 runs (17 earned), six home runs and six walks in 10 2/3 innings. He was expected to work the ninth inning for a Reds team that traded Aroldis Chapman over the winter, but that arrangement did not work out, to put it mildly.

The rest of the Reds’ moves reflect the considerable uncertainty that surrounds the rest of the team’s pitching staff as well. Perhaps the most notable move is the promotion of Delabar, who agreed to a minor-league deal with the Reds late in Spring Training after the Blue Jays released him. Delabar had posted a 2.19 ERA for Louisville, but with an alarming 11 walks in 12 1/3 innings. The 2013 All-Star has fallen on hard times in recent seasons, and posted a 5.22 ERA, 9.2 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 in 29 2/3 innings with the Jays last year. The Reds bullpen’s 6.28 ERA for the season is by far the worst in the Majors, however, so they have little to lose in giving Delabar a shot.

Moscot missed a start with shoulder discomfort earlier this week, although, via MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon (on Twitter), an MRI showed no structural damage. Mesoraco is set to have shoulder surgery and will miss the rest of the season.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/3/16

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We’ll track the day’s minor moves right here:

  • The Cubs announced that they’ve placed outfielder Matt Szczur on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right hamstring and selected the contract of outfielder Ryan Kalish to take his place on the active roster. In order to clear a spot for Kalish on the 40-man roster, the club has transferred infielder Christian Villanueva to the 60-day disabled list. Kalish, 28, was long a top-rated Red Sox prospect and is, as such, quite familiar to president of baseball operations Theo Epstein and GM Jed Hoyer. Excellent production in the minors has earned Kalish his first taste of the Majors since 2014 (also with the Cubs). In 20 games (70 plate appearances) at the Triple-A level thus far, Kalish is batting a ridiculous .368/.471/.509 with four doubles, a pair of triples, three steals and more walks drawn (10) than strikeouts (nine).
  • The Mariners announced that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Steve Johnson from Triple-A Tacoma and placed right-hander Tony Zych on the 15-day DL with rotator cuff tendinitis. Johnson, 28, has a fair amount of big league experience — all coming with the Orioles between the 2012-15 seasons. In 59 1/3 innings at the big league level, he’s worked to a 4.25 ERA with 10.5 K/9 against 5.5 BB/9. However, he’s posted a 20-to-2 K/BB ratio in 16 innings with Tacoma this season, so the Mariners will undoubtedly hope that they’ve helped iron out his longstanding control problems. Zych, meanwhile, had a 3.00 ERA in 12 innings this season and had punched out 19 batters against eight free passes (one intentional).

Earlier Moves

  • The Reds have purchased the contract of catcher Rafael Lopez from the Bridgeport Bluefish, the indy league club announced. He’ll head to Triple-A Louisville, providing another depth option for an organization that is filling in for injured MLB starter Devin Mesoraco. Lopez, 28, has only appeared briefly at the major league level. He spent last season at Triple-A in the Cubs and Angels systems, slashing .266/.339/.335 over 246 plate appearances.
  • Righty Matt Buschmann has been outrighted to Triple-A by the Diamondbacks, MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert reports on Twitter. The 32-year-old was designated recently as Arizona continues to cycle through relief pitchers to keep its pen fresh. He surrendered only one earned run in his first 4 1/3  big league frames, but will for head back to Triple-A once again to wait for another shot. Buschmann had been working as a starter in the minors, as he has for much of his minor league career, but it remains to be seen what role he’ll take upon his return to Reno.

Devin Mesoraco To DL With Torn Labrum In Left Shoulder

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10:22pm: Mesoraco says he’s “going to definitely have to get surgery at some point,” as Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets. But he’s still considering whether to try playing through the injury.

5:40pm: The Reds announced today that catcher Devin Mesoraco has suffered a torn labrum in his left shoulder. He’ll go on the 15-day DL for now. It certainly seems likely that he’ll require an extended absence, though it remains to be seen whether surgery will be required.

This injury constitutes the latest setback for the 27-year-old, who missed most of last season after undergoing hip surgery. Mesoraco signed a four-year, $28MM extension before the 2015 season, with the club buying out all of his arbitration eligibility and buying up one free agent-eligible campaign.

That deal came together after Mesoraco’s breakout 2014, in which he slashed .273/.359/.534 with 25 home runs in 440 plate appearances. It’s been mostly downhill from there, as the former top prospect has struggled at the plate while battling his various ailments. In just 106 plate appearances since the start of 2015, he’s carrying a .158/.245/.200 batting line without a single long ball.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/2/16

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Here are the day’s minor moves from around the league…

  • The Reds have signed former Rockies first-rounder Kyle Parker to a minor league deal, reports Baseball America’s Matt Eddy. Parker, 26, logged 112 plate appearances with the Rox last season but batted just .179/.223/.311 with three homers. The first baseman/outfielder does have  solid .285/.332/.442 line in parts of two minor league seasons, and he’ll give the Reds some additional depth at what is currently a somewhat uncertain position.
  • Fleet-footed minor league veteran Antoan Richardson has signed a minors pact with the Dodgers, also according to Eddy. The 32-year-old Bahamian-born outfielder has seen brief stints with the Braves and Yankees in the Majors. As Eddy notes, Richardson is the active minor league leader in on-base percentage (.394) and stolen base success rate (85 percent). Richardson is a lifetime .275/.394/.344 hitter in the minors with 15 homers and 328 steals (in 386 attempts).
  • Eddy also reports that catcher Luke Carlin has signed a minor league deal with the Indians, but Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer clarifies that it’s a coaching gig (Twitter link). Carlin spent the 2010-14 seasons in the Cleveland organization and saw a bit of time in the Majors in 2010 and 2012. Carlin has 156 Major League plate appearances and has batted .179/.263/.286 in that time. He’s a career .239/.357/.350 hitter at the minor league level, where he’s prevented 31 percent of stolen base attempts and drawn consistently solid pitch-framing marks from Baseball Prospectus.
  • The Braves will select the contract of infielder/outfielder Matt Tuiasosopo from Triple-A Gwinnett, reports David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via Twitter). Tuiasosopo, 29, is a well-traveled veteran that last saw the Majors in 2013 with Detroit. He’s a lifetime .207/.290/.356 hitter in 401 Major League plate appearances that has posted a considerably better .246/.352/.413 line in nearly 3,000 minor league plate appearances.

NL Central Notes: Votto, Cardinals, Kang

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Superstar Reds first baseman Joey Votto has hit a surprisingly poor .233/.333/.314 in 102 plate appearances this year while walking less than usual and striking out at a rate higher than normal. Votto, who’s making $20MM this season and is owed up to $192MM from 2017-2024, is embarrassed by his early season performance and told C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer that he’d rather retire and forfeit the money than stick around and fail to produce. “I’m here to play and be part of setting a standard. It’s something I’ve always taken pride in,” he said. “I love to play at a really high level. So far this year, it’s not been that. I will not be a very satisfied, happy person if I don’t perform at the level that I expect.” The 32-year-old Votto, a career .309/.421/.529 hitter, is coming off a 7.4-fWAR season, so he seems like a prime candidate to return to form as 2016 progresses. “I signed up for a high-level of performance. I didn’t sign up for this just to make money,” he added.

And now for some news on a pair of Cincinnati’s division rivals…

  • There was a report Saturday stating that the Cardinals gave right-hander Carlos Martinez permission to leave the team Friday because of a civil lawsuit he’s facing in Florida. Now there’s more details on that suit, courtesy of TMZ (link via Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com). The woman suing Martinez is seeking upward of $1.5MM in damages for battery, negligent transmission of sexually transmitted diseases and fraud. She and Martinez have had an on-again, off-again relationship since 2012, according to her. As of Saturday, the Cardinals were in the process of determining whether the allegations against Martinez will lead to an investigation by Major League Baseball under its domestic violence rules. Martinez rejoined the Cardinals after his brief departure and started their game today.
  • The Pirates will ease shortstop/third baseman Jung Ho Kang back into their lineup when he returns soon from a left knee injury, general manager Neal Huntington said Sunday (link via Adam Berry of MLB.com). That could mean starting Kang two of every three games and using him as a pinch hitter or defensive replacement when he’s not in the lineup, Huntington suggested. Kang has amassed 32 at-bats during his rehab stint with Triple-A Indianapolis, and he could rejoin the Pirates once he gets anywhere from 45 to 60.
  • Cardinals shortstop Jhonny Peralta is progressing quickly in his recovery from left thumb surgery in March and could return to the majors later this month, reports Langosch. Peralta fielded grounders at short Sunday for the first time since the surgery, and the club currently plans for him to start a rehab assignment May 21. The Cardinals haven’t missed Peralta nearly as much as expected because of the virtuoso performance Aledmys Diaz has turned in at short, which means they’ll have to find a way to play both when Peralta returns. “What he’s doing, he needs to be on the team,” Peralta said of Diaz, who has hit .417/.447/.722 with four homers in the first 76 PAs of his big league career.

