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Yankees Interested In Luis Castillo

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We’ve already heard about a few teams with interest in the Reds’ starting pitching, and it isn’t surprising that the Yankees are also on that list.  According to The Athletic’s Peter Gammons, the Yankees have “talked” with Cincinnati about right-hander Luis Castillo, and Reds scouts have been watching pitching prospect Will Warren (currently throwing for the Yankees’ Double-A affiliate).

Starting pitching would ostensibly not be a major priority for the Bronx Bombers, given how the rotation has been arguably the league’s best over the first three months of the season.  Gerrit Cole, Jameson Taillon, Luis Severino, Nestor Cortes, and Jordan Montgomery have all looked excellent, and the rotation as a whole ranks first in baseball in walk rate (5.4%) and strikeout rate (25.4%), and second in cumulative fWAR (7.7) and ERA (3.00).

However, even beyond the “you can never have enough pitching” credo, there is certainly reason for Yankees GM Brian Cashman to be looking to reinforce his staff.  Severino tossed only 18 regular-season innings over the course of three injury-riddled seasons from 2019-21, and thus his workload might need to be managed down the stretch.  Likewise, Cortes has never thrown more than 119 2/3 combined innings in any pro season, while Taillon has also battled a number of injury problems throughout his career.

While none of Severino, Cortes, Taillon, Cole, or Montgomery have run into any real health issues thus far in 2022, that collective durability could actually be more of a reason for Cashman to proactively seek out another starter.  Since it’s very rare to have an entire rotation stay intact throughout a full season, the Yankees could look to add before trouble (inevitably?) strikes, since waiting until a problem arises could decrease New York’s leverage with the Reds or any other team dangling pitching.

Gammons also figures the Yankees will make another attempt to acquire Frankie Montas, after the Yankees engaged the A’s in trade talks back in March.  Castillo has also been on New York’s radar in the past, when the Bombers reportedly rejected Cincinnati’s ask of Gleyber Torres and more for Castillo back in January 2021.

The Reds will certainly have another high asking price on Castillo in the coming weeks.  The righty is arguably the top pitcher available prior to the August 2 trade deadline, due to both his front-of-the-rotation ability and his contractual status — Castillo isn’t scheduled for free agency until after the 2023 season.  He has been more solid than spectacular thus far in 2022, but it could be that Castillo is still ramping up after missing the first month of action due to shoulder soreness.

While Warren certainly wouldn’t be the centerpiece of any Castillo trade package, the 23-year-old righty is already gaining attention in his first year of pro ball.  An eighth-round pick for the Yankees in the 2021 draft, Warren is ranked by both Baseball America and MLB Pipeline as the 27th-best prospect in New York’s farm system, and he has a 3.72 ERA over 55 2/3 combined innings at high-A (35 IP) and Double-A (20 2/3 IP) in 2022.  His two newest pitches are his best offerings, as the Yankees’ pitching development staff helped Warren turn his slider and two-seamer into plus pitches.  It already seems like Warren would be a good fit as a relief pitcher down the road, according to Pipeline’s scouting report, though he might be able to work in a rotation if he can successfully mix his slider and two-seamer with a more average changeup and curveball.

Yankees, Aaron Judge Avoid Arbitration

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11:54am: Judge and the Yankees have agreed to a $19MM guarantee, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com (Twitter links). That’s the exact midpoint between the filing figures, although the deal contains additional possible incentives. Judge would make an additional $250K each were he to win the AL MVP and World Series MVP awards this season.

11:35am: The Yankees and Aaron Judge have agreed to a contract to avoid arbitration, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post (Twitter link). They’d been slated to go through a hearing this afternoon, but the last-minute settlement dodges that necessity.

