Minor Moves: Zagurski, Carson, Rogers, Storey, Loe
Here are today’s minor moves from around baseball.
- The Indians have released lefty reliever Mike Zagurski, according to MiLB.com. Zagurski pitched well for Triple-A Columbus, posting a 2.76 ERA with 12.1 K/9 and 5.5 BB/9 in 16 1/3 innings, but his minor-league contract had a June 1 opt-out date, so Zagurski may be hoping to find work in the big leagues. (Zagurski did, in fact, opt out of his deal, as the Plain Dealer’s Paul Hoynes tweets.) Zagurski appeared with the Pirates and Yankees in 2013, and has also pitched for the Phillies and Diamondbacks.
- The Dodgers have signed pitchers Robert Carson and Jhan Marinez to minor-league deals, Baseball America’s Matt Eddy tweets. The Angels recently released Carson after he walked 13 batters in 15 2/3 innings for Triple-A Salt Lake. He pitched a total of 33 innings of relief for the Mets in 2012 and 2013. The Tigers released Marinez last week after he struggled out of the bullpen at Triple-A Toledo. He appeared briefly with the Marlins in 2010 and the White Sox in 2012.
- The Blue Jays have outrighted pitcher Esmil Rogers to Triple-A Buffalo, MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm tweets. The Jays designated Rogers for assignment yesterday. Rogers had posted a 6.97 ERA with 9.1 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 20 2/3 innings with the big-league club this season. He pitched 137 2/3 innings for Toronto in 2013.
- The Jays have also re-signed pitcher Mickey Storey to a minor-league deal, MLB Daily Dish’s Chris Cotillo tweets. The Jays released Storey last month, clearing space on their 40-man roster. He’ll head back to Triple-A Buffalo, where he struggled in four outings early in the year. Storey posted a 2.56 ERA with 10.6 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 for Buffalo in 2013.
- The Phillies have announced that they have placed pitcher Luis Garcia on the 15-day DL with a right forearm strain and have selected David Buchanan‘s contract from Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Buchanan, 25, had posted a 3.98 ERA with 6.9 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 in 40 2/3 innings at Triple-A this season. He was a seventh-round pick in the 2010 draft. Buchanan will start today against the Dodgers.
- The Royals have released pitcher Kameron Loe, Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star tweets. The Royals had signed Loe to a minor-league deal in April, and he pitched in 11 innings for Triple-A Omaha, posting a 4.09 ERA while striking out four batters and walking seven. Last season, Loe pitched for the Mariners, Cubs and Braves, posting a 7.09 ERA with 5.1 K/9, 3.4 BB/9 over 26 2/3 innings. The 32-year-old has also pitched for the Rangers and Brewers in his nine-year big-league career.
Central Notes: Kluber, Cardinals, Manaea
Corey Kluber of the Indians has pitched like an ace this season, August Fagerstrom of Fangraphs writes. Fagerstrom notes that, since the beginning of 2013, Kluber’s pitching has compared favorably to that of David Price, and while Price appears likely to land a nine-figure contract in the 2015-16 offseason, Kluber remains relatively obscure. In ten starts, Kluber has produced 2.2 fWAR, behind only Felix Hernandez among all pitchers in baseball. Kluber has a 3.43 ERA so far, but with peripheral numbers that are better, with 10.1 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9. Kluber’s excellent cut fastball has been the key to his emergence, Fagerstrom writes. Here are more notes from the Central divisions.
- Given their outfield depth, the Cardinals are in good position to make trades, Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes. Miklasz cites a scout who suggests that if the Cardinals do try to make a big move, it will likely be for a third strong starting pitcher to complement Adam Wainwright and Michael Wacha.
- The Royals‘ gamble on Sean Manaea in the 2013 draft is paying off, Alan Eskew of Baseball America writes. Manaea fell to the Royals at No. 34 overall as other teams passed on him due to injury concerns. He now has a 5.40 ERA with Class A+ Wilmington, but with 3.7 BB/9 an an outstanding 13.6 K/9. Manaea has been pitching at 92-93 MPH, ranging up to 96 MPH, and the Royals have him working on his secondary pitches and on consistency in his delivery.
Quick Hits: Draft, Coffey, Hill, Bradley, Rockies, Gomes
Baseball America has released its list of the top 100 amateur prospects for this year’s draft. Interestingly, both Jeff Hoffman and Erick Fedde are still listed in the top ten, despite the fact that the pair of collegiate righties will enter the draft fresh off of Tommy John surgery. Here are some notes from around the game:
- Free agent reliever Todd Coffey impressed in a workout today, throwing his fastball consistently in the low-90s, reports Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (Twitter links). He could sign by the weekend, according to Passan. Twelve to fifteen clubs were represented at the showcase today, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Chris Cotillo of MLBDailyDish lists some of the clubs in attendance. From the American League, the Tigers, Mariners, Astros, Athletics, and Orioles sent scouts, while the Braves and Diamondbacks were among the NL clubs on hand.
- Reliever Rich Hill of the Red Sox has an opt-out date from his minor league deal tomorrow, tweets Cotillo. The nine-year MLB veteran has been strong at Triple-A, throwing to a 2.84 ERA through 19 innings pitched with 10.4 K/9 against 4.7 BB/9.
- Diamondbacks top prospect Archie Bradley is set to begin throwing and move towards a return to the rubber, reports Jack Magruder of FOX Sports Arizona (via Twitter). GM Kevin Towers said that the club does not have any further medical tests planned at present for the young hurler. Given his current situation, it seems that the club will exercise plenty of caution in promoting the 21-year-old.
- With the Rockies off to a hot start, Mark Kiszla of the Denver Post opines that the club should act decisively to seize the momentum by exploring a trade for Cubs pitcher Jeff Samardzija. While the price will surely be steep, Kiszla sas that the team should be willing to deal either of the team’s two prized young prospect arms — Jonathan Gray and Eddie Butler — to make a deal.
- The Blue Jays never saw in Yan Gomes the potential that has been unleashed since he was dealt to the Indians, writes Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca. In some part, says Davidi, that could be due to the fact that Gomes was buried in the minor league depth charts, such that he never caught more than 58 games in a single season. “Ultimately you wonder if we didn’t have other prospects that were so talented, if Yan had played more, would the development path have changed, would we have had a better feel for him?” Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos said. “We were finding places for him to play, but he was never the everyday catcher because there was always someone else who was there.” Gomes, of course, has excelled (and been rewarded with an extension) in Cleveland after coming over with Mike Aviles in exchange for reliever Esmil Rogers. “We always liked Yan,” said Anthopoulos. “Clearly he’s become a better player sooner than we would have expected. That’s not a slight against him, that’s a full credit to him.”
Minor Moves: Kottaras, Getz, Greene
Here are the day’s minor moves:
- Indians catcher George Kottaras has accepted his assignment to Triple-A, the club announced. He had the right to elect free agency, but will instead stay with the Cleveland organization.
- Second baseman Chris Getz has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A, according to a tweet from the Blue Jays‘ top affiliate announcing his activation (hat tip to MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm). The 30-year-old has played in over 450 MLB games in parts of seven seasons, but saw action in just ten contests this year for Toronto before being cleared from the 40-man. Getz will pick back up in the upper minors with a .309/.382/.338 triple-slash (with 6 stolen bases) through 76 plate appearances.
- The Braves have signed outfielder Justin Greene to a minor league deal, according to the MLB transactions page. Greene, a 28-year-old career farmhand, reached the Triple-A level with the White Sox organization in 2011 and 2012, but managed only a .244/.310/.395 line in 301 plate appearances there. Greene had a solid season for the Diamondbacks’ Double-A affiliate last year (.308/.377/.413 with 31 stolen bases), but was off to a rough .174/.245/.239 start in his first 102 trips to the plate in 2014.
- As reflected in MLBTR’s DFA Tracker, Carlos Marmol (Marlins) is the only player currently in DFA limbo. George Kottaras (Indians) is still deciding whether or not to accept his outright assignment.
AL Central Notes: Zagurski, Dozier, Molitor, Dyson
Left-hander Mike Zagurski, currently in Triple-A with the Indians, has a June 1 opt-out date on his current minor league deal, reports MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes (via Twitter). The 31-year-old Zagurski has posted a 2.08 ERA and whiffed a third of the hitters he’s faced in his 13 innings for Columbus, Dierkes points out, though he’s also walked 10 in that time. Teams in need of left-handed bullpen depth will likely keep an eye on the veteran as his opt-out draws closer.
More from the American League Central …
- Tyler Mason of FOX Sports North spoke with Twins second baseman and leadoff man Brian Dozier about the transformation he’s made in 2014. Dozier’s OBP is up from .312 to .366 thanks to the fact that he’s doubled his walk rate, and he’s also stolen 12 bases after swiping just 14 all of last season. Dozier credits new coach and Hall of Famer Paul Molitor for the change: “[W]hat’s kind of revamped everything has been having [Molitor] on the staff. It’s been night and day compared to every other year, as far as dissecting pitchers, knowing exactly what they do, their tendencies, stuff like that.” As Aaron Gleeman points out at NBC’s Hardball Talk, Molitor is also responsible for the team’s increased reliance on infield shifts in 2014.
