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Brandon Lowe To Miss 4-6 Weeks With Kneecap Fracture

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Rays second baseman Brandon Lowe has been diagnosed with a right kneecap fracture, manager Kevin Cash told reporters (including Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times). He suffered the injury in yesterday’s win over the Angels when he fouled a ball off his knee.

It’s another tough development for Lowe, who is unfortunately no stranger to late-season injuries. He missed most of the second half in 2019 with a bone bruise in his right leg, although he was able to return for the playoffs. Lowe missed last year’s postseason with a recurring back issue. There’s now a good chance he’ll miss the playoffs again, with the estimated return timetable only leaving the possibility of a comeback late in a deep run.

Lowe is one of the game’s better offensive second basemen. The left-handed hitter has connected on 21 homers in 436 plate appearances, ranking eighth at the position. He’s walking at a strong 11.5% clip and owns a .231/.328/.443 line overall. Despite a fairly high strikeout rate and middling batting average, he’s an above-average hitter. That’s particularly true against right-handed pitching, whom Lowe has hit at a .241/.335/.478 clip.

Tampa Bay has been living with next to nothing offensively out of the shortstop position lately. The group led by Taylor Walls is hitting .188/.282/.304 this month. They’ll now also have to patch things together at the keystone. Isaac Paredes moved over there tonight against the Blue Jays with Curtis Mead stepping in at third base. The Rays have rookie Osleivis Basabe in a utility role, while they just promoted top prospect Junior Caminero (who didn’t get into the game tonight).

Lowe’s injury occurred yesterday, but the Rays had a pair of departures from tonight’s contest. Randy Arozarena is day-to-day after leaving with right quad tightness. They could be in line for another extended absence from reliever Jason Adam, who came out in the ninth inning after feeling side tightness.

Adam just returned after missing three weeks with a left oblique strain. He told Topkin (Twitter link) that while this discomfort is in a different area of the oblique, it’s more painful than the prior strain. He’s likely headed back to the 15-day injured list. The 32-year-old righty has had another strong season out of Cash’s bullpen, pitching to a 2.67 ERA with a 31.5% strikeout rate in 54 frames.

Tampa Bay is two games back of the Orioles in the AL East, pending the result of Baltimore’s game in Cleveland. The Rays have seven games left on the regular season schedule. They’ll host Toronto for two more, play a two-game set in Boston on Tuesday and Wednesday, then wrap up the year with three against the Jays at the Rogers Centre.

Rays Promote Junior Caminero

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Sept. 22: Caminero’s promotion to the Majors has now been formally announced by the Rays. Outfielder Luke Raley was placed on the 10-day IL, opening an active roster spot, and righty Trevor Kelley was designated for assignment to make space on the 40-man roster. (You can read up on those corresponding moves here.)

Sept. 21: The Rays are calling up top infield prospect Junior Caminero, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN. They’ll need to select him onto the 40-man roster, which is at capacity.

Caminero, who turned 20 years old in July, becomes the youngest player in the majors. He makes the jump directly from Double-A Montgomery, where he has spent the bulk of the 2023 campaign. Caminero began the year in High-A and was bumped to Montgomery at the end of May.

A native of the Dominican Republic, Caminero signed with Cleveland during the 2019-20 international signing period. He was playing in the Dominican Summer League when the Rays acquired him in a trade that has the potential to go down as one of the more lopsided in recent history. At the deadline for teams to set their 40-man rosters in advance of the 2021 Rule 5 draft, Cleveland sent Caminero to Tampa Bay for right-hander Tobias Myers.

Myers posted a 6.00 ERA in 14 Triple-A starts and was lost on waivers without getting to the majors. Caminero has broken through as one of the sport’s most talented young players. He reached full-season ball last season before this year’s true emergence as a top-tier prospect.

Caminero raked at a .356/.409/.685 clip in 36 High-A contests. He has barely slowed down since moving to Double-A, shredding older competition en route to a .309/.373/.548 line. The right-handed hitter has popped 31 home runs, 18 doubles and six triples over 510 cumulative trips to the dish. He has kept his strikeout rate to a lower than average 19.6%, including a meager 17.1% mark in Double-A.

