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Red Sox Place Trevor Story On 10-Day Injured List

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Red Sox second baseman Trevor Story has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a right hand contusion, retroactive to July 14.  Story hasn’t played since July 12, when he was hit by a pitch on his right hand.  Catcher Connor Wong has been called up to take Story’s spot on the active roster.

X-rays were negative on Story’s hand, so it appears as though he avoided any long-term damage, even if he hasn’t been ready to play for the better part of a week.  The Sox had been hoping that Story could play during this series against the Yankees, but with the All-Star break looming, the club may have opted to give Story a chance to fully recover.  Between the backdated placement and the four days of the break, Story would be eligible to be activated on July 24, during Boston’s series with the Blue Jays to open up the second half.

It has been an up-and-down start to Story’s Red Sox tenure, as his first 342 plate appearances in a Boston uniform have resulted in a .221/.289/.423 slash line and 15 home runs.  This translates to below-average (93 wRC+/94 OPS+) offensive production overall, and Story has only one truly red-hot stretch to his name this year, when he crushed nine homers over a 63-PA stretch in May.  He is among the league leaders in strikeout rate, as his 30.7% mark is his highest since the 2017 season.

This production is well below what Story delivered in his prime years with the Rockies, and it surely isn’t what the Red Sox expected when they signed Story to a six-year, $140MM deal in March.  The team can only hope Story heals up and then uses the All-Star break as something of a reset, since an in-form Story would be a huge boost to Boston’s chances of reaching the postseason.  Promisingly, Story has a tendency to come on late, with an .894 career OPS in the second half of the season (as opposed to an .815 OPS in the first half).

Dodgers To Sign Hansel Robles

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The Dodgers have agreed to a deal with right-hander Hansel Robles, reports Mike Rodriguez of Univision (Twitter link). It’s a minor league contract, tweets Juan Toribio of MLB.com. Robles was released by the Red Sox earlier this week.

Robles, 32 next month, has long been a tantalizing late-inning arm who’s been prone to inconsistent performance despite possessing impressive raw stuff. The right-hander averaged 96.2 mph on his heater with the Red Sox this season, which ranks in the top 15 percent of MLB hurlers, and has fanned more than a quarter of his opponents in 427 1/3 innings scattered across parts of eight big league seasons. However, Robles logged a career-low 18.9% strikeout rate this year against a career-high 12.6% walk rate, and the resulting 5.84 ERA through 24 2/3 innings prompted the Sox to eventually move on.

Walks have always been an issue for Robles (career 10.2%), but at his best he’s shown the ability to miss bats in bunches, thanks to that power fastball and a pair of secondary offerings in his changeup and slider. The changeup has long rated  as the better of the two pitches, per FanGraphs’ run values, and that’s all the more true in recent seasons. Opponents slugged .594 against Robles’ slider this season, ripping a pair of doubles and three home runs off the pitch.

The Dodgers’ bullpen isn’t at full strength right now, so it’s only natural that they’d be intrigued by a veteran power arm who has, at times, looked like a very capable late-inning reliever. Blake Treinen has been shelved for the past three months due to shoulder troubles, while Daniel Hudson — who’d been one of the team’s best setup options — suffered an unfortunate ACL tear when fielding a grounder last month. Flamethrowing sinker specialist Brusdar Graterol hit the injured list just yesterday due to a shoulder issue, and the team has yet to announce the results of today’s followup imaging. Right-hander Tommy Kahnle has been out since May due to a bone bruise in his right elbow.

Robles is far from the first veteran pickup whom the Dodgers have opted to stockpile in the minors. They’ve also added righties Pedro Baez and Dellin Betances, although Betances has struggled in Triple-A, while Baez is only just building back up with the Dodgers’ Rookie-level club after a shutdown period. He’s thrown three scoreless innings but is presumably not an option in the very near term.