- MLB.com’s Dick Kaegel interviewed Royals outfielder Jarrod Dyson about his ascension from growing up in the projects of McComb, Miss. to Major League outfielder. Dyson’s road hasn’t been an easy one, as Kaegel chronicles, but he credits the Royals for giving him a chance by selecting him in the 50th and final round of the MLB Draft in 2006. Dyson feels that he’s still not done developing and that he can be a regular leadoff hitter and center fielder in the Majors, whether in Kansas City or elsewhere. His preference, however, is to remain where he is: “I’d love to be here the rest of my career, because the Royals gave me an opportunity.”
Minor Moves: Hector Ambriz Accepts Outright
Here are Sunday’s minor moves from around MLB:
- The Reds have released pitcher Nick Schmidt, tweets Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish. The 28-year-old lefty pitched 14 1/3 innings for Triple-A Louisville, posting a 7.53 ERA with 11 strikeouts and ten walks. He had previously pitched in the Padres and Rockies systems.
- The Indians have released pitcher Brett Brach, who had been at Triple-A Columbus, Cotillo tweets. Brach, the brother of Orioles pitcher Brad Brach, was a 10th-round pick in 2009. He spent most of the 2013 season with Double-A Akron.
- Cotillo also notes that the Mariners have released pitcher Jonathan Arias, who had made eight relief appearances for Triple-A Tacoma. He had a 9.82 ERA there, striking out ten batters and walking seven in 14 2/3 innings. Arias, 26, had posted very good strikeout numbers at several previous minor-league stops, however.
- Right-hander Hector Ambriz has accepted his outright assignment to Triple-A by the Padres, tweets MLBDailyDish.com’s Chris Cotillo. Ambriz, who was designated for assignment Thursday, could have refused the assignment and elected free agency.
- Infielder Josh Wilson has cleared waivers, tweets Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Wilson, who was designated for assignment by the Rangers Thursday, now has 72 hours to accept an outright assignment or elect free agency.
- Catcher George Kottaras has cleared waivers, tweets CBSSports.com’s Jon Heyman. Kottaras was designated for assignment by the Indians Tuesday and now has 72 hours to accept an outright assignment or elect free agency. The 30-year-old saw only four plate appearances during his brief stint with the Indians, but he was productive smashing a pair of solo home runs and drawing one walk.
- There are four players currently in DFA limbo, per MLBTR’s DFA Tracker: Buddy Boshers (Angels), Maikel Cleto, (White Sox), Carlos Marmol (Marlins), and Chris Getz (Blue Jays).
Charlie Wilmoth contributed to this post.
Minor Moves: Tateyama, Phipps, Komatsu, Johnson
Here are today’s minor moves from around the league…
- Japanese sidearmer Yoshinori Tateyama has been released by the Yankees, according to the International League transactions page. The 38-year-old, a 12-year Nippon league veteran, came stateside in 2011 with the Rangers. In two seasons, he threw 61 innings of 5.75 ERA ball while striking out 9.0 batters per nine against 2.5 BB/9. Working out of the Yanks’ Triple-A pen this year, Tateyama carried a 6.08 ERA in 13 1/3 innings, though he did have an impressive 11.5 K/9 against just 2.0 BB/9.
- The White Sox have released 28-year-old outfielder Denis Phipps, according to the International League transactions page. Phipps was struggling at Triple-A for Chicago in 2014 with a .159/.250/.270 line in 72 plate appearances. This year was the first that Phipps spent away from the Reds, with whom he had a cup of coffee in 2012. Of course, if the Dominican never finds his way back to the bigs, he can still talk up his lifetime 1.064 OPS, even if it covers just 11 plate appearances.
- MLB.com’s Bill Ladson reports (via Twitter) that the Nationals have released outfielder Erik Komatsu. The 26-year-old was selected by the Cardinals in the 2012 Rule 5 Draft and then claimed off waivers by the Twins when St. Louis cut him loose. Komatsu made 58 total plate appearances that season, hitting .216/.293/.216 before being returned to the Nats. The former eighth-round pick, who was once traded from Milwaukee to Washington in exchange for Jerry Hairston, batted .188/.365/.271 at Triple-A this season and owns a career .232/.344/.328 batting line at that level.
- The Indians have outrighted utility man Elliot Johnson to Triple-A Columbus, according to the club’s transactions page. Johnson signed a minor league deal with Cleveland this offseason but collected just two hits with seven strikeouts and no walks in 20 plate appearances in his time with the club before being designated for assignment last week. The 30-year-old Johnson had the option to reject his assignment and pursue free agency, but the team announced that he has accepted and will report to Triple-A Columbus (Twitter link).
AL Central Links: Indians, Carroll, Tigers, Guerrier
In his latest piece for Fangraphs, Tony Blengino breaks down the Indians‘ pitching staff and why the team’s ERA has yet to live up to its peripheral stats. Blengino points out the lack of quality infield defenders as well as some difficulties in limiting contact that make it unlikely for Corey Kluber and Zach McAllister to live up to their own peripherals. Blengino concludes that while the staff is better than its 3.97 ERA, it’s not as good as its 3.40 FIP would indicate, and it isn’t good enough to save Cleveland from a mediocre defense and middling offense that ranks 12th in the AL in runs, 12th in OBP and last in slugging percentage.
More out of the AL Central…
- Scott Carroll, who is on the mound for the White Sox against the Cubs tonight, may not have been in the Majors were it not for a stroke of good luck, writes Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago. Carroll was home rehabbing from Tommy John surgery when he saw an “HBO Real Sports” special in which Steve Delabar explained how a weighted ball program saved his career following an injury. Carroll decided to try the program, and eight months removed from surgery, he had his fastball up to 94 mph.
- While many Tigers fans are calling for Corey Knebel to replace Phil Coke in the team’s bullpen, Chris Iott of MLive.com looks at why that’s unlikely at this time. While the club will likely have to switch to six right-handers eventually, it’s more likely that that scenario will happen when Joel Hanrahan is ready to join the team. Iott spoke with GM Dave Dombrowski, who said: “It is good for [Knebel} to continue his development. At this point, we have not discussed moving him, but that does not mean it cannot happen if we decide this is the best thing for him.”
- Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press writes that the Twins never officially asked Matt Guerrier to move back his opt-out clause before selecting his contract today. Guerrier says that he’s very happy to be back with the Twins, with whom he spent the first six years of his career. “This is where I wanted to be,” said Guerrier.
AL Notes: A’s, O’Flaherty, Wieters, Tomlin, Bauer
The Athletics have continued to adapt to changes in the market and the analysis of the game since the much-hyped Moneyball era, writes MLB.com’s Mike Bauman. Getting on base is still a key, says Bauman, but this year’s club is winning with success on the bases and in the field. Manager Bob Melvin explained: “A guy like Josh Reddick, even when he’s not swinging the bat well, can play because he runs the bases well and he plays good defense. There’s value to all different variables, and we do value all of them.”
- Of course, the most recent notable shift has been GM Billy Beane’s heavy investment in the bullpen, which continued with the Athletics‘ recent extension of Sean Doolittle. The club’s relief corps currently has a 2.71 collective ERA (fourth-best in the bigs), and could soon benefit from the return of Eric O’Flaherty. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the former Braves southpaw is nearing a rehab assignment and could be looking at an early June debut in Oakland. O’Flaherty was inked to a back-loaded, two-year, $7MM deal in the offseason.
- The Orioles may be holding their collective breath until tomorrow, when catcher Matt Wieters will pay a visit to Dr. James Andrews to receive an evaluation of his sore elbow, reports Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports. Though Passan notes the possibility of a UCL tear, Wieters played today in the DH slot and manager Buck Showalter downplayed the seriousness of the issue in comments to reporters, including Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (links to Twitter). Showalter said that the team simply hopes to learn more about the cause of the soreness, and hopes to have Wieters back behind the dish tomorrow.
- The Indians have struggled to nail down the back of the rotation in the early part of the season. After letting Aaron Harang go and seeing Carlos Carrasco struggle, says Zack Meisel of the Plain Dealer, the team will now give Josh Tomlin a chance to seize a regular spot. Manager Terry Francona explained that the decision-making out of camp was driven by roster limitations. “For what I think are the right reasons, we wanted to see Carlos pitch,” he said, noting that Tomlin suffered in some respects because he still had an option. “We tried to figure out a way to keep Aaron Harang. We had so many meetings about that. You want to keep depth, knowing that you’re going to need it.” Tomlin, a 29-year-old righty, was solid in his return to Cleveland tonight after missing most of 2013 to Tommy John rehab and then losing his arbitration case to the club. David Laurila of Fangraphs provided an interesting breakdown of Tomlin’s offerings and how he hopes to succeed in his return from surgery.
- Of course, the Indians also have a surging Trevor Bauer throwing at the Triple-A level. As Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes, the 23-year-old is among the top prospects in the game who are still waiting for their chance to shine at the major league level. For Bauer, who had 25 days of MLB service coming into the year, extended time in the minors would be needed to maintain an additional year of team control and avoid Super Two status. Rosenthal discusses the fact that several excellent youngsters seem ready for promotions that have not yet been forthcoming.
Indians Designate George Kottaras For Assignment
The Indians have designated catcher George Kottaras for assignment, tweets MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian. With the move, an active roster space was cleared for reliever Josh Tomlin.
The 30-year-old Kottaras saw only four plate appearances during his brief stint with the Tribe, though he delivered two home runs and drew a walk in that time. Kottaras caught on in Cleveland with a minor league deal after being released by the Cubs late in the spring. (He had been picked up by Chicago from the Royals via trade, but lost the backup battle.) Kottaras has drawn attention in the past for his ability to get on base (.355 OBP since 2012), and could appeal to some other clubs around the league.