Rockies Rumors

Rockies Promote Jordan Beck

By Steve Adams | April 30, 2024 at 1:25pm CDT

April 30: As expect, the Rockies announced that they have selected Beck’s contract and placed Jones on the injured list, retroactive to April 29, due to a low back strain. To open a 40-man spot for Beck, they transferred left-hander Lucas Gilbreath to the 60-day IL. Gilbreath underwent Tommy John surgery in March of last year. He began a rehab assignment a week ago but only recorded one out while tossing 18 pitches and hasn’t pitched since. Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post says Gilbreath is having shoulder problems. It’s unclear what his next steps are but he’ll now be ineligible to be activated until late May.

April 29: The Rockies are calling up top outfield prospect Jordan Beck for his big league debut, as first reported by Ben McKee of GoVols 24/7. He’s not on the 40-man roster, so the Rox will need to make at least one corresponding transaction and possibly two. Luke Zahlmann of the Denver Gazette reports that fellow outfielder Nolan Jones is likely headed to the injured list. Jones has been bothered by a back injury recently. He returned to the lineup Sunday but exited the game early due to continued discomfort. The Rockies are off today but open a three-game set in Miami tomorrow. McKee writes that Beck is currently traveling to Miami to join the big league club.

Beck, 23, was the No. 38 overall draft pick out of the University of Tennessee in 2022 and entered the season ranked 81st among all big league prospects, per MLB.com. He’s gotten out to a brilliant start in Triple-A Albuquerque, hitting .307/.405/.594 with five homers, ten doubles, two triples, five steals (in five attempts), a 14.9% walk rate and a 19.8% strikeout rate in 121 plate appearances. By measure of wRC+, he’s been 40% better than league average after weighting for his home park and league run-scoring environment.

It’s a strong showing for Beck and a particularly encouraging development in terms of his hit tool; he’s posted big offensive numbers at every level since being drafted, but he fanned in an alarming 31.8% of his 223 plate appearances in his first taste of Double-A last year. He moved up a rung on the minor league ladder regardless, and a month or so into the 2024 season that looks like it was the right call.

Improvement to his hit tool is vital for Beck, as scouting reports have tended to tout his above-average to plus power and average or better speed while simultaneously expressing concerns about his contact abilities. In ranking Beck fourth among Rox farmhands, Baseball America noted that he has a particular penchant for swinging through velocity at the top of the zone but otherwise tends to make good swing decisions, mitigating his contact issues on pitches thrown to other areas.

As for the 25-year-old Jones, he’s had a nightmare start to the 2024 season. In 103 plate appearances, he’s slashing just .170/.243/.277 with a 36% strikeout rate on the season. Jones impressed with a standout .297/.389/.542 showing as a rookie last year, and while some degree of regression was always fair to expect based on a .401 BABIP and 29.7% strikeout rate, this level of step back was generally unexpected. Jones is actually making more contact on pitches within the zone and chasing off the plate less often, but he’s seen his called-strike percentage balloon from 19.9% to 25.3%. His overall swing rate is down from 41.5% to 39%, and the more passive approach seems to have led to an excess of called strikes putting him behind in the count.

Assuming Beck does indeed get the call, it’ll be his first MLB look and it’ll come with what should be a legitimate chance to win a long-term role in the outfield. Jones looks to have left field locked down — assuming he can right the ship once activated — and Brenton Doyle is in the midst of a breakout performance in center field (albeit with some significant BABIP help of his own, at an unsustainable .446). However, right field is still largely up for grabs. Michael Toglia entered the season as the primary right fielder but has since been optioned to Triple-A. Sean Bouchard and Hunter Goodman have both gotten looks there but neither has established himself as an everyday player. Beck has experience across all three outfield positions though, so he could fill a variety of roles if he hits well enough to keep himself in the big leagues.

If Beck is in the majors to stay, he’d be on track for free agency following the 2030 season and would be arbitration-eligible four times as a Super Two player, beginning in the 2026-27 offseason. Future optional assignments could alter both trajectories.

Rockies, Tyler Danish Agree To Minor League Contract

By Anthony Franco | April 24, 2024 at 7:47pm CDT

The Rockies have signed Tyler Danish to a minor league deal, as first reflected on the MLB.com transaction log. He has been assigned to Triple-A Albuquerque. According to MLB.com’s Thomas Harding (on X), the right-hander will start for the Isotopes tomorrow.

Danish had just signed with the Mexican League’s Olmecas de Tabasco last week. He started once, tossing six innings of one-run ball with four strikeouts and two walks. Colorado was evidently impressed with the 29-year-old’s form, as they signed him after that lone start. He’ll apparently get a chance to continue working out of the rotation in affiliated ball. Danish has worked almost exclusively from the bullpen since 2017, when he was in Triple-A with the White Sox.

Chicago initially selected Danish in the second round of the 2013 draft. He made cameos with the White Sox between 2016-18 but didn’t get his first extended MLB opportunity until 2022. After signing a minor league contract with the Red Sox, Danish logged 40 1/3 innings over 32 relief outings in Boston. He worked to a 5.13 ERA with a below-average 18.5% strikeout percentage, although he showed solid control and kept the ball on the ground at a solid 47.2% clip.

Danish hasn’t reached the majors since the Red Sox waived him at the conclusion of the ’22 season. He signed successive minor league deals with the Yankees and Nationals a year ago. Danish spent a couple months with Washington’s Triple-A affiliate, where he posted a 3.72 ERA in 29 innings out of the bullpen. That solid run prevention figure wasn’t supported by middling strikeout and walk numbers, though, and Washington decided against calling him up when he triggered an opt-out in his deal last July. He remained on the open market until his cameo in the Mexican League served as a springboard for his next minor league chance.

Colorado has had a predictably rough rotation. No team has gotten a worse ERA from their starting staff than the Rox’s 6.29 mark. Opening Day starter Kyle Freeland recently suffered an elbow strain that’ll cost him upwards of a month. That pushed Peter Lambert from long relief to the rotation, where he joins Austin Gomber, Cal Quantrill, Ryan Feltner and offseason pickup Dakota Hudson. Righty Noah Davis might’ve been the next man up, but he recently suffered a shoulder strain and is going on the minor league injured list (as reflected on the MLB.com injury tracker).

Rockies Notes: Bryant, Jones, Freeland, Gilbreath

By Anthony Franco | April 23, 2024 at 10:29pm CDT

Kris Bryant’s frustrating Rockies tenure continued last week when the former MVP went on the injured list thanks to a lower back strain. The placement was retroactive to April 14, so he would be eligible to return tomorrow. That’s not going to happen, as manager Bud Black told reporters that the first baseman/outfielder hasn’t been cleared for baseball activities (X link via Patrick Lyons).

Black stressed that surgery is not on the table, but there’s no timeline for Bryant’s return. Injuries have been a recurring theme throughout his first three seasons in Denver. Bryant’s 2022 campaign was ended in August by plantar fasciitis in his left foot. He had multi-week absences for a heel contusion and a broken finger last year. The four-time All-Star has appeared in 135 games with Colorado, tallying 571 plate appearances. He owns a middling .249/.329/.391 batting line, including a .149/.273/.255 mark over 13 games this year.

Elehuris Montero has taken over as the primary first baseman with Bryant out. The 25-year-old has yet to take advantage of the opportunity. Montero entered tonight’s game against the Padres with a .210/.250/.226 slash in 68 plate appearances. Only the Astros have gotten less offensive production from their first basemen overall.

The corner outfield hasn’t been much better. Colorado’s left fielders entered play Tuesday with a .149/.237/.253 line, placing 28th (above the Dodgers and White Sox) by measure of wRC+. That’s mostly because of a tough start from Nolan Jones, who was arguably the team’s best player in 2023. After an impressive .297/.389/.542 showing last year, Jones has started the ’24 campaign with a .148/.219/.250 slash. He snapped an 0-26 skid with a base hit in tonight’s win over San Diego but was removed from the game in the seventh inning.

Colorado announced that Jones experienced some back stiffness (relayed by Luke Zahlmann of the Denver Gazette). The Rox will hope it’s nothing more than a blip as the 25-year-old tries to recapture last year’s form. Jake Cave came off the bench to finish the game in left and could pick up a few more at-bats if Jones needs any time off.

Injuries have also been a story on the other side of the ball. Colorado went into the season without Germán Márquez and Antonio Senzatela as they rehab from Tommy John procedures. Kyle Freeland went on the shelf with an elbow injury last week. The southpaw indicated that testing revealed a small strain in his UCL but seemed optimistic about the prognosis, suggesting that doctors didn’t expect it to worsen (link via MLB.com’s Thomas Harding). The Rockies have floated a four-to-six week timeline for Freeland’s return.

In more positive news, lefty reliever Lucas Gilbreath took a significant step forward in the recovery from his March 2023 Tommy John procedure. Colorado sent Gilbreath to Triple-A Albuquerque to begin a minor league rehab assignment. The results weren’t great — two runs on a hit and two walks with one out — yet it’s more notable that he was able to toss 18 pitches in his first affiliated game action since August 2022.

Now 28, Gibreath turned in solid results between 2021-22. He logged 85 2/3 innings with a 3.78 ERA, punching out a quarter of opponents. While he’s had below-average command, Gilbreath looked the part of a potential setup option before the surgery.

Rockies Select Ty Blach

By Nick Deeds | April 21, 2024 at 10:51am CDT

The Rockies announced that they’ve selected the contract of left-hander Ty Blach this morning. Right-hander Daniel Bard, who was sidelined for the season earlier this week by flexor tendon surgery, was placed on the 60-day injured list in a corresponding move. Colorado also announced that right-hander Noah Davis will join the club as a 27th man for today’s double-header against the Mariners.

Blach, 33, gears up for his seventh season in the majors and his third consecutive campaign in a Rockies uniform. The veteran southpaw was a fifth-round pick by the Giants in the 2012 draft and made his big league debut back in 2016. Over parts of four seasons in San Francisco, Blach proved to be a valuable swing man for the Giants with a 4.56 ERA (89 ERA+) and a 4.23 FIP in 87 appearances with the club, 39 of which were starts. Partway through the 2019 season, however, Blach was designated for assignment by the club and claimed off waivers by the Orioles. The lefty made five starts in Baltimore but struggled badly with an 11.32 ERA in 20 2/3 innings of work.

Blach found himself outrighted off the Orioles roster shortly thereafter but re-signed with the club on a minor league deal during the 2019-20 offseason. It appeared possible that Blach could make it back to the big leagues in Baltimore at some point during the 2020 campaign, but the season was shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic and Blach ultimately underwent Tommy John surgery in July of that year, just before the abbreviated campaign began. Blach remained with the Orioles on a minor league pact in 2021 and spent the season rehabbing in the minor leagues. He didn’t make it back to the big leagues before the end of the season but looked good in 16 appearances at the lower levels of the minors.

That performance was enough to earn Blach a look from the Rockies on a minor league deal prior to the 2022 season. It was the first of three consecutive minor league deals with the club and he’s been called up to the big league roster early in the season each year since. The lefty has returned to his familiar role as a swingman in Colorado with a 5.66 ERA (89 ERA+) with a 4.99 FIP in 44 appearances, 14 of which were starts. While with the Rockies, Blach has seen his velocity tick up slightly, though his 90.1 mph average on his fastball is still well below the league average and his 14.5% strikeout rate over the last two years leaves much to be desired.

Nonetheless, he’ll once again be an option for the Rockies in a long relief role or perhaps at the back of the club’s rotation. In the near-term, he’ll provide the club with a multi-inning relief option in today’s doubleheader against the Mariners alongside Noah Davis, who has struggled to a career ERA of 9.00 in 31 innings of work at the big league level since first debuting with Colorado back in 2022.

Rockies Sign Peyton Battenfield To Minors Contract

By Mark Polishuk | April 20, 2024 at 8:07am CDT

The Rockies have signed Peyton Battenfield to a minor league deal, as per the right-hander’s MLB.com profile page. In a transaction that flew under MLBTR’s radar, Battenfield was released by the Mets last month, but the 26-year-old has now caught on with the fifth different organization of his pro career.

A ninth-round pick for the Astros in the 2019 draft, Battenfield was traded to the Tampa Bay the following offseason, and then to Cleveland at the 2021 trade deadline as part of the deal that sent Jordan Luplow to the Rays. Battenfield was briefly called up to the Guardians’ active roster in 2022 but didn’t appear in a game, so his official MLB debut didn’t take place until 2023, when he posted a 5.19 ERA, 18.5% strikeout rate, and 8.2% walk rate over 34 2/3 innings for the Guards.

Some injuries in Cleveland’s rotation opened the door for Battenfield to make six starts and a relief appearance, but a bout of shoulder inflammation sent him to the 60-day injured list and he didn’t pitch in the Show again after May 17. Cleveland ended up designating Battenfield for assignment at the end of August, and the Mets claimed the righty away through Battenfield didn’t see any time on New York’s big league roster.

Battenfield has a 4.19 ERA over 210 1/3 career Triple-A innings, and a 15.48% strikeout rate that represents a sharp drop from the much stronger K-rates he posted at the lower levels of the minors. He was also burned by the long ball, after allowing seven homers in his 34 2/3 innings with the Guardians and 13 homers in 47 2/3 frames with Triple-A Columbus last season.

This vulnerability to home runs might not bode well for a move to the Rockies, but Battenfield will give pitching-needy Colorado some rotation depth. With German Marquez and Antonio Senzatela already on the mend from Tommy John surgeries last year, Kyle Freeland was also just placed on the 15-day injured list with an elbow strain yesterday. Peter Lambert will move from Colorado’s bullpen to take Freeland’s spot in the rotation, and given how the Rockies are in such dire straits when it comes to pitching, Battenfield might quickly get himself on the radar for a call-up if he performs well in the minors.

Rockies Moving Peter Lambert To Rotation

By Anthony Franco | April 19, 2024 at 9:10pm CDT

Peter Lambert will move from the Rockies bullpen to the starting rotation, manager Bud Black told reporters this evening (link via Patrick Newman of the Denver Post). He’ll step into the starting spot vacated by Kyle Freeland’s placement on the 15-day injured list. Righty Noah Davis, who was recalled from Triple-A as the corresponding move, will occupy the long relief role that Lambert had held.

The 27-year-old Lambert is no stranger to the rotation. He started 19 games as a rookie in 2019 and opened 11 of 25 appearances last season. The former second-round pick has generally struggled as a starter. He lost a spring battle with Dakota Hudson for the final spot in the Opening Day rotation, yet he has impressed out of the bullpen. Lambert has tossed 11 2/3 innings over six relief appearances, allowing just three runs. While his 10:6 strikeout-to-walk ratio isn’t particularly impressive, he has kept the ball on the ground at a huge 61.3% clip.

Freeland’s injury affords Lambert another opportunity to try to prove himself as a starter. He’ll make his first start of the season on Sunday as part of a doubleheader against the Mariners. It’s an important season for Lambert, who has quietly accrued more than three years of MLB service. He’s playing this year on a modest $1.25MM arbitration salary and will be controllable for another two seasons.

There’s clearly opportunity for Lambert to hold a spot in the rotation if he finds any level of success. Colorado’s rotation looked like arguably the worst group in MLB entering the year. It has indeed been a major problem. Their 6.33 ERA is more than a run higher than any other starting staff.

A lot of that has been because of Freeland, who entered the year as the staff ace. The veteran southpaw was tagged for 25 runs (23 earned) over his first 15 2/3 frames. His effort to figure things out will be halted for a few weeks by an elbow strain. Black told reporters that the team was hoping for a 4-6 week timeline for Freeland’s return to an MLB mound.

Rockies Place Kyle Freeland On Injured List With Elbow Strain

By Darragh McDonald | April 19, 2024 at 4:25pm CDT

4:25pm: Freeland told the Colorado beat that the injury is unrelated to the home plate collision (X link via Patrick Lyons). There’s no timetable for his return. The southpaw went for imaging but said he doesn’t expect it’ll reveal any ligament damage.