Robles seems likely to join Betances in Oklahoma City, and if he can get on track in a hurry, there could be a bullpen opportunity before long — particularly if Graterol is to miss an extended period of time. The Dodgers will, of course, be active in the weeks leading up to the trade deadline, so it’s certainly possible — if not likely — that they’ll add some more established help to an injury-depleted relief corps in the next 18 days.

Red Sox Notes: Eovaldi, Whitlock, Barnes, Strahm, Story

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The Red Sox dropped their third straight game against the Rays this evening, falling to 47-42 in the process. That puts them in a three-way tie with the Mariners and Blue Jays for the American League’s final two Wild Card spots (a game and a half back of Tampa Bay).

Despite the recent dip, Boston remains in the thick of playoff contention. They’ve spent the past few weeks down a handful of their top arms, but they’re expected to welcome a few pitchers back in the coming days. Jen McCaffrey of the Athletic tweets that Nathan Eovaldi, out for a little more than a month with back inflammation, is expected to take the ball Friday night against the Yankees. He’s likely to be joined on the staff by Garrett Whitlock, whom McCaffrey adds is also slated for a likely weekend reinstatement. Whitlock has missed a similar amount of time battling hip inflammation.

Eovaldi will step back into a starting rotation that has subsequently seen Rich Hill and Michael Wacha also land on the IL. Whitlock, on the other hand, is expected to transition back into a multi-inning relief role. An elite late-game arm during his rookie season, the righty has started nine of his 13 appearances this year. Club personnel have suggested in recent weeks they prefer Whitlock as a high-leverage stopper who’s capable of working multiple innings out of the bullpen. He’ll team with closer Tanner Houck and breakout righty John Schreiber among the top options for skipper Alex Cora in the later innings.

Matt Barnes was formerly in that mix, but he’s had a nightmarish past 12 months. A deserved All-Star in 2021 after an excellent first half, the right-hander struggled enough down the stretch to be scratched from the initial postseason roster. That continued for the first couple months of this year, as Barnes posted a 7.94 ERA with career-worst strikeout and walk numbers before being placed on the injured list on May 31 with shoulder inflammation.

Boston transferred Barnes from the 15-day to the 60-day IL prior to tonight’s game. The move created the necessary 40-man roster spot to reinstate catcher Kevin Plawecki from the COVID-19 list. That rules Barnes out for 60 days from his initial placement, meaning he won’t be eligible to return until the end of the month. The 32-year-old figures to be ready for reinstatement around that point, as he’s made a pair of rehab appearances in complex ball over the past few days.

The Sox could also be facing an absence for Matt Strahm, who suffered a left wrist contusion after being struck by a comebacker last night. Chris Cotillo of MassLive writes that the southpaw is listed as day-to-day after x-rays came back negative. That’s also true of second baseman Trevor Story, who has a right hand contusion after being hit with a pitch in the same contest. Story told reporters he’s hopeful he can avoid the injured list, but that’s dependent on how he heals over the next few days.

Boston is surely hopeful Strahm will be able to dodge the IL as well, as he’s been arguably the club’s top left-handed bullpen arm. Through 27 2/3 innings, he owns a 3.58 ERA. Strahm has punched out a strong 27.1% of batters faced against a tidy 5.9% walk rate. He figures to remain in a high-leverage position for the remainder of the season, but the impending free agent is hoping to expand his role next year.

Strahm recently told Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic he’s hoping to land a rotation opportunity on the open market. That’s not completely unfamiliar territory, as he was a starting pitching prospect throughout his minor league tenure. Strahm has made 25 starts in the big leagues, 16 of which came with the Padres in 2019.

The 30-year-old pointed out to Rosenthal that he has an atypically deep repertoire for a reliever, featuring five pitches. According to Statcast, he’s used each of his four-seam, slider, curveball and sinker at a greater than 10% clip this season. Strahm has also consistently avoided free passes in recent years, and he’s never been prone to dramatic platoon concerns. For his career, he’s been a bit more effective against right-handed hitters (.230/.296/.397) than lefties (.254/.326/.402). That trend has continued in 2022.