Alongside the massive numbers, Caminero has impressed scouts with his physical tools. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel named him the sport’s #5 prospect last month; he also checks in fifth on the updated ranking at Baseball America. Those reports credit him with plus or better power potential, with McDaniel noting that he has a chance to be a 40-homer hitter at peak. ESPN suggests his plate approach can be a little aggressive — he’s walking at an average 8.2% clip in the minors — but there’s general agreement that Caminero could be an impact offensive player.

It’s nevertheless a bold move for the Rays to call upon him in the midst of a pennant race. He’ll obviously face a massive escalation in the quality of pitcher he’ll face down the stretch. Tampa Bay has already secured a playoff spot but has little margin for error if they’re to track down the Orioles for the AL East title and top seed in the American League. They’re a game and a half back of Baltimore after they beat the Angels and the O’s dropped their matchup with Cleveland.

Caminero has mostly split his time between third base and shortstop in the minors. Scouting reports suggest he’s likely to settle in at third base as he fills out physically. Isaac Paredes and Curtis Mead are splitting the hot corner, while defensive specialist Taylor Walls is at shortstop. Walls has a dismal .170/.267/.226 batting line in the second half, so the Rays could give some reps there to Caminero if they’re in search of an offensive boost. Luke Raley is also day-to-day with a left arm issue that recently required an MRI, freeing up some designated hitter at-bats (either for Caminero directly or for Paredes if the Rays wanted to plug Caminero in at third base).

The Rays will be able to carry Caminero on the playoff roster if they decide he’s ready for October action. While he wasn’t on the 40-man roster at the start of September, he was in the organization. Teams can (and often do) petition the league for a player who wasn’t on the 40-man at the beginning of the month to get onto a postseason roster as an injury substitute.

Caminero will be paid at the MLB minimum rate and collect a couple weeks of service time. He won’t be eligible for free agency until after the 2029 season and won’t qualify for arbitration until the 2026-27 offseason at the earliest. Future assignments back to the minor leagues could push that timeline further. Caminero will remain a rookie headed into 2024, leaving open the possibility of netting the club an extra draft choice via the Prospect Promotion Incentive if they carry him for a full service year.

Sean Doolittle Announces Retirement

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Veteran left-hander Sean Doolittle announced on Instagram this morning that he’s retiring after 17 years in professional baseball. He spent the season with the Nationals organization, hoping for a comeback bid in the Majors after undergoing UCL surgery last summer, but the recovery from that procedure and a subsequent knee injury limited him to just 10 2/3 minor league innings this season. He’s been on the minor league injured list since late June.

“After 11 incredible seasons playing the sport I love, I can say with gratitude and a full heart that I am retiring from baseball,” Doolittle wrote in announcing his decision.

“Seventeen years ago the Oakland Athletics drafted me as a first baseman out of the University of Virginia. However, as some of you may know, my career nearly ended before it began. After a spate of early injuries, I was nearly ready to hang it up. But then the team approached me and asked if I’d be willing to give pitching a try. With the direction and unwavering support of A’s farm director Keith Liepmann and pitching coach Garvin Alston, I found my second chance. I am forever grateful to them for helping me turn a second chance into a career.”

Doolittle went on to issue heartfelt thank yous to his family, fans of the A’s and Nationals, his managers, his teammates, his coaches, and to the Reds and Mariners for his time spent with each organization (and, as the always-humorous southpaw notes, for “increasing [his] chance for getting on the Immaculate Grid”).

Doolittle’s second chance indeed became a career — and a very fine one at that. The No. 41 overall pick in the 2007 draft debuted with the 2012 A’s and hit the ground running, pitching 47 1/3 innings of 3.04 ERA ball with a huge 31.4% strikeout rate and excellent 5.8% walk rate. Doolittle almost immediately cemented himself as one of the top lefty relievers in the game, and by his third MLB season in 2014, he’d seized the closer’s role in Oakland and been named to his first of two All-Star teams.

For five and a half seasons, Doolittle anchored the Oakland bullpen, posting a 3.09 ERA in 253 innings with 68 holds and 36 saves. He and righty Ryan Madson were traded to the Nationals in a July 2017 swap that sent a struggling (at the time) Blake Treinen, then-prospect Jesus Luzardo, and minor league infielder Sheldon Neuse back to Oakland. It was a steep price for the Nats to pay, but it’s doubtful Washington has any regrets.

Doolittle stepped back into a ninth-inning role in D.C. and thrived, saving 21 games and pitching to a 2.40 ERA down the stretch with his new club before tossing three brilliant frames in the postseason. From 2017-19, the left-hander logged a 2.87 ERA and saved 75 games for the Nationals. The 2019 campaign saw Doolittle finish an NL-best 55 games and pick up a career-high 29 saves.

Despite a rocky month of August, he played a significant role in the Nationals’ now-legendary 2019 turnaround, particularly once the postseason rolled around. Doolittle was one of manager Davey Martinez’s most trusted arms during the Nationals’ playoff run, tossing 10 1/3 innings with a 1.74 ERA and 8-to-1 K/BB ratio. While it was teammate Daniel Hudson who threw the iconic final pitch of the Nationals’ World Series win, Doolilttle saved two games and collected three holds over the course of the 2019 postseason. That includes three shutout frames in the World Series itself, highlighted by Doolittle nailing down a four-out save when he set down Michael Brantley, Alex Bregman, Yuli Gurriel and Carlos Correa in order in a Game 1 victory.

Injuries have marred the final few seasons of Doolittle’s career, but he’ll nevertheless retire as a two-time All-Star and a World Series champion. He totaled 450 2/3 innings of 3.20 ERA ball in parts of 11 big league seasons, adding in another 22 1/3 innings with a 2.42 mark in the postseason. Doolittle also logged 112 saves (115 including postseason play) and 82 holds (plus five more in the playoffs). Between his trips to free agency and an early $10.5MM extension that included a pair of club options for another total $12.5MM, Doolittle earned $26MM over the course of his career.

Beloved for his clutch performances, candid and often eccentric personality, and thoughtful approach to pitching, Doolittle would likely have myriad opportunities to continue his career in baseball as a coach, scout or executive if he aspires to do so. Congratulations on an outstanding career and best wishes to the southpaw in his post-playing days, whichever path he chooses to take.

Tigers Name Jeff Greenberg General Manager

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The Tigers announced Thursday morning that they’ve hired Jeff Greenberg as their new general manager. The 37-year-old Greenberg worked with current Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris with the Cubs, serving as the team’s director of pro scouting, director of baseball operations and assistant general manager during an 11-year career there. In 2022, Greenberg was hired away from baseball entirely, joining the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks as an associate general manager, but he’ll return to MLB and occupy a critical role as the No. 2 name on the Tigers’ revamped baseball operations hierarchy.

“I’m thrilled to add an executive of Jeff’s quality to our baseball operations leadership team,” Harris said in a press release this morning. “Throughout this search, it was important for me to find someone who can fit seamlessly into the culture we’re building here. I also wanted to bring in someone with a fresh perspective and new ideas that could challenge us on a daily basis and make us all better as we strive towards our goal of bringing postseason baseball back to Detroit. We’re excited to welcome Jeff, his wife, Erin, and their sons, Leo and Sam to the Tigers family.”

Per the Tigers’ press release, Greenberg “oversaw the strategic systems and processes in hockey operations” with the Blackhawks, while also having a hand in scouting and player development. That vantage point in another sport figures to indeed bring some unique perspective to his new role with the Tigers organization.

“It’s an extraordinary honor to take on this role with one of the most historic franchises in Major League Baseball,” Greenberg said in his own statement. “Throughout my conversations with Scott, Chris Ilitch and the rest of the team with the Tigers, it became clear that this organization is headed in a great direction with an incredible culture of development and innovation that I’m excited to be part of. Another constant message in those conversations was that Tigers fans want to see winning baseball deep into October. I’m excited to get to work with our front office on off-season and longer-term plans to make that our reality.”