3:20pm: The Rockies announced that left-hander Kyle Freeland has been placed on the 15-day injured list with a left elbow strain, retroactive to April 16. Right-hander Noah Davis has been recalled in a corresponding move.

Freeland, 31 next month, is having a rough start to his season, having allowed 23 earned runs in 15 2/3 innings over his first four starts. Most recently, he was the subject of attention for a non-pitching appearance he made. After Freeland had started Sunday’s game, he entered Monday’s contest as a pinch runner.

Catcher Elias Díaz doubled with two outs in the top of the ninth, with the Rockies tied with the Phillies at the time. Freeland ran for Díaz and went to third on a wild pitch, then later tried to score on yet another wild pitch. But as he slid into home, he collided with pitcher Jeff Hoffman, who was receiving the ball from catcher J.T. Realmuto and attempting to make a tag. Freeland was ruled out and was visibly hurt on the play, grabbing at his non-throwing shoulder (Video via MLB.com).

After the game, manager Bud Black said that Freeland was fine, per Luke Zahlmann of the Denver Gazette. Black later explained to MLB Network Radio that a stomach virus was going around the club and a couple of guys on the team were not even present at the ballpark, meaning there was essentially no position player bench to draw from, which is why Freeland was tapped for the unusual assignment.

That injury was to Freeland’s right shoulder and today’s is a strain of his left elbow. The team has not commented on today’s injury announcement, though Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post says they’re unrelated.

Whether there’s any connection to the pinch-running situation or not, it’s bad news for the Rockies either way. They have started the season 4-15 and Freeland’s injury will further thin out a pitching staff that is arguably the worst in baseball. Collectively, Colorado pitchers have a 6.01 ERA, highest in the league. The Astros are 29th at 5.24 and will likely see some stabilization now that Justin Verlander is coming off the injured list, thus bumping everyone else down a peg.

The Rockies play in a very hitter-friendly setting but it’s still been bleak. As of a few years ago, the Colorado rotation was anchored by Freeland, Antonio Senzatela and Germán Márquez, with the Rockies signing extensions with all three of those pitchers. But the latter two both required Tommy John surgery last summer, leaving Freeland as the only member of that trio left standing.

As mentioned, Freeland wasn’t out to a great start, but in a tiny sample size. Over his entire career, he has a 4.53 earned run average despite pitching half his games at Coors Field. The Rockies gave him a five-year, $64.5MM extension going into the 2022 season. To this point, it’s unclear if Freeland is facing a significant absence, but the fact that he has an elbow strain will at least lead to some worry that yet another pitcher will be going under the knife. Even if that doesn’t come to pass, the Rockies will nonetheless be proceeding without any of their core starters for the next few weeks at least.

Davis was starting in the minors so perhaps he will step in Freeland’s rotation spot for the time being alongside Cal Quantrill, Dakota Hudson, Austin Gomber and Ryan Feltner. The club will presumably provide more details about Freeland’s prognosis, either before or after tonight’s game.

2023 Rule 5 Update: April Edition

By Steve Adams | April 17, 2024 at 7:06pm CDT

We’re three weeks into the 2024 season, and this year’s crop of Rule 5 picks has had an atypical amount of staying power. That’s perhaps in part due to the fact that only ten players were selected in the 2023 Rule 5 Draft, but as of this writing, only one Rule 5 selection has been returned to his original organization.

For those unfamiliar, in order to be eligible for the Rule 5 Draft, a player must not be on his team’s 40-man roster and must have played in either parts of five professional seasons (if they signed at 18 or younger) or four professional seasons (if they signed at 19 or older). The deadline to protect players from the Rule 5 by selecting their contracts to the 40-man roster typically falls in mid-November and spurs a good deal of player movement as teams jettison borderline players and non-tender candidates from their roster in order to protect younger prospects.