Judge and the Yankees had been set to proceed through the process with the largest gap in filing figures between any player-team pairing this season. Judge’s camp had filed for a $21MM salary, while the Yankees countered at $17MM. MLB’s arbitration system doesn’t permit adjudicators to land on a midpoint; had they gone to a hearing, the arbitrators would’ve had to set Judge’s salary at either $17MM or $21MM. By avoiding the process, the parties can come together at a mutually-agreeable middle ground. That avoids any potential acrimony arising in an adversarial hearing for the face of the franchise.

This was the final season of arbitration-eligibility for Judge, who’s a few months away from his first trip to the open market. He turned down a seven-year, $213.5MM extension offer during Spring Training. Betting on himself looks as if it’ll pay off handsomely, as the slugger will be arguably the top talent available.

Judge topped MLBTR’s initial Power Ranking of the upcoming class a month ago, and he’s mashed at a .288/.369/.606 clip since that point. He enters play Friday owner of a .302/.379/.663 line overall, and his 27 home runs are six clear of anyone else in the game. He’s set to hit free agency in advance of his age-31 campaign and looks to be on track for an eight-plus year deal if he continues performing at an elite level for the season’s final three-plus months.

As most are probably aware by now, Judge’s incredible 2022 production would not have been admissible in his arbitration case. The arb process typically takes place over the offseason, with salaries decided in advance of Opening Day. Last winter’s lockout froze league business for over three months, leaving insufficient time for players, teams and arbitrators themselves to sort out all the cases during Spring Training. Hearings thus lingered into the season, but MLB and the Players Association agreed that all cases had to based on the player’s pre-2022 body of work.

Judge, of course, had a robust career track record even before this season’s MVP-caliber first half. He entered the year a career .276/.386/.554 hitter, collecting a trio of All-Star appearances and two Silver Slugger awards in the process. The Fresno State product hit .287/.373/.544 with 39 homers and 98 runs batted in last season, a platform performance that’d set him up for a lofty raise relative to his $10.175MM salary from 2021.

The resolution of Judge’s case officially closes the books on the 2021-22 arbitration class. 31 players had situations that lingered into the season, although the majority reached in-season agreements or multi-year contract extensions. Of the 13 players who proceeded to hearings this season, four won their case, according to the Associated Press.

Rays Acquire David McKay From Yankees For Cash Considerations

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The Rays have acquired right-handed pitcher David McKay from the Yankees in exchange for cash considerations, per the Yankees. McKay will be added to the Rays’ 40-man roster and sent to Triple-A, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter). Manuel Margot is going on the 60-day injured list, opening a slot for McKay.

McKay was recently designated for assignment by the Yankees as they made room for Albert Abreu, claimed off waivers from the Royals. As part of this deal, the Yankees announced that Abreu has been placed on the active roster. Right-hander Clarke Schmidt was optioned to Triple-A last night after the game, freeing up a spot on the active roster.

McKay actually spent spring training with the Rays, so he’ll be familiar with his new club. The 27-year-old made just two appearances for the Yankees, both scoreless innings. He has also appeared in his career with the Mariners and Tigers, totaling 28 2/3 innings over 28 appearances since 2019 with an overall 5.65 ERA/4.78 FIP.

For the Yankees, they’ll pick up some cash from a division rival while returning to a former prospect in Abreu. Still just 26, Abreu made seven appearances with the Rangers and another four with the Royals this season, and while he has posted a 3.46 ERA over those 13 innings, an 8.44 FIP belies some underlying issues with the overall body of work. Namely, Abreu has struggled from a lack of command, giving out 16 free passes in those 13 innings.

Yankees Re-Sign Ryan Weber To Minor League Deal

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The Yankees have re-signed righty Ryan Weber to a minor league contract, tweets Bryan Hoch of MLB.com. He’ll head to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Weber returns to the organization just two days after electing free agency. He’d spent the entire season in Scranton before being selected to the MLB roster last Thursday. Weber spent one day in the majors, tossing 3 2/3 innings of one-run ball in relief against the Rays, before being outrighted back off the 40-man roster. He refused a minor league assignment but quickly re-signed on a new non-roster pact. That’s not uncommon in situations like these, as the renegotiated contract can come with different terms or possible opt-out opportunities.