That combination could make Strahm a dark-horse rotation candidate for clubs this winter, similarly to the Angels giving Michael Lorenzen a rotation job after a few years of bullpen work in Cincinnati. In the interim, he figures to remain a key reliever (assuming health) as Boston jockeys for a playoff spot.

Michael Feliz Elects Free Agency

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Reliever Michael Feliz has passed through outright waivers unclaimed and elected minor league free agency, tweets Chris Cotillo of MassLive. Boston designated him for assignment last weekend.

Feliz is no stranger to the waiver wire, having bounced between four different organizations over the past two seasons. The right-hander had spent the 2018-20 campaigns with the Pirates, racking up high strikeout totals but typically showing erratic control. He shuttled around the league last year, suiting up with the Reds, Red Sox and A’s after being let go by the Bucs in May. Last offseason, Feliz returned to Boston on a minor league pact.

The 29-year-old has spent much of the season with Triple-A Worcester. He worked to a 3.28 ERA across 24 2/3 innings with the WooSox, striking out a solid 27.7% of batters faced while walking a league average 8.9% of opponents. That generally solid work earned Feliz a big league call last week, but his stay on the roster proved brief. He made just one appearance, soaking up 3 1/3 frames of mop-up work in a loss to the Yankees, before being taken off the roster.

Now that he’s back on the open market, the hard-throwing Feliz should be able to find another minor league opportunity elsewhere. He’s appeared in each of the past eight big league seasons, combining for a 5.28 ERA through 250 career innings. Feliz has fanned nearly 30% of opponents at the major league level, and some clubs will surely look into him as a non-roster bullpen option based on that track record of inducing whiffs.

Injured List Transactions: Sale, Jansen, Garver

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The Red Sox reinstated Chris Sale to make his season debut tonight against the Rays, as had been reported last week. The veteran southpaw missed the first few months of the year after he was diagnosed with a stress fracture in his rib during Spring Training. It’s the third straight injury-impacted season for Sale, who missed all of 2020 and the bulk of 2021 recovering from Tommy John surgery. His return is a necessary welcome development for a Boston club that has five starting pitching options (Nathan Eovaldi, Michael Wacha, Rich Hill, Garrett Whitlock and Connor Seabold) on the 15-day injured list at the moment.

Boston optioned rookie right-hander Brayan Bello to Triple-A Worcester in a corresponding active roster move. The 23-year-old, who’s one of the best pitching prospects in the organization, was promoted last week and made his first two big league starts. Bello surrendered nine runs with seven strikeouts and six walks in eight innings, however, so the club will send him back to the minors for a bit. A 40-man roster vacancy for Sale was created yesterday when catcher Kevin Plawecki landed on the COVID-19 injured list, but Boston will need to make another move in that regard once Plawecki is cleared to return.

Updates on a pair of other notable injury moves:

  • The Blue Jays welcomed back catcher Danny Jansen from the 10-day injured list, installing him right into tonight’s starting lineup against the Phillies. The 27-year-old missed a month after fracturing a finger on his left hand, his second notable injury of the season. That and an April oblique strain have limited Jansen to just 19 games thus far, but he’s blasted seven home runs in limited action. In a corresponding active roster move, top prospect Gabriel Moreno was optioned back to Triple-A Buffalo. A consensus top prospect, Moreno was promoted for his MLB debut shortly after Jansen went down. The 22-year-old only collected one extra-base hit (a double) in his first 60 trips to the plate as a big leaguer, though. With Jansen back and the Jays firmly in win-now mode, they’ll turn back to the veteran while giving Moreno regular reps in Triple-A. Across 36 games with the Bisons, Moreno is hitting .324/.380/.404.
  • Last night, the Rangers transferred catcher/designated hitter Mitch Garver from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list. That’s not a surprise, as he’ll miss the rest of the season after undergoing season-ending surgery to repair the injured flexor tendon in his forearm. The move freed a spot on Texas’ 40-man roster, which Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News suggests (on Twitter) is likely to go to reliever Jonathan Hernández. The right-hander hasn’t pitched in the majors since undergoing Tommy John surgery in April 2021, but he’s been on a rehab stint at Triple-A Round Rock for the past month and a half. Grant notes that his allotted rehab window wraps up tomorrow, meaning he’ll have to be reinstated from the 60-day IL or shut down from his rehab entirely. The former seems likelier, as manager Chris Woodward suggested Hernández should be back with the big league club soon.