A player who is selected in the Rule 5 Draft must spend the entire subsequent season on his new club’s Major League roster and cannot be optioned to the minors. The player can technically spend time on the injured list as well, but at least 90 days must be spent on the active roster. If not, the player’s Rule 5 status rolls into the following season until 90 days on the active roster have been accrued. If a team at any point decides it can no longer carry a Rule 5 selection, that player must be passed through waivers and subsequently offered back to his original organization. Any other club can claim the player via waivers, but the same Rule 5 restrictions will apply to the claiming team.

Broadly speaking, the Rule 5 Draft rarely produces impact players. There are plenty of exceptions over the years, though, with names like Johan Santana, Dan Uggla, Shane Victorino, Joakim Soria, Josh Hamilton and, more recently, Garrett Whitlock and Trevor Stephan thriving in new organizations. The Rule 5 Draft dates back more than a century and has even produced a handful of Hall of Famers: Roberto Clemente, Hack Wilson and Christy Mathewson.

It’s unlikely we’ll see any Cooperstown-bound players come from this year’s crop, but the teams who opted to select a player will be content if any of these names become a viable reliever or role player for the next several seasons. Here’s a look at this year’s group of ten Rule 5 players and where they stand. We’ll do a few of these throughout the season, keeping tabs on which players survive the season and formally have their long-term rights transferred to their new clubs.

On a Major League Roster

Mitch Spence, RHP, Athletics (selected from Yankees)

Spence, 26 next month, was the first overall pick in this year’s Rule 5 Draft, and understandably so after the 2023 season he had. His 4.47 ERA might’ve been pedestrian, but the 2019 tenth-rounder led all Triple-A pitchers with 163 innings while delivering a nice blend of strikeouts (21.8%), walks (7.5%) and ground-balls (50%). For an A’s club desperately thin on starting pitching after the slew of rebuilding-driven trades for minor league arms have failed to produce much, adding a 25-year-old arm with that type of season held obvious appeal.

Spence made Oakland’s decision easy with a monster spring showing. He pitched 17 2/3 innings and allowed only six earned runs (3.06 ERA) on 15 hits and six walks with 21 punchouts. He’s worked out of the ’pen so far in Oakland but could very well find himself making starts later in the year. Through his first 11 2/3 MLB frames, Spence has yielded four earned runs on 10 hits and four walks with a 48.4% grounder rate. He’s not in danger of losing his spot anytime soon.

Matt Sauer, RHP, Royals (selected from Yankees)

Another 25-year-old righty out of the Yankees organization, Sauer came to his new club with a much heavier draft pedigree than his now-former teammate, Spence. The Yankees selected the 6’4″ righty with the No. 54 overall pick back in 2017, but Sauer didn’t develop as quickly as hoped. He was set back by 2019 Tommy John surgery and the canceled 2020 minor league season. He’s never topped 111 innings in a season, but Sauer rebuilt some prospect pedigree with a nice 2023 season that saw him pitch 68 1/3 innings of 3.42 ERA ball in Double-A. He whiffed 29.5% of his opponents, albeit against a less palatable 10.3% walk rate.

Like his former teammate, Sauer had a nice spring that made the decision relatively easy for his new club. In 10 2/3 innings, he held opponents to three earned runs (2.53 ERA) on 13 hits and three walks with 13 strikeouts. He opened the season in the Kansas City bullpen and has thus far pitched five innings, allowing a pair of runs in that time. Sauer has walked four of his 25 opponents and fanned just two thus far. It’s a small sample, of course, but he’ll need to reverse that early trend to hang onto his roster spot — especially if the Royals continue their hot start and find themselves contending into the summer.

Anthony Molina, RHP, Rockies (selected from Rays)

The 22-year-old Molina worked as a starter in the Rays’ system last year, taking the ball 28 times (27 starts) and pitching 122 innings with a 4.50 ERA. The undersized righty has garnered praise for a solid-average heater and above-average changeup, and he showed good command in 2023 after struggling with walks earlier in his minor league career. Molina continued to show good command in spring training (in addition to a massive 60.5% grounder rate), but the regular season has been brutal for him thus far. In three appearances, he’s been tattooed for a dozen runs on 13 hits and four walks with just two strikeouts. The Rockies can afford to be as patient as they want. They’re 4-13 on the season and were never expected to contend. Still, Molina will need to improve on his early performance in order to stick on the roster.

Nasim Nunez, INF, Nationals (selected from Marlins)

The Nationals have effectively played the season thus far with a 25-man roster. Nunez made the Opening Day squad but has been M.I.A. since. He’s appeared in just five of Washington’s 16 games and received only two plate appearances, going hitless in that meaningless sample. Nunez is an all-glove and speed prospect who hit just .224/.341/.286 in Double-A last season. He did go 52-for-59 in stolen base attempts, and scouting reports have long touted his defensive excellence at shortstop. He hit just .152/.200/.182 in 35 spring plate appearances.

It’s fair to wonder how long the Nats can essentially punt a roster spot by keeping Nunez on the bench, but like the Rockies, they’re not expecting to contend this season anyhow. One would imagine that from a pure developmental standpoint, they need to find a way to get Nunez into some games and start getting him some playing time, but for now, the team appears content to just hide the 23-year-old on the bench.

Ryan Fernandez, RHP, Cardinals (selected from Red Sox)

Fernandez, 25, has just four appearances out of the St. Louis bullpen so far and has been understandably deployed in low-leverage spots while he acclimates to the majors. He’s pitched fairly well in sparse duty, holding opponents to three runs (two earned) in 5 2/3 innings. Fernandez has averaged just under 96 mph on his heater, fanned seven opponents and issued three walks. His swinging-strike rate isn’t close to where it’s been in his minor league work, but his wipeout slider has been strong thus far. Fernandez has finished off eight plate appearances with that pitch, picking up four strikeouts and yielding only one hit. Nothing he’s done so far makes it seem like he’ll be cut loose anytime soon.

Justin Slaten, RHP, Red Sox (selected by Mets from Rangers; traded to Red Sox for LHP Ryan Ammons)

While most Rule 5 relievers are eased into low-pressure spots, that hasn’t been the case with the Sox and Slaten. He held a four-run lead to pick up a seven-out save in the team’s fourth game of the season, and the 6’4″ righty has since tallied three holds out of Alex Cora’s bullpen. In 10 1/3 innings, Slaten has allowed only one run on three hits and a walk with eight strikeouts. Add in 6 1/3 shutout innings in spring training, and he’s looked more like a seasoned veteran than a 26-year-old who entered the season with all of 8 1/3 innings above the Double-A level. Slaten has immediately made himself an important part of Boston’s roster, and while a prolonged slump could always change things, he looks like a keeper right now.

Stephen Kolek, RHP, Padres (selected from Mariners)

Kolek, who’ll turn 27 tomorrow, began his big league tenure with four runs in 1 2/3 innings over his first two appearances. He’s since bounced back with 8 2/3 innings of one-run ball, fanning 11 hitters against three walks along the way. He punched out nearly a quarter of his opponents in Triple-A last year and did so with a huge 57.5% ground-ball rate. He hasn’t picked up grounders at such a strong level just yet (43.5%), but San Diego probably isn’t second-guessing their decision to select him. He’s already picked up a pair of holds, and his recent run of success has dropped his ERA to 4.35. Command has been a problem for Kolek in the past, but he’s only walked 8.9% of his opponents against a 26.7% strikeout rate so far.

On the Major League Injured List

Shane Drohan, LHP, White Sox (selected from Red Sox): Drohan underwent shoulder surgery in late February and is on the 60-day IL. There’s no telling yet when he’ll be medically cleared to return. As noted in the intro, Drohan needs 90 days on the active roster to shed his Rule 5 designation; even if he spends the entire 2024 campaign on the injured list, his Rule 5 status will carry over into 2025 until he picks up those 90 active days.

Carson Coleman, RHP, Rangers (selected from Yankees): Coleman is also on the 60-day injured list. Unlike Drohan, it was well known at the time of his selection that he’d be IL-bound to begin the year. Coleman had Tommy John surgery last year and is expected to be out until midsummer at the least.