The 31-year-old has tossed 21 1/3 frames over eight appearances (four starts) in Scranton this season. He’s posted an impressive 2.95 ERA, compensating for a below-average 16.9% strikeout rate with a 47.1% ground-ball percentage. Weber has remarkably only walked one of 89 batters faced with the RailRiders. That’s in line with his career results, as he’s shown excellent control and grounder numbers but rarely missed many bats as a professional.

Yankees Claim Albert Abreu, Designate David McKay

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2:06pm: The Yankees announced the claim of Abreu, adding that righty David McKay was designated for assignment to open a spot on the roster.

1:45pm: The Yankees have brought righty Albert Abreu back to the organization, claiming him off waivers from the Royals on Tuesday, Robert Murray of FanSided reports (via Twitter). They’ll need to make a corresponding 40-man move to accommodate Abreu, who was designated for assignment by Kansas City last week.

It’s been just over two months since the Yankees traded Abreu to the Rangers in the deal that brought catcher Jose Trevino to the Bronx. The swap has paid huge dividends for the Yanks, as Trevino has surprised with a .278/.336/.454 batting line through his first 119 plate appearances. He’s also provided excellent defense, as he was previously known for, and generally filled a major void for a Yankees team that otherwise did little to address its catching situation over the winter. New York picked up light-hitting Ben Rortvedt in the trade that sent Gary Sanchez and Gio Urshela to Minnesota, but he’s been sidelined all season due to injury.

Abreu’s time with the Rangers, meanwhile, proved to be brief. Although he posted a 3.12 ERA in his 8 2/3 innings with Texas, he also issued a staggering 12 walks and plunked a batter. The Rangers understandably weren’t enthused with that alarming lack of command and wound up designating Abreu for assignment and trading him to the Royals. He pitched just 4 1/3 innings for Kansas City and wound up with another four walks and a hit batter before being designated for assignment.

Abreu, 26, has long drawn positive scouting grades for a plus fastball and a pair of above-average secondary offerings (changeup, slider). Command has always been his Achilles heel, however, as evidenced by his perennially lofty walk rates in the minors. He’s out of minor league options, so the Yankees will tuck him back into the big league relief corps for now in hopes of again working with him to harness his command of the strike zone.

As for the 27-year-old McKay, he pitched in just two games with the Yankees, hurling two scoreless innings in the process. Like Abreu, he’s been far too prone to issuing walks at the MLB level, however; in 28 2/3 innings between the Mariners, Tigers and Yankees, McKay has walked 20 of the 127 batters he’s faced (15.7%). McKay has whiffed 34.4% of his career opponents in Triple-A, which surely intrigues some clubs, but his command issues have prevented him from finding any sustained MLB success. The Yankees will have a week to trade him release him or attempt to pass him through outright waivers.

Ryan Weber Elects Free Agency

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The Yankees announced Monday that right-hander Ryan Weber rejected an outright assignment to Triple-A in favor of free agency. That indicates that Weber, who was designated for assignment last week, first went unclaimed on outright waivers. Because he’s been outrighted previously in his career, Weber had the right to reject the assignment.

New York was the sixth stop for the well-traveled Weber, a 31-year-old journeyman who’s seen at least brief Major League time in every season dating back to 2015. Though he’s never appeared in more than 18 games or topped 43 innings in a single Major League season, Weber has slowly racked up 170 2/3 innings at the game’s top level. He made just one appearance for the Yankees after being selected to their Major League roster, during which he held the Rays to one run on two hits with no walks and a strikeout in 3 2/3 frames. A solo homer to catcher Francisco Mejia proved to be his lone blemish that day.