Reds Place Raisel Iglesias On DL With Shoulder Impingement

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The Reds have placed right-hander Raisel Iglesias on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to Tuesday with an impingement in his throwing shoulder, per a club announcement. They’ve also transferred catcher Kyle Skipworth to the 60-day DL with an ankle injury.

Iglesias was scheduled to start for the Reds in Pittsburgh today, but he felt a “pinch” in his shoulder Friday and underwent an examination Saturday that led to his placement on the DL. This isn’t the first time Iglesias’ shoulder has acted up, which is obviously alarming, as the 26-year-old dealt with fatigue last season and began his throwing program later in the spring as a result. Iglesias followed that spring program with a stellar first month of the season, throwing 28 1/3 innings of 3.49 ERA ball (9.21 K/9 and 2.22 BB/9) in five starts. He was easily the brightest spot in a Reds rotation that concluded April with the majors’ seventh-worst ERA (4.84) and second-worst FIP (5.61).

With Iglesias out of the picture for a to-be-determined amount of time, Tim Adleman will take the mound for the Reds in his big league debut today. The 28-year-old owns a 3.79 ERA, 7.4 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in 410 1/3 career minor league innings.

Pitcher Notes: C. Martinez, Giles, Reds, Heaney

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The Cardinals gave right-hander Carlos Martinez permission to leave the team Friday because of a civil lawsuit he’s facing in South Florida, ESPN reported (link via Dan O’Neill of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch), though he is now back with the club. “We are just learning of this matter. I was notified by Carlos’ agent the other night,” general manager John Mozeliak told ESPN. “We will not be in a position to act until we have more information.” Major League Baseball has not informed the Cardinals of any pending disciplinary action, according to Mozeliak. The club is in the process of determining whether the allegations made by the woman who filed the lawsuit will lead to a league investigation under its domestic violence rules, per O’Neill. Martinez, who has put up a 1.93 ERA, 6.43 K/9 and 2.57 BB/9 in four starts (28 innings) this season, is scheduled to take the mound for the Cardinals on Sunday.

More of the latest pitcher-related news from around the league:

  • Hard-throwing reliever Ken Giles hasn’t come as advertised this year after the Astros gave up a Vincent Velasquez-headlined haul for the ex-Phillie during the offseason, and he told Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle that his issues are related to mechanics. “I’m not the guy I was the past two seasons. I’m somebody completely different on the mound, and I don’t feel comfortable up there. It’s just mechanical work,” he said. Giles was an elite reliever for the Phillies from 2014-15, combining for a 1.56 ERA with an 11.75 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in 115 2/3 innings, but this season has been a nightmare for the 25-year-old. Though Giles’ strikeout and walk rates look fine (12.6 and 3.6, respectively), as does his velocity, he has already surrendered four home runs and 10 earned runs in 10 innings. Giles yielded a combined three homers and 20 earned runs during the previous two seasons. Thanks to his struggles, the Astros will “ease the burden of the eighth inning off of him a little bit,” manager A.J. Hinch said.
  • Two prospective long-term cogs in the Reds’ rotation, right-handers Raisel Iglesias and Anthony DeSclafani, are dealing with injuries, as C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer writes. Iglesias, who’s scheduled to pitch Sunday, felt a “pinch” in his throwing shoulder Friday and underwent an examination today. The Reds will know more about his status later in the day, manager Bryan Price said. This isn’t the first time Iglesias’ shoulder has acted up: The 26-year-old dealt with fatigue last season and began his throwing program later in the spring as a result, Rosecrans notes. Iglesias has been stellar early this year, having tossed 28 1/3 innings of 3.49 ERA ball (9.21 K/9 and 2.22 BB/9) in five starts. DeSclafani, meanwhile, has been out all season with a left oblique strain and felt a “sensation” in his side during a 77-pitch rehab start Friday. “We’re really doing everything we can to avoid a setback. He was good until the last inning or so, and then it was an issue,” Price stated.
  • Angels lefty Andrew Heaney won’t need surgery on the forearm strain that has kept him out for nearly all of April, but he still hasn’t been cleared to throw, according to Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register and Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com (Twitter links). Heaney will receive a platelet-rich plasma injection in his left arm, which will keep him out for six to 12 more weeks, GM Billy Eppler said (Twitter link via Fletcher). Heaney started for the Halos on April 5 and put up a decent line against the Cubs (six innings, seven strikeouts, no walks, seven hits, four runs), but he complained of left forearm tightness afterward and landed on the disabled list the next day.
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