AL Notes: Gausman, Forst, Athletics, Olson, Refsnyder

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Kevin Gausman won’t start tomorrow’s game against the Mariners, as the Blue Jays righty is still recovering from a bone bruise on his right ankle.  Gausman hasn’t pitched since suffering the injury on July 2, but Jays manager Charlie Montoyo told Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi and other reporters that the team is hoping Gausman can return to the mound on Tuesday when the Blue Jays host the Phillies.

Toronto’s struggling rotation hasn’t been helped by Gausman’s absence, as the Jays’ lack of depth was already being stretched by a recent doubleheader against the Rays, and Ross Stripling’s move to the rotation to replace the injured Hyun Jin Ryu.  Since June 14, the Blue Jays have a 9-16 record, and their pitchers have a cumulative 5.49 ERA — the second-highest total of any team in baseball in that stretch.  Rotation help certainly seems like the Jays’ top priority heading into the trade deadline, but in the short term, the club is just trying to hang onto its status as a wild card team.

More from around the American League…

  • In a wide-ranging interview with The Athletic’s Melissa Lockard, A’s general manager David Forst discussed his team’s struggles, the young talent on the roster and in the farm system, the pitching development team, and many other topics.  Forst also noted how the continued uncertainty over the Athletics’ future in Oakland impacts long-term planning, saying “this is sort of almost cliché at this point, but it’s hard, without a ballpark direction and timeline, to really make a plan on what the next few years look like.  Even internally, it’s hard to know what the team will look like the next couple of years.”
  • Forst also talked some trade possibilities both in the future and in the past, noting that of all the Athletics’ moves during the winter, the deal that sent Matt Olson to the Braves “was the one that we had most discussed prior to the lockout.”  Most of the other notable deals were largely negotiated post-lockout, however, leaving the A’s with little time to both remake their roster and bring in new talent.  “That’s why I sort of say there weren’t enough days to make those deals — which again, we knew we were gonna have to do — and also find ways…to get the current team to the level that we’ve sort of become accustomed to,” Forst said.  No such time crunch exists with the upcoming trade deadline, and to that end, Forst (unsurprisingly) said “there’s no panic” about moving Frankie Montas prior to August 2.  “We didn’t trade him in Spring Training because there wasn’t a trade that made sense for us.  That will continue to be the case.  Whether it’s at the deadline or next offseason or whatever, there’s not a feeling at all that in the next 30 days we have to trade Frankie Montas.”
  • Rob Refsnyder has been an unexpected hero for the Red Sox, posting a .931 OPS over 69 plate appearances since Boston selected his contract on June 10.  Refsnyder inked a minor league deal with the Sox just prior to the lockout, and he also drew interest from the Yankees during the offseason, according to Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal (hat tip to MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch).  It would’ve been something of a reunion for Refsnyder in the Bronx, as he was a fifth-round draft pick for the Yankees back in 2012, and he was a well-regarded prospect during his time in New York’s farm system.  However, Refsnyder didn’t hit much in limited playing time in 2015-17, and a trade to the Blue Jays in 2017 kicked off a journeyman stretch for the utilityman — the Red Sox are the ninth different organization of Refsnyder’s career.

AL East Notes: Franco, Orioles, Elias, Red Sox

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Wander Franco left today’s game after his first plate appearance, due to what the Rays described as discomfort in the shortstop’s right hand and wrist.  Franco has already been ruled out of Sunday’s game, and he is set to visit a doctor on Monday when the Rays return home after a road trip.

