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Braves Place Mike Soroka On DL, Select Contract Of Danny Santana

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3:57pm: Soroka says that an MRI cleared him of any structural issues, as David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets. That’s certainly good news for the team, though presumably a conservative course will still be taken.

2:10pm: The Braves have sent young righty Mike Soroka back to the 10-day DL, per a club announcement. He’s again dealing with inflammation in his pitching shoulder.

To replace him on the active roster, the Atlanta organization selected the contract of infielder/outfielder Danny Santana. A 40-man roster spot was opened for Santana by moving righty Jose Ramirez to the 60-day DL.

Soroka has been quite impressive this year, throwing 25 2/3 innings of 3.51 ERA ball in his first five MLB starts at just twenty years of age. Unfortunately, though, he already missed about a month with a shoulder ailment and is now back on the shelf.

There’s still no indication that there’s a significant underlying problem at play here, though MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweets that Soroka experienced a velocity drop-off in the midst of his last outing. Needless to say, any kind of issues in the shoulder will certainly be handled with ample care by the Braves, who are counting on Soroka to be a major contributor for years to come.

At this point, we’ll need to await further word before knowing more about Soroka’s outlook. A lengthy absence could certainly impact the team’s plans as the trade deadline approaches. Though rotation depth doesn’t seem to be a particular concern for the Braves at the time being, that can change quickly if injuries or performance issues begin to add up. And an upgrade is always a possibility, too.

The 27-year-old Santana played a significant role down the stretch last year for the Braves, but was non-tendered after the season. He ended up re-joining the organization on a minors deal.

Since his eye-popping debut season in 2014, Santana has struggled to hit at the MLB level. He has produced this year at Triple-A, though, launching 11 long balls and carrying a .539 slugging percentage Of course, Santana also maintains a meager .300 on-base percentage and has drawn just eight walks while going down on strikes 57 times.

Braves Announce Roster Decisions

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1:02pm: Atlanta will also keep Chris Stewart as a third catcher, per Robert Murray of Fan Rag (via Twitter). The veteran receiver had signed a non-guaranteed MLB deal over the winter.

9:52am: The Braves have announced a series of roster moves that set up the team’s Opening Day, 25-man unit. Third baseman Rio Ruiz has been optioned while non-roster players including righty Anibal Sanchez, outfielders Ezequiel Carrera and Danny Santana, and infielder Sean Kazmar were reassigned out of MLB camp.

These decisions reflect some shifts in thinking over recent days. It had seemed that Ruiz would open up with a shot at third base due to an injury to Johan Camargo. But the organization ended up snagging Ryan Flaherty, who now is set up to get some run at the hot corner in concert with utilityman Charlie Culberson.

Likewise, Santana long seemed a likely candidate to take a utility role from the bench, but the recent signing of Peter Bourjos seems to have bumped Santana from the immediate plans. As MLB.com’s Mark Bowman suggested earlier today on Twitter, Santana (along with Carrera) can be stashed at Triple-A to begin the season. That’s preferable to boosting either player to the 40-man and perhaps then facing an early call when it comes time to add a fifth starter. Instead, Lane Adams will now likely take an Opening Day job, barring an intervening acquisition, though the out-of-options outfielder could now be vulnerable when the roster pressure arises.

Speaking of that fifth starter’s spot, it seems the expectation remains that Sanchez will ultimately ascend to the rotation. For now, though, he’ll be assigned to Triple-A. If and when he does come up, he’ll need to be added to the 40-man roster.

While this slate of moves allows the Braves to avoid any final decisions — since control rights have been maintained over all the team’s options — that doesn’t mean that some moments of reckoning won’t soon arise. As we discussed in our review of the club’s offseason, this roster seems primed to undergo a fair bit of turnover at the start and over the course of the 2018 season.

Braves, Danny Santana Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Braves and infielder/outfielder Danny Santana have agreed to a minor league contract, reports SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (on Twitter). Atlanta non-tendered Santana last month rather than pay him a projected arbitration salary of $1.1MM (per MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz). Santana is represented by the Beverly Hills Sports Council.

Now 27 years of age, Santana was a Rookie of the Year candidate with the 2014 Twins when he debuted with a sensational .319/.353/.472 slash in 430 trips to the plate. That outstanding production, though, was buoyed by a sky-high .405 BABIP, and Santana’s output cratered in subsequent seasons when he (unsurprisingly) was not able to maintain that rate. Over the past three years, Santana has logged an unsightly .221/.255/.320 batting line in 720 plate appearances between Minnesota and Atlanta.