That solid outing aside, Weber owns a career 5.22 ERA in the big leagues, generally relying on a big 53.2% grounder rate and a strong 5.4% walk rate to help offset his lack of velocity (89.1 mph average sinker) and lack of missed bats (14.8% strikeout rate, 5.9% swinging-strike rate). Weber has had some decent stretches in the big leagues and has been far more effective as a reliever (4.49 ERA in 100 1/3 innings) than as a starter (6.27 ERA in 70 1/3 frames).

Despite never finding much consistent success in the Majors, Weber has had plenty of just that down in Triple-A. The former 22nd-rounder (Braves, 2009) has appeared in parts of seven Triple-A campaigns with a 3.14 ERA, an 18% strikeout rate and a tiny 4.4% walk rate in 485 innings. That includes a sharp showing with the same Scranton affiliate to which he just refused an outright assignment; in 21 1/3 innings with the RailRiders this year, Weber posted a 2.95 ERA with a 15-to-1 K/BB ratio and a 47.1% ground-ball rate.

Yankees Sign Chris Owings To Minor League Deal

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The Yankees have signed infielder Chris Owings to a minor league deal, per Conor Foley of the Scranton Times-Tribune. Owings has been assigned to the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com.

Owings, 30, is a veteran of ten MLB seasons now, appearing in each campaign from 2013 to 2022. Overall, he has a .239/.287/.366 battling line, good enough for a wRC+ of 69. In 2021, he dealt with thumb injuries and only got into 21 games but somehow had an incredible showing in that small sample. He hit .326/.420/.628 for a huge 158 wRC+, though his .481 BABIP was likely the key contributor there.

He settled for a minor league deal with the Orioles for this year, eventually making Baltimore’s Opening Day roster. Unfortunately, the baseball gods have given him the opposite treatment this year, compared to last. His .188 BABIP has helped tamp his batting line down to .107/.254/.143 this season, producing a wRC+ of just 27. He was designated for assignment and released last week.

Despite those tepid batting numbers, Owings continues to get opportunities due to his versatility. For the Orioles this year, he played second base, third base, shortstop, left field and even threw an inning on the mound. The Yankees have been remarkably healthy this year, but do have a number of older players on their roster. Should an injury situation suddenly arise, Owings will have the potential to give them cover at most spots around the diamond.

Yankees Designate Ryan Weber For Assignment

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The Yankees announced that they have reinstated Luis Severino from the COVID-19 injured list, with right-hander Ryan Weber being designated for assignment in a corresponding move. This is the inverse of today’s earlier transaction, where Severino went on the IL, with Weber taking his roster spot. Severino has since tested negative and rejoined the team.

Weber, 31, has worn a number of jerseys in his career, suiting up for Atlanta, Seattle, Tampa, Boston and Milwaukee before this season. This winter, he was signed by the Yankees to a minor league deal and impressed down on the farm. Through 21 1/3 innings with the RailRiders, he had a 2.95 ERA. His 16.9% strikeout in that time wasn’t stellar, though his 1.1% walk rate certainly was.

After Severino experienced viral symptoms and needed to bow out of today’s start, the Yanks called on Weber to help bail them out of the emergency situation. Weber answered the call with aplomb, throwing 3 2/3 innings against the Rays in relief tonight, allowing one earned run on two hits. The Yanks would eventually earn a walkoff 2-1 victory over their division rivals in the contest.

However, as a reward for his valiant efforts, Weber has been sent into DFA limbo. The club will have a week to trade him or put him on waivers. If he were to clear waivers, he would be able to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency as a player who has previously been outrighted in his career.

Yankees Place Luis Severino On COVID IL

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9:05pm: Boone tells reporters (including Bryan Hoch of MLB.com) that Severino has tested negative and will travel with the team to Toronto for this weekend’s series.

3:34pm: Severino has not tested positive for COVID, Boone told reporters (including Lindsey Adler of the Athletic). He’d experienced viral symptoms overnight but has improved today.