The situation doesn’t sound promising, as even if Franco has avoided a serious injury, another trip to the injured list could be beckoning if the Rays want to be cautious with the young star.  The All-Star break could play a role in Tampa Bay’s decision, as Franco’s 10-day minimum absence could be partially absorbed by the league-wide break in the schedule.  Franco already missed four weeks due to a quad strain, and wasn’t particularly productive in the weeks leading up to that last IL placement as he was trying to play through the injury.  Since returning from the injured list, Franco has registered a hit in 11 of 13 games, but with only a .634 OPS over 56 plate appearances. [UPDATE: Manager Kevin Cash told Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times and other reporters that Franco seems to have suffered a hamate bone injury, which usually requires 4-6 weeks of recovery time.]

More from around the AL East…

  • Today’s victory over the Angels extended the Orioles’ winning streak to seven games, and Baltimore now has a 42-44 record.  After years of rebuilding, the O’s may seem a little ahead of schedule, as they find themselves on the outskirts of the wild card hunt.  However, GM Mike Elias didn’t give reporters (including MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko) any hint that the team would be planning to add rather than subtract at the trade deadline, just saying that “everything that I do or that we do has tradeoffs, and all I can say is, we do everything from a very global, a very thoughtful perspective about what is the right thing to do for the health of the Orioles’ franchise….I think that we’re in store for a lot of good stuff in the next few years, and I’m very happy that it’s kind of reflected right now during this stretch of play so plainly for our fans.”
  • Elias also noted that the front office has been more focused on the upcoming amateur draft than on trade possibilities, and that the Orioles are considering five players for the first overall pick.
  • At this point, the Red Sox are planning to be “cautious buyers” at the deadline, a source tells Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe.  The 45-39 Sox hold the second AL wild card spot, though a wild card is likely the best they’ll be able to do, given how the Yankees are running away with the division.  However, Abraham notes that the Red Sox have an extremely difficult schedule for the rest of July, which could impact their status to the point that the Sox might even consider selling if they fall behind in the postseason race.

Red Sox Place Connor Seabold, Christian Arroyo On Injured List

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The Red Sox announced a series of moves, including the placement of right-hander Connor Seabold on the 15-day injured list and utilityman Christian Arroyo on the 10-day IL.  Right-hander Phillips Valdez and infielder Jeter Downs were called up from Triple-A in corresponding moves.  As reported earlier today, Boston also selected the contract of Kaleb Ort, while designating Michael Feliz for assignment.

Seabold has an extensor strain in his right forearm, which forced him out of last night’s game with the Yankees in the third inning.  While extensor strains aren’t always a precursor to Tommy John surgery, any forearm-related injury is naturally a concern, and Seabold will undergo further examination before a recovery timeline is known.

With the injury bug taking a big bit out of the Sox rotation, Seabold was called up in late June and has made three starts.  The results haven’t been pretty, as he has an 11.91 ERA over 11 1/3 innings — Seabold sandwiched a respectable one-run performance against the White Sox between a pair of seven-run blowouts to the Blue Jays and Yankees.

Chris Sale is slated to be activated from the IL on Tuesday, and the veteran southpaw will join a makeshift rotation of Nick Pivetta, Kutter Crawford, Josh Winckowski and top prospect Brayan Bello.  However, the Red Sox have more than an entire rotation’s worth of arms on the injured list, as Seabold joins Sale, Garrett Whitlock, Nathan Eovaldi, Michael Wacha, Rich Hill, and James Paxton.  Eovaldi is tentatively set to return next weekend, but the Sox might have to wait until after the All-Star break to get any semblance of a healthy starting five.

The team will also lose bench depth, as the versatile Arroyo will miss time due to a left groin strain.  Arroyo’s placement opens the door for Downs’ latest opportunity at the MLB level, as the star prospect made his big league debut with a single game earlier this season.

Downs has been on fire in the 14 Triple-A games since his return, as his offense has hugely improved since cutting down on his leg lift during his swing.  (Hat tip to Alex Speier of the Boston Globe.)  His role on Boston’s active roster will be of some interest, as Downs has almost exclusively played shortstop this season, with only a single game at third base.  Rafael Devers is currently battling a bad back, and with Downs now up, this could hint that the Sox are considering a precautionary IL placement for Devers.  However, it is also possible Downs might get only another cup-of-coffee stint if Devers’ back heals up after a weekend off.