Though he hasn’t delivered much at the plate, Santana does bring plenty of speed and defensive versatility to the table. Santana’s 28.8 ft/sec average sprint speed (via Statcast) tied him with Jarrod Dyson and four others for 30th in the Majors, and he’s played everywhere on the diamond other than first base, catcher and pitcher in the Majors. While he doesn’t excel at any one position, that versatility pairs with his speed and switch-hitting abilities to make him at least an interesting depth option for the Braves to keep on hand in Triple-A Gwinnett.

Braves Non-Tender Matt Adams, Jace Peterson, Danny Santana

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The Braves have cleared three spots on their 40-man roster, with new GM Alex Anthopoulos cutting loose some position players even as he has moved to add multiple pitchers. First baseman Matt Adams and infielders Jace Peterson and Danny Santana have been non-tendered, the club announced.

These were the Braves players identified as possible non-tender candidates recently by MLBTR, and it turned out that all were cut loose. There was talk heading into today’s deadline that Atlanta was working to find a trade involving Adams, at least, though that obviously never came together.

Adams, a slugging first baseman, impressed enough upon landing with the Braves in the middle of 2017 that the team shifted Freddie Freeman to third base when he returned from injury. But the love affair was short-lived, as the 29-year-old Adams cooled off and settled into part-time usage. Though he finished well in September, that came in rather sparing duty.

The lefty swinging Adams ended the 2017 season with a quality overall output: 19 home runs and a .271/.315/.543 slash during his 100-game run with the Braves. But he has continued to struggle against left-handed pitching and has not shown much aptitude in the outfield, greatly limiting his function as a roster piece. At a projected $4.6MM rate of pay, the numbers just did not work out.

The other two players bring plenty in versatility but quite a bit less with the bat. Peterson, 27, was once seen as a possible future second baseman for the Braves. He turned in a solid 2016 season but scuffled to a .215/.318/.317 slash in 215 plate appearances in 2017. Similarly, the 27-year-old Santana — like Adams, an early-season addition — mustered only a .203/.245/.357 output in his 152 trips to the plate on the year. Though Peterson and Santana each projected to earn only $1.1MM in arbitration, the club evidently felt there was not enough upside to tie up roster spots and commit money to these players.

Braves Activate Sean Rodriguez

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The Braves have announced the activation of infielder Sean Rodriguez, as MLB.com’s Mark Bowman first reported on Twitter, with fellow utilityman Danny Santana also returning from a shorter DL stint. Infielder Jace Peterson and righty Jason Hursh were optioned to create active roster space, while righty Armando Rivero was bumped to the 60-day DL to open a 40-man spot (via David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, on Twitter).

Rodriguez, 32, signed a two-year, $11.5MM deal to join the Braves over the offseason. At the time, he seemed to be lined up to take regular duties at second base, while also providing an option at the hot corner depending upon how the season progressed.

An offseason car accident changed everything, though. Rodriguez has steadily worked back from a shoulder injury ever since. While it was believed at the time that he might miss the entire season, he was obviously able to make it back with plenty of games left to go.

It’s opportune timing for Atlanta, which has climbed back to .500 even as the Wild Card leaders have fallen back to earth. Qualifying for the postseason still looks to be a tall order, but it’s hardly out of the question. And Rodriguez — who slashed a career-best .270/.349/.510 last year — could provide a significant boost.

At this point, it’s not clear just how the Braves will line up. Brandon Phillips has handled everyday duties at second after being acquired to replace Rodriguez. And Freddie Freeman is now spending significant time at third base to allow Matt Adams a lineup spot at first. It seems likely that manager Brian Snitker will mix and match his lineups on a day-to-day basis, at least preliminarily.

NL East Notes: Volquez, Colon, Mets, Familia, Wheeler, Santana

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The Marlins announced yesterday that right-hander Edinson Volquez was placed on the 10-day DL with left knee tendinitis.  Recent reports have stated that Volquez’s knee issue isn’t very serious, and the placement appears designed mostly to extend his rest while keeping an extra player on hand — four of Volquez’s minimum 10 days will be taken up by the All-Star break, of course.  In a big-picture sense, the Marlins may want to ensure that Volquez is healthy and fully rested to put on a few more showcase outings before rivals decide whether to pursue him at the trade deadline.