The Tigers’ front office has seen a good amount of turnover since Al Avila was fired as general manager a year ago. Longtime Tigers assistant GM David Chadd also parted ways with the organization in the aftermath of Avila’s dismissal, reuniting with former Tigers president Dave Dombrowski in Philadelphia. Scouting director Scott Pleis was not retained after spending a decade in that role.

Greenberg joins Harris and assistant GM Rob Metzler — hired away from the Rays — as high-profile external additions who’ve joined the baseball operations department in the past year. There’s certainly been some continuity as well, however. Assistant general managers Jay Sartori and Sam Menzin, vice president of player personnel Scott Bream, and vice president of player development Ryan Garko were all retained by the new regime and still hold those same titles.

Qualifying Offer Value To Land Around $20.5MM

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The qualifying offer for the upcoming offseason will be in the $20.5MM range, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The specific number may not be known until shortly after the conclusion of the regular season.

It’ll be the highest QO value in league history. The offer price is calculated by averaging the salaries of the 125 highest-paid players in the majors. That figure generally increases year over year as overall spending rises.

The annual progression of the QO value since its implementation during the 2012-13 offseason:

  • 2012-13: $13.3MM
  • 2013-14: $14.4MM
  • 2014-15: $15.3MM
  • 2015-16: $15.8MM
  • 2016-17: $17.2MM
  • 2017-18: $17.4MM
  • 2018-19: $17.9MM
  • 2019-20: $17.8MM
  • 2020-21: $18.9MM
  • 2021-22: $18.4MM
  • 2022-23: $19.65MM
  • 2023-24: roughly $20.5MM

Teams can make the qualifying offer to an impending free agent who has a) never previously received a QO in their career and b) spent the entire 2023 season on their roster. It’d be a one-year offer valued at that approximate $20.5MM price point. Players tagged with the QO have five days to decide whether to accept that lofty one-year salary or decline in search of a free agent contract. Signing a player who rejects a qualifying offer from another team requires forfeiture of a draft choice and potentially international signing bonus space, depending upon the signing club’s revenue sharing status. A team receives compensation for the loss of a player who turned down a QO and signed elsewhere.

14 players received qualifying offers last offseason. Joc Pederson and Martín Pérez accepted. The other 12 players declined, though Aaron Judge, Anthony Rizzo and Brandon Nimmo subsequently ended up re-signing with their previous team.

Shohei Ohtani, Cody Bellinger, Blake Snell, Matt Chapman, Aaron Nola, Sonny Gray and Josh Hader are among the players who are near locks to receive and reject the QO this winter. Jordan Montgomery and Lucas Giolito were taken out of QO consideration by midseason trades, while Eduardo Rodriguez and Marcus Stroman are ineligible as previous recipients.

Shohei Ohtani Undergoes Elbow Surgery

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Shohei Ohtani underwent surgery today to address the UCL tear in his right elbow, according to a statement released by his agent Nez Balelo.  The exact type of the surgery (whether a Tommy John procedure or an internal brace) wasn’t specified by Balelo or Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who performed the procedure.

“The ultimate plan after deliberation with Shohei was to repair the issue at hand and to reinforce the healthy ligament in place while adding viable tissue for the longevity of the elbow,” Dr. ElAttrache said in the statement.  “I expect full recovery and he’ll be ready to hit without any restrictions come Opening Day of 2024 and do both (hit and pitch) come 2025.”

Ohtani himself also commented on the situation via his Instagram page, in a somewhat uncharacteristic move for a player known for his relative lack of public statements.  Ohtani’s statement: “I had a procedure done on my elbow earlier this morning and everything went well.  Thank you very much for everyone’s prayers and kind words.  It was very unfortunate that I couldn’t finish out the year on the field, but I will be rooting on the boys until the end.  I will work as hard as I can and do my best to come back on the diamond stronger than ever.  Go Halos!!”

As noted by Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group, ElAttrache’s description seems to imply that Ohtani opted for a brace procedure, or at least something different than a standard Tommy John surgery.  TJ procedures have a fairly set timeline of 13-15 months while brace procedures (a relatively newer type of surgery) have generally had a shorter timeline, yet ElAttrache’s statement indicates that Ohtani isn’t expected to pitch in 2024.

It is possible more information on Ohtani’s pitching status might develop as he continues to rehab, though Balelo said “the final decision and type of procedure was made with a heavy emphasis on the big picture.  Shohei wanted to make sure the direction taken gave him every opportunity to hit and pitch for many years to come.”  With this caution in mind, it seems possible that Ohtani isn’t planning to pitch in 2024 whatsoever, especially since he already had a Tommy John surgery in late 2018 that limited him to DH-only duty in 2019.

Ohtani still hit a very solid .286/.343/.505 with 18 homers over 425 plate appearances in 2019, with his season debut held off until May 7 due to the TJ rehab process.  He then pitched only 1 2/3 innings in 2020 due to a flexor strain and also struggled at the plate during the abbreviated 60-game season, but Ohtani has subsequently rebounded with three of the most uniquely superb seasons in baseball history.

Since Opening Day 2021, Ohtani has a 2.84 ERA over 428 1/3 innings pitched, while hitting .277/.379/.585 with 124 home runs over 1904 PA.  This two-way excellence earned him AL MVP honors in 2021, a runner-up MVP finish in 2022, and very likely another MVP trophy this season, even though his year has been cut short by injury.  The UCL tear meant that Ohtani’s last start came on August 23, and while he attempted to keep going as a hitter, he hasn’t played since September 3 due to an oblique strain.  The Angels announced over the weekend that Ohtani had officially been placed on the 10-day injured list, and wouldn’t play again in 2023.

Attention now turns to Ohtani’s next decision, as he’ll enter free agency with a resume unlike any other player to ever reach the open market.  It remains to be seen how Ohtani’s surgery will impact his market, though even if he is unable to pitch in 2024, most pundits feel he’ll still land a record-setting deal, perhaps topping the $500MM threshold.

It is quite possible that the marketing opportunities and extra revenues available to the team that signs Ohtani will offset the extra risk of his elbow problems, as even if there is some natural long-term question about Ohtani’s arm health, he provides plenty of value even if he “only” an elite hitter.  Interested clubs will obviously want as much information as possible on Ohtani’s health and rehab status before making their decision on a major contract offer, though waiting too long to deliberate might also cost a team a chance at making the signing.

There has been much speculation that Ohtani has already played his last game in an Angels uniform.  Los Angeles has shown a willingness to pay big money for star talent, yet since Ohtani has been vocal about his desire to play for a winner, the Angels’ string of eight consecutive losing seasons might get him looking elsewhere, no matter what ownership might offer in a new contract.  Ohtani’s free agency will be the key storyline of the 2023-24 offseason, and it isn’t a reach to say that much of the winter business around the sport might be held up to some extent until Ohtani chooses his next team.

Marlins Claim Matt Moore From Guardians

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3:09pm: The Marlins have recalled Tommy Nance from Triple-A and placed him on the 60-day injured list, thus opening up a 40-man roster spot for Matt Moore, reports Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald. The 32-year-old Nance last appeared for Triple-A Jacksonville on September 6, and he has not appeared in a major league game since last October.

1:35pm: The Marlins have claimed left-hander Matt Moore off waivers from the Guardians, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN. It’s the second waiver claim in recent weeks for Moore, who just went from the Angels to the Guardians at the end of August. He won’t be eligible to play in the postseason for the Marlins but will give their bullpen a boost for the final weeks of the regular season.

Moore, 34, has had an up-and-down career as a starting pitching but recently underwent a bullpen renaissance. He posted a 1.95 earned run average with the Rangers last year and parlayed that into a one-year, $7.55MM contract with the Angels. His ERA has ticked up a bit this year, but is still quite good at 2.77. He’s striking out 28.5% of opponents and walking just 7%.

He’s now set to join his third club of the year, which says more about his teams than anything he is doing. The Angels hovered around contention through the summer and decided to go for it at the deadline, holding onto Shohei Ohtani as well as giving up prospects for players like Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo López and others. But they then suffered a miserable August, losing both games and players. They fell back in the standings as Mike Trout was unable to get healthy in the wake of his hamate surgery, while Ohtani suffered a tear of his ulnar collateral ligament that kept him from pitching.

Ohtani would also suffer an oblique injury in September that stopped him from hitting as well, but that was after the club had already waved the white flag on the season, putting six players on waivers at the end of August. Since the trade deadline had already passed and each player was an impending free agent, the Angels were hoping other clubs would grab them and take on their contracts, allowing the club to save some money and dip under the luxury tax.

Moore was one of those players and he was claimed by the Guardians along with Giolito and López. It was a bit of a surprising landing spot, as that club has generally shied away from significant spending and were sporting a record of 64-70 at the time. But in the weak American League Central, they were actually only five games back of the division-leading Twins and decided to take a shot. By grabbing those three pitchers, they added roughly $3.727MM to their payroll but hopefully increased their odds of chasing down Minnesota.

But it now seems that they are following the Angels and waving their own white flag, having fallen to seven games back of the Twins with now less than two weeks left to play. It wasn’t known prior to this report that Moore was on waivers, but it seems the Guards put him on the wire with the hope of shaving off some of that money they took on. Moore is still owed about $529K for the remainder of the season.

It seems the Marlins consider that to be an acceptable expense for a handful of games from Moore. Since he is being acquired after the September 1 cutoff date, he won’t be able to pitch for them in the postseason, making this a very temporary bullpen upgrade. But unlike the Angels and Guardians, their season is still very much alive. The National League Wild Card race is extremely tight right now, with the Phillies in the top spot but a tangled mess beneath them. The Diamondbacks, Cubs, Reds and Marlins are all within one game of each other, with the Giants just a game and a half back of that pack. While all those clubs want to win, the Marlins are arguably the most motivated. Leaving aside the shortened 2020 season, they haven’t finished above .500 since 2009 and haven’t been in the playoffs since 2003.

Miami’s relievers have a collective ERA of 4.19 on the year, which places them 18th. It’s also been a bit worse of late, with a 4.45 ERA since the start of August. Adding in Moore will hopefully give the group a bit of a boost, though it’s not really about his left-handedness. The club already has four strong southpaw options in the bullpen but the Marlins seem to have decided they are willing to put some cash on the barrel in the hopes of squeezing out any possible upgrade, with the importance of each game magnified down the stretch.

Rays To Announce New Stadium Deal

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The Rays are poised to make an announcement tomorrow regarding a deal to construct a new stadium in St. Petersburg, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.

Not all of the details have been revealed, but Topkin relays that the new stadium will be built near Tropicana Field as part of a redevelopment of the Historic Gas Plant District site. It is expected to have a fixed dome roof, seat around 30,000 people and open for the 2028 season, just after the club’s lease at the Trop expires after 2027. It is believed to cost around $1.2 billion, with the exact breakdown unclear at this time. Owner Stuart Sternberg previously stated that he expected the club to pay “half or more,” with other contributions coming from St. Petersburg, Pinellas County and investors who would contribute in exchange for shares of the club.

The future home of the Rays has been an ongoing issue for years now, due to various concerns with Tropicana Field. The club has considered moving from St. Petersburg to Tampa and also toyed with a more creative plan that involved splitting the home games with Montreal, though the latter plan was eventually nixed by Major League Baseball.

The move to Tampa was seen as desirable since one of the issues with the Trop is the St. Petersburg location is less accessible. But attempts to secure financing for a stadium in Tampa never gained much traction, which is what led to the Montreal plan. Once that path was cut off and the financial situation in Tampa didn’t change, the club pivoted back to St. Petersburg.

In December of last year, the Rays issued a press release about their proposed stadium, which was said to feature “more than 5,700 multifamily units, 1.4 million square feet of office, 300,000 square feet of retail, 700 hotel rooms, 600 senior living residences, a 2,500 person entertainment venue, and various civic uses.” It went on to say that it would include “more than 850 affordable and workforce housing units on-site” as well as other features.

This plan received the approval of St. Petersburg mayor Ken Welch in January, though with still many steps to come. The club had to finalize the financing with the city, the county and new investors. Though those details still aren’t publicly known, it seems they have been resolved enough that the club will be able to make an announcement of a deal tomorrow.

Staying in St. Petersburg won’t solve the location issues that the Trop had, but the new facility will hopefully be an upgrade in other ways. The Trop has been seen by many around the industry as outdated and unpleasant in terms of fan experience. There were also awkward on-field issues, with the various catwalks in the roof interfering with balls in play and leading to complex ground rules unique to that field.

It’s unclear what the future holds for the Trop, but its run as the home of the Rays will seemingly come to an end after 30 years, having been the club’s only ballpark since their first season in 1998. It was actually opened in 1990, with the area hoping to attract an expansion major league baseball franchise for 1993, but they lost out to Denver and Miami. Other sports franchises used the facility at times, including the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League and the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League, before the area was finally awarded an expansion MLB franchise.

Fans of the Rays can now look forward to a new era of the club’s history, hopeful that the new facility will be a significant upgrade over the Trop, though the location concerns will persist. This news will also be significant beyond just its impact on that club, as the potential for future expansion now seems more viable than ever before.

There hasn’t been a new expansion franchise in Major League Baseball since the Rays and Diamondbacks joined the league in 1998. The issue has come up in recent years, with various groups hoping to get new clubs into places like Nashville, Portland or Salt Lake City. Despite that strong interest, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has repeatedly stated that the Athletics and Rays needed to resolve their respective stadium situations before expansion could be considered.

The A’s seem destined to relocate to Las Vegas, with owners set to vote on their proposed plan in November. Now that the Rays seem to have a new stadium plan in place, it seems the table is set for expansion discussions to pick up in earnest. A timeline for future expansion isn’t clear, but details should continue to emerge as time goes on. New franchises will lead to extra intrigue around the league, with fans able to look forward to an expansion draft. For the owners, it will also be desirable from a financial point of view as the new clubs would have to pay to join the league, with that money dispersed among the existing teams. The Rays and Diamondbacks each paid $130MM back in 1998 but it has been suggested that the next expansion club might have to pay something closer to $2 billion, given the rise of franchise valuation in the interim.

Reds Designate Hunter Renfroe For Assignment

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The Reds announced that they have reinstated outfielder Stuart Fairchild from the COVID-19 injured list with outfielder Hunter Renfroe designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

Renfroe, 31, joined the Reds just over two weeks ago. He began the year with the Angels, who went for it at the deadline but then fell out of contention in August. Since they no longer had the ability to trade anyone, they put six players on waivers in an attempt to save some money and dip under the luxury tax. Renfroe was one of those players, allowing the Reds to grab him for nothing other than taking on the remainder of his salary. They also grabbed Harrison Bader from the Yankees in a similar scenario, allowing them to add two outfielders for the stretch run without giving up any talent in return.

Unfortunately, Renfroe has struggled immensely since coming to Cincinnati, hitting .128/.227/.205. It’s still a surprise to see the club move on so quickly. Those poor results have come in a small sample of just 44 plate appearances, a time in which he has a .154 batting average on balls in play that would be bound for regression. Nonetheless, it seems the club has decided to quickly cut bait.

Earlier today, the Reds placed Bader on the injured list, meaning they are now without either of their waiver pickups from a few weeks ago. The club was willing to add roughly $2.76MM to their payroll in order to get those two outfielders for the final month of the schedule but will now be proceeding without either of them, at least until Bader can get healthy again.

With the trade deadline having passed, the Reds will put Renfroe on waivers in the coming days. Whether or not he will garner any interest will be an interesting situation, as it’s an unusual time of year for such a player to be on the wire. With the season winding down and Renfroe an impending free agent, only a contending club would have any incentive to put in a claim. But even for a contender, Renfroe wouldn’t be postseason eligible since it’s after the September 1 cutoff. He still has about $893K left on his $11.9MM salary, with any claiming club having to take that on just to add Renfroe for the less than two weeks left in the regular season. If he were to clear, he has more than enough service time to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency while retaining what’s left of his salary.

Recent struggles aside, Renfroe’s career offensive production is notable. Dating back to his 2016 debut with the Padres, he has hit 177 home runs and has slashed .239/.300/.478 for a wRC+ of 106. However, his defense is considered subpar, which subtracts some of the value of his bat. Despite that power potential, his glovework and poor plate discipline have capped his value and turned him into a journeyman in recent years. After sticking with the Padres through 2019, he’s since been traded to the Rays, Red Sox, Brewers and Angels, before landing with the Reds via waivers.

Shohei Ohtani Out For Season With Oblique Strain

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8:19PM: Minasian told ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez and other reporters that Ohtani underwent an MRI on Friday that showed continued oblique irritation, so the decision was made to shut him down for the remainder of 2023.  “I don’t have details on [Ohtani’s upcoming elbow] procedure, but obviously he wants to get that as quick as he can and start getting ready for ’24,” Minasian said.  In regards to Ohtani’s early locker clearout, Minasian explained that “I think in his mind he thought there was a possibility for a procedure today, and that’s why he packed.”  Largely sidestepping a question about the Angels’ chances of re-signing Ohtani, Minasian said media would have to ask the player himself, adding that “it’s been a pleasure to get to know him these last three years and hopefully he’s here for a long time.”

2:03PM: The Angels have placed Shohei Ohtani on the injured list with an oblique strain, the team announced to reporters, including Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times. This marks the end of both his 2023 season, and quite possibly his tenure with the Angels.

Ohtani was in the midst of the best season of his already remarkable career when a UCL tear stopped him in his tracks in mid-August. While he might have opted to address the injury immediately (increasing his chances of making a quick return in 2024) he chose instead to play out the rest of the year as a designated hitter. Unfortunately, he suffered a second injury just ten days later, hurting his oblique during batting practice. At the time, the team believed the injury to be minor, but Ohtani would go on to sit out the next several games. On Friday, after he missed his 11th game in a row, reporters noticed his locker at Angel Stadium had been cleared out, inviting speculation that Ohtani was being shut down.

General manager Perry Minasian is expected to provide further information later today. So could Ohtani himself, who is expected to be at the ballpark when the Angels take on the Tigers for the second game of the weekend series.

While this clearly isn’t the outcome Ohtani or the Angels were hoping for, an early end to his season could give the two-way star a chance to address his torn UCL as soon as possible. Earlier this month, his agent Nez Balelo revealed that some sort of procedure to repair his elbow was “inevitable.” It is not clear what type of procedure (such as Tommy John surgery or an internal bracing procedure) Ohtani might face, but any kind of elbow repair comes with recovery time. Ohtani has no timetable for his return to the mound, but the sooner he seeks treatment, the sooner he can begin the rehabilitation process.

Ohtani is set to become a free agent following the season, and his impending free agency has been the talk of the sport throughout the year. Before his injury issues popped up, many thought he could command upwards of $500MM on the open market, and even now, Ohtani still seems likely to sign the largest free agent deal in MLB history. His durability is a legitimate cause for concern, but when he’s on the field, Ohtani’s two-way ability naturally creates a bigger impact than any of his peers. Over the past three years, he has hit 124 home runs with a .964 OPS and a 2.84 ERA. That level of performance will net him an enormous payday, even if Ohtani doesn’t step onto a mound during the first year of his next contract.

Whether that enormous payday comes from the Angels or another club, however, remains to be seen. Right now, it’s hard to imagine Ohtani is all that optimistic about the direction in which his team is headed; Los Angeles is two losses away from its eighth straight losing season, despite an MVP-caliber effort from their best player. Ohtani will have no shortage of suitors, and he has previously suggested that he wants to play for a winning team. Thus, it’s quite possible he has already played his last game in an Angels uniform – a 10-6 loss to the Athletics in which he went 0-for-3 with two walks, so hardly a storybook ending.

On the bright side, Ohtani still has a chance to go out on a high note when awards season rolls around. He seems like a lock to win his second AL MVP, even though his injury gives other contenders (i.e. Corey Seager, Marcus Semien, and Julio Rodriguez) a slight chance to catch up. Currently, Ohtani leads the AL with 44 home runs, a .412 on-base percentage, and 325 total bases, to go along with his 3.14 ERA in 23 starts. He also leads the second-place Seager by 2.6 FanGraphs WAR and 3.1 Baseball Reference WAR, which is a cavernous gap to close with just 15 games remaining on the schedule.

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