Red Sox Release Hansel Robles

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July 9: Boston has released Robles, per Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe (via Twitter). He is now a free agent.

July 5: The Red Sox are designating reliever Hansel Robles for assignment, reports Sean McAdam of Boston Sports Journal. The move frees an active roster spot for pitching prospect Brayan Bello, who will be recalled to make his major league debut tomorrow against the Rays. Boston’s 40-man roster tally will drop to 39.

Originally acquired from the Twins at last summer’s deadline, Robles spent the past couple months of the 2021 season in Boston. Despite erratic control, he was a generally serviceable late-game arm for manager Alex Cora. Through 25 innings, Robles posted a 3.60 ERA while striking out more than 30% of batters faced. After an offseason spent lingering on the open market, the right-hander returned to the organization on a minor league deal in Spring Training.

Robles made Boston’s Opening Day roster, locking in a $2.25MM salary in the process. He’s posting one of the worst seasons of his career, though, struggling to a 5.84 ERA across 24 2/3 frames. Robles has continued to battle spotty control, walking 12.6% of opponents. Yet the swing-and-miss promise he showed late last season has virtually evaporated, as he’s punched out under 19% of batters faced. Robles has also been tagged for five home runs, an issue with which he’s struggled in the past given his fly-ball propensity.

The 2022 season has generally been disappointing, and the extent of his struggles has apparently led the Sox to move on. The 31-year-old does have plenty of big league success on his resume, however. He posted a sub-4.00 ERA in four of his first five big league campaigns, including a 2.48 mark through 72 2/3 innings with the 2019 Angels. Before this season, Robles had generated swinging strikes and punchouts at an average or better clip in virtually every year of his career (aside from a downturn with the Mets in 2017). He still possess plenty of arm strength, averaging 96 MPH on his heater and just under 89 MPH on the slider that serves as his primary secondary pitch.

Robles’ combination of pre-2022 body of work and extant arm strength will surely attract the interest of other teams, although that’s likely to come after he clears waivers. He’s still due around half of this season’s salary (a bit north of $1MM). Any team that claims him off waivers would assume the remainder of that obligation, a development that seems unlikely given his underperformance through the first three months of the year.

If he clears waivers, Robles would have the right to refuse a minor league assignment in favor of free agency while still collecting the remainder of his salary. (That’s afforded under the CBA to outrighted players with five-plus years of MLB service time). At that point, another team could add him for just the prorated portion of the league minimum for any time spent in the big leagues. The Red Sox would remain on the hook for the rest of the sum.

Red Sox Designate Michael Feliz For Assignment

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The Red Sox have designated Michael Feliz for assignment, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com (via Twitter). Reliever Kaleb Ort will be added to the roster today to take Feliz’s roster spot, adds Cotillo.

Boston originally signed Feliz last August, but the Athletics claimed him off waivers just a month later. The Red Sox signed Feliz again this offseason. The 29-year-old has just one appearance on the year. In Triple-A, Felix logged 24 2/3 innings across 18 outings (three starts) with a 3.28 ERA.

The bullpen is one area where Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom may look to upgrade the roster before the August 2nd trade deadline, writes Cotillo. Garrett Whitlock is working his way back through a rehab assignment, so there’s at least one internal improvement on the way. The Red Sox also expect Josh Taylor to come back and be a weapon from the left side.

As for Feliz, the 29-year-old will again be exposed to waivers. Feliz has spent time with the Astros, Pirates, Reds, and Athletics, in addition to the Red Sox. He has now appeared in the Majors for eight straight seasons, compiling an overall 5.29 ERA/4.17 FIP in 228 appearances totaling 250 innings.

Ort, 30, made his Major League debut last season for the Red Sox, facing just three batters. He has a 3.12 ERA across 33 appearances in Triple-A this season, however.

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