Returned to Original Organization

Deyvison De Los Santos, INF, Guardians (returned to D-backs): De Los Santos has big raw power but a well below-average hit tool. The Guardians selected him on the heels of a 20-homer campaign in Double-A with the D-backs, but he hit just .227/.227/.318 in 44 spring appearances before being designated for assignment, clearing waivers and getting returned to the Snakes. He’s had a big performance in a return-trip to Double-A.

Rockies Place Kris Bryant On Injured List Due To Back Strain

By Darragh McDonald | April 17, 2024 at 1:45pm CDT

The Rockies announced that they have recalled outfielder Sean Bouchard from Triple-A Albuquerque. He will take the roster spot of first baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant, who has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a low back strain, retroactive to April 14.

Bryant, 32, crashed into the wall at Rogers Centre this weekend while catching a ball off the bat of Vladimir Guerrero Jr.(video clip via MLB.com). He was later removed from that game and hasn’t been back in the lineup since. The fact that he wasn’t immediately placed on the IL perhaps suggests he could return after a brief absence, though further updates will perhaps provide more information. Since the move was backdated by three days, Bryant could theoretically be back with the club in a week.

Going into the 2022 season, the Rockies and Bryant agreed to a seven-year, $182MM contract. The deal has not provided the results the club had hoped for to this point, which is putting it mildly. Bryant hit well in 2022 but only played 42 games due to back problems and left foot plantar fasciitis. Last year, a left heel bruise and a fractured left index finger led to IL stints. Bryant still got into 80 games but his production dipped, and he was also out to a slow start here in 2024.

Overall, Bryant has appeared in 135 games since joining Colorado, taking 571 plate appearances. He has hit .249/.329/.391 for a wRC+ of 86. That’s well shy of the .278/.376/.504 line he put up through the 2021 season, production which translated to a 134 wRC+. There’s still plenty of time for Bryant to turn things around but each trip to the IL will only compound the frustration among the Colorado fans as the largest free agent signing in franchise history continues to go for nought.

Bryant had been playing both first base and right field prior to his injury. Elehuris Montero has seemingly taken over at the regular at first, with the outfield spots filled by Brenton Doyle, Nolan Jones and Michael Toglia. Veteran Charlie Blackmon has mostly been in the designated hitter slot but has played some right field on occasion.

Jake Cave is on the roster as a reserve outfielder but he will now be joined by Bouchard, who turns 28 next month. Bouchard has a stout line of .304/.429/.563 in his major league career, though in a small sample of 140 plate appearances. He seemed to have a chance to earn a regular role to start the 2024 season but hit just .205/.308/.341 in the spring. However, he has mashed since reporting to Triple-A, putting up a line of .315/.431/.611 so far this year.

NL West Notes: Padres, Yankees, Soto, Montgomery, Treinen, Bryant

By Mark Polishuk | April 14, 2024 at 4:38pm CDT

As one might expect, December’s blockbuster Juan Soto trade between the Padres and Yankees took on several different permutations before the two sides finally agreed on the seven players involved. The New York Post’s Jon Heyman reports that the Padres had interest in 17 different Yankees players before finally agreeing on a package of four pitchers (Michael King, Randy Vasquez, Jhony Brito, Drew Thorpe) and catcher Kyle Higashioka in exchange for Soto and Trent Grisham. Clarke Schmidt and Chase Hampton were two of the other pitchers known to be considered when reports began to surface about the trade negotiations, and Heyman adds that the Yankees agreeing to include Thorpe instead of Hampton was one of the turning points in getting the deal done.

Though San Diego ended up taking a pitching-heavy mix of players, Heyman writes that the Friars also asked about such noteworthy position-player prospects as Spencer Jones, Roderick Arias, and George Lombard Jr. Jones is a top-100 prospect and the 25th overall pick of the 2022 draft, and he has already drawn lots of trade buzz early in his pro career. The Yankees have thus far balked at moving Jones, even in past talks with the Brewers and White Sox about Corbin Burnes and Dylan Cease, respectively.

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