2:26pm: The Yankees have placed starter Luis Severino on the COVID-19 injured list, meaning he won’t start tonight’s ballgame against the Rays as scheduled. That assignment will go to Clarke Schmidt, while right-hander Ryan Weber has been selected onto the big league roster in Severino’s place.

Severino has pitched brilliantly in 11 turns through the rotation. He owns a 2.80 ERA across 61 innings, striking out an excellent 28.7% of batters faced while walking a mere 6.1% of opponents. It’s been a welcome development to see him back in that role after he was limited to seven MLB appearances between 2019-21. The two-time All-Star missed the bulk of the 2019 season battling lat and shoulder troubles, then he underwent Tommy John surgery in February 2020. Groin and shoulder issues cropped up during last season’s rehab process, keeping him from getting back on a major league mound until September.

Once healthy, Severino more or less picked up where he’d left off as one of the game’s top starters. He’s been part of arguably the league’s best starting staff, as the Yankees top quintet all have an ERA of 3.33 or better. Nestor Cortes, Gerrit Cole, Jordan Montgomery, Jameson Taillon and Severino have combined to start 60 of the club’s 62 ballgames, but they’ll perhaps have to dip into their depth to cover a Severino absence.

The club did not specify whether Severino has tested positive for the virus or is being scratched due to symptoms or exposure. Players who test positive are subject to a 10-day absence under the 2022 health and safety protocols, although it’s possible to return sooner if the player subsequently tests negative twice and gains clearance from a trio of medical professionals (one each appointed by the league and MLBPA, as well as the team physician). Players who experience viral symptoms but don’t test positive can return as soon as their symptoms abate.

Weber, 31, is headed to the majors for an eighth consecutive season. He’s worked as a swing player for virtually his entire career, starting 16 of his 63 appearances. A control artist who generates plenty of ground-balls, Weber doesn’t throw particularly hard or miss many bats. He’s nevertheless caught the attention of various clubs as a depth arm based on his ability to work multiple innings. Assuming he makes it into a game with the Yankees, Weber will have suited up for six different teams at the major league level.

The Florida native had cups of coffee with each of the Mariners, Red Sox and Brewers last year. He tallied a combined 9 2/3 innings of 13-run ball, bringing his career ERA up to 5.28. Weber signed a minor league deal with New York this past offseason and has spent the year with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, working to a 2.95 mark through eight outings (four starts). He’s walked just one of the 89 batters he’s faced in the minors this year and will offer a long relief possibility for manager Aaron Boone.

Yankees Release Ender Inciarte

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The Yankees are releasing outfielder Ender Inciarte from his minor league contract, reports Conor Foley of the Scranton Times-Tribune (on Twitter). He’ll hit the open market and seek out additional opportunities elsewhere.

Inciarte signed with New York over the offseason, hoping to crack the big league roster after a rough 2021 season. He didn’t break camp with the team and was sent to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he ultimately appeared in 34 games. Inciarte hit .252/.336/.408 across 116 plate appearances, collecting four home runs and stolen bases apiece. The 31-year-old walked a strong 11.2% clip while only punching out in 14.7% of his plate appearances.

It was a respectable showing, but the Yankees nevertheless determined there wasn’t room on the active roster at this point. Aaron Judge is hitting at an MVP-level and has taken over as the primary center fielder, while both Joey Gallo and Aaron Hicks have started to heat up after slow starts to the year. With Giancarlo Stanton and Marwin González also capable of rotating into the outfield as needed, the 45-16 Yankees weren’t in a rush to shake up their position player group.

Since being released by the Braves last July, Inciarte hasn’t cracked the majors on successive minor league pacts with the Reds and Yankees. Nevertheless, he’s likely to attract interest from teams looking for non-roster depth. Inciarte is no longer the elite defender he was at his Gold Glove peak, but he’s still a solid gloveman at all three spots on the grass. He’s hit .200/.267/.277 in 220 plate appearances at the major league level since the start of 2020.

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