Here’s more from around the NL East…

  • The Mets were “stunned” by Bartolo Colon’s decision to sign with the Twins, a team source tells Mike Puma of the New York Post.  The club believed that Colon’s recent history with the Mets and the fact that he still owns a home in New Jersey would give them the edge in the hunt for the veteran right-hander, though Colon chose a minor league deal with Minnesota over the Mets and at least a couple of other suitors.
  • Also from Puma’s piece, he notes that Mets closer Jeurys Familia will initiate a throwing program during the All-Star break.  Familia underwent surgery to remove a blood clot in his throwing shoulder in mid-May and was originally projected to begin throwing six weeks after that procedure.  Despite being slightly behind that timeframe, Familiar is still hopeful of returning to action before the season is over.
  • Zack Wheeler apparently won’t face any innings restrictions during the second half of the season, a source tells Newsday’s Marc Carig.  Wheeler is on pace for roughly 140 innings after missing all of 2015-16 recovering from Tommy John surgery, and he got off to a strong start to the season before getting rocked for 15 runs in 3 2/3 IP over consecutive starts in June.  Wheeler went on the DL with biceps tendinitis and then lasted only 3 2/3 innings in his return start, so clearly his health will remain some concern to the Mets, even if Wheeler isn’t being put on an innings limit.
  • The Braves have placed utilityman Danny Santana on the 10-day DL with a bacterial infection on his calf, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman writes.  Further tests are required to indicate whether or not Santana has a staph infection.  Atlanta acquired Santana from the Twins in May, and he has hit .230/.287/.402 in 94 PA for the Braves, though he has recently performed better at the plate after a slow start.  Santana has also provided the Braves with some useful versatility, starting games at second base, third base and all three outfield spots.

NL East Notes: Pill, Ruiz, Marlins, Glover

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The Mets are promoting Triple-A righty Tyler Pill to join their pitching staff, MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reports (Twitter link). It’s not clear exactly what role Pill will have with the club, though DiComo does note that Jacob deGrom is healthy and is making his start tonight, so Pill won’t be stepping directly into the rotation. Pill, who turns 27 this weekend, has done a nice job keeping runs off the board in a tough Las Vegas environment this year, tossing 46 innings with a stellar 1.96 ERA. His secondary stats aren’t as encouraging, as he’s averaged just 4.5 K/9 against 2.7 BB/9 with a 43.4 percent ground-ball rate. Pill isn’t on the Mets’ 40-man roster, meaning New York will have to make some type of move in order to formally select his contract from Triple-A.

Elsewhere in the NL East…

  • Rio Ruiz wasn’t called upon when Adonis Garcia hit the disabled list last week, but after being promoted in the wake of Freddie Freeman’s injury, the 23-year-old corner infielder has impressed the Braves enough that he’ll likely remain their primary third baseman upon Garcia’s activation, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reports. Atlanta still has some questions about Ruiz’s strikeout tendencies and ability to hit lefties, but his .320/.393/.480 start to his career and .262/.305/.447 effort thus far in Triple-A have apparently earned him some trust. (It probably doesn’t hurt Ruiz’s case that Garcia was struggling to a dismal .237/.278/.348 batting line at the time he was placed on the DL.) With Garcia nearing activation from the DL, the roster spots of Emilio Bonifacio and Danny Santana could be at risk, Bowman adds.
  • The potential price tag in a sale of the Marlins could dip further below the reported $1.3 billion mark that both the Derek Jeter/Jeb Bush and Tom Glavine/Tagg Romney groups were said to be willing to exceed, reports FanRag’s Jon Heyman. Heyman spoke to one person with knowledge of the Bush-Jeter group in particular and said that group is still short of the necessary capital to formally make such a bid. He adds that some potential suitors for the Marlins have backed away after looking “under the hood,” so to speak, which gels with previous reports that the team’s lack of revenue and long-term payroll commitments could be negatively impacting the sale process.
  • Though he’d already been operating in such a capacity without the title, Koda Glover has been officially labeled the Nationals’ closer by manager Dusty Baker, writes MASNsports.com’s Mark Zuckerman. “We wanted to break him in slowly because this guy’s … shoot, he’s only a year-and-a-half out of college,” said Baker. “So he had said that’s the job he wanted, and so it’s his now.” Glover took the reins from veteran righty Shawn Kelley after Kelley blew a save recently and has excelled since being activated from a minor DL stint. The 24-year-old hasn’t been scored upon in his past five appearances and has been the Nationals’ most effective reliever in 2017, tossing 14 innings with a 2.57 ERA, 7.1 K/9, 1.3 BB/9 and a 47.6 percent ground-ball rate.

Braves Acquire Danny Santana From Twins For Kevin Chapman

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The Braves and Twins have announced a swap that will send infielder/outfielder Danny Santana to Atlanta in exchange for lefty Kevin Chapman and cash considerations. Santana had been designated for assignment by Minnesota.

Atlanta will hope that Santana represents an upgrade for the team’s beleaguered bench. Lane Adams was optioned to open an active roster spot, while the club moved Micah Johnson to the 60-day DL to create 40-man space.

Santana, a 26-year-old switch-hitter, brings plenty of defensive versatility in the field and good speed on the bases. But he has struggled badly at the plate in recent years, posting a cumulative .225/.258/.310 batting line since the start of the 2015 season — with 131 strikeouts against just 19 walks. What remains tantalizing about him, however, was his debut campaign back in 2014, when he slashed .319/.353/.472 with seven home runs and twenty stolen bases.

Chapman has also shown both his talent and some limitations over the years. Across 55 total MLB frames, he owns a 4.09 ERA with 7.9 K/9 against 5.1 BB/9. He has shown bigger swing-and-miss potential at times in the upper minors, though. Since being claimed and outrighted by the Braves, Chapman has tamped down on the walks — a career-low 2.3 per nine — but has been touched for ten earned runs on 14 hits over 11 2/3 innings.

Twins Designate Danny Santana

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The Twins have designated infielder/outfielder Danny Santana for assignment, as Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com was among those to report on Twitter. His roster spot was needed with utilityman Ehire Adrianza and righty Drew Rucinski headed onto the active roster. (The former was on the DL; the latter had his contract selected.)

Santana, 26, broke into the league with a stunning 2014 season in which he slashed .319/.353/.472 with seven home runs and twenty steals. But he also went down on strikes 98 times while drawing 19 walks, portending some difficulty maintaining that level of production.

As it turned out, Santana has fallen flat offensively ever since. It was much the same this year, as his playing time dwindled. All told, Santana has posted an anemic .225/.258/.310 batting line since the start of 2015. And though he has played up the middle in the infield and outfield, Santana hasn’t rated well at shortstop or in center.

AL Central Notes: Sale, Quintana, Davis, Wang, Santana

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Over the weekend, Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago reported that the Red Sox weren’t willing to include Jackie Bradley in a trade for either Chris Sale or Jose Quintana, and this morning, Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports adds to that a bit. “If they didn’t get Jackie Bradley, there was no way they were doing the deal,” a person familiar with the talks told Heyman in reference to the White Sox. While there’s been plenty of speculation (and optimism from fans of other teams) that the Pale Hose could market one of their two ace-caliber lefties this winter, Heyman spoke to multiple people that indicated owner Jerry Reinsdorf still has little to no interest in parting with either Sale or Quintana, as his primary focus is putting a winner on the field right now. Sale, 28 next March, is controllable from 2017-2019 season for $38MM, while Quintana, who turns 28 in January, is owed $36.85MM from 2017-20.

More notes from the division…

  • The Royals are planning to activate All-Star closer Wade Davis from the disabled list on Friday, writes Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star. Davis might’ve been activated prior to Wednesday’s contest, he notes, but a rainout at Triple-A earlier this week delayed his final rehab appearance and, thus, his return to the active roster. Davis has been out since July 31 due to a forearm strain, and the Royals’ fortunes have certainly changed since that injury. At the time of Davis’ placement on the disabled list, he was an oft-rumored trade candidate for a Royals team that had fallen quite a ways out of contention in the American League Central and in the AL Wild Card hunt. However, despite lacking one of the game’s best relievers for more than a month, Kansas City has gone 20-8 since Davis was placed on the disabled list. They’re now 6.5 games back in the division and just three games out of the second Wild Card spot in the AL.
  • While Davis is returning, the Royals will lose right-hander Chien-Ming Wang to the disabled list, Dodd notes within that same piece. Wang is being placed on the 15-day DL due to tendinitis in his right biceps. While Wang’s numbers don’t stand out (4.22 ERA, 5.1 K/9, 3.0 BB/9), he’s yielded just two runs in his past 11 innings while working in a multi-inning role. Kansas City is hopeful that he’ll be able to return in the minimum 15 days, though expanded September rosters give Kansas City the luxury of taking things a bit slowly with his recovery.
  • Danny Santana’s season is over, as the Twins utilityman has suffered a Grade 2 sprain of the AC joint in his left shoulder and will require four to six weeks to recover from the injury, writes Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. As Berardino notes, Santana once rated as one of Minnesota’s top 10 to 15 prospects, but his struggles over the past two seasons now leave his future with the team in doubt. Santana, 25, burst onto the scene in 2014 with a .319/.353/.472 slash in 101 games, but his production was largely propped up by a BABIP north of .400. Regression was easy to project thanks to that bloated BABIP, but he’s fallen farther than even pessimistic forecasts might’ve indicated. Over the past two seasons, the switch-hitter has slashed just .227/.259/.308 in 525 plate appearances. Santana is out of minor league options, so he’ll have to remain on the active roster or be exposed to waivers before he’s eligible to be sent outright to the minors.

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