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Nestor Cortes’ Season In Jeopardy After Second Rotator Cuff Strain

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The Yankees announced they’ve recalled right-handers Jhony Brito and Randy Vásquez. One roster spot was opened when left-hander Nick Ramirez was optioned to Triple-A yesterday. The other corresponding move is lefty Nestor Cortes landing on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to August 8, with a left rotator cuff strain.

Cortes told reporters that while surgery isn’t under consideration, he’ll be shut down from throwing entirely for around one month (relayed by Brendan Kuty of the Athletic). Given that timetable, skipper Aaron Boone acknowledged it’s unlikely the southpaw will make it back this season, though the club hasn’t officially ruled him out for the year (via Erik Boland of Newsday).

The ’23 campaign has been exceedingly frustrating for last year’s eighth-place Cy Young finisher. Cortes strained his hamstring in February, knocking him out of the World Baseball Classic and putting him behind the eight ball in his ramp-up. He was able to return by the start of the season but didn’t pitch as well as anticipated through 11 starts. During the first week of June, Cortes suffered a rotator cuff strain that wound up costing him around two months.

He returned from that rehab last weekend but managed only one four-inning outing before the injury resurfaced. Given the month-long shutdown and need to subsequently restart the rehab process, it seems a similar absence could be on the table. With less than two months to go in the regular season, there might not be enough time for him to return to the mound.

Cortes has made 12 starts overall, working to a 4.97 ERA over 63 1/3 frames. It’s a far cry from last year’s 2.44 ERA, though that always seemed likely to regress. Cortes still struck out over a quarter of opponents with a solid 7.5% walk percentage, with a spike in home runs and an uptick in the average on balls in play against him contributing to the less impressive results.

The 28-year-old is playing this season on a $3.2MM arbitration salary. He’ll receive a raise — albeit a fairly modest one — on that next winter and is eligible for arbitration twice more. Even if he can’t make it back this season, Cortes should be a key part of the projected starting staff heading into 2024.

New York’s short-term rotation outlook is far less settled. Injuries have cost Frankie Montas the season to date and shelved Cortes and Carlos Rodón on multiple occasions. Gerrit Cole has been phenomenal and Clarke Schmidt has settled in after a rocky April, but the rest of the group has struggled.

Luis Severino has been one of the worst pitchers in the league, posting an 8.06 ERA across 14 outings. Were the Yankees in a better position, they quite likely would’ve bumped him from the rotation by now. With so many injuries, Severino has tenuously held his rotation spot. Boone told reporters this afternoon he’s likely to get another start on Tuesday against Atlanta (via Bryan Hoch of MLB.com). Brito and Vásquez are likely to fill out the rotation for now.

Cash: “Highly Unlikely” Shane McClanahan Returns This Season

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The Rays placed left-hander Shane McClanahan on the 15-day injured list last week due to left forearm tightness. It seems he may be out well beyond those 15 days as manager Kevin Cash tells Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times that surgery is possible and it is “highly unlikely” the southpaw will pitch again this year, though he will see another specialist before that’s confirmed. Cash adds that’s “everything is on the table,” including Tommy John surgery, flexor tendon surgery or the removal of loose bodies, per Topkin.

It’s yet another brutal blow to the Tampa rotation, which has received many this year. The club is already without Drew Rasmussen and Jeffrey Springs, each of whom has undergone season-ending surgery already. Josh Fleming is also on the 60-day injured list alongside those two, having been out since late May.

But the loss of McClanahan would be the most devastating of all, given that he’s been one of the best pitchers in the game in recent years. Dating back to his 2021 debut, he’s tossed 404 2/3 innings, allowing just 3.02 earned runs per nine innings. He’s struck out 28% of batters faced, walked just 7.1% and kept the ball on the ground at a 46.8% clip. He finished seventh in American League Rookie of the Year voting two years ago and then was sixth in Cy Young voting last year.

The mounting pitching injuries have undoubtedly played a role in the club’s slide in the standings. They started out the season with a 13-game winning streak and were in first place in the AL East for much of the season, but have since faded to second. Their 68-46 record has them three games behind the Orioles and four games ahead of the Blue Jays. Now they will seemingly have to navigate the final weeks of the season without their best pitcher.

The current rotation consists of Tyler Glasnow, Zach Eflin, Aaron Civale and Zack Littell, which is a talented group but one with concerns. Glasnow has frequently dealt with injuries in his career, having never reached 112 innings in a major league season. He was scratched from his Sunday start due to back spasms and now will be shut down for two days after receiving an injection, per Topkin. Eflin recently had a knee scare that resulted in him avoiding the injured list, but he’s had knee issues his entire career and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see something flare up again. Civale also has a spotty health history, which has prevented him from ever hitting 125 innings in a big league campaign. Littell has primarily been a reliever and has only recently begun stretching out to a starter’s workload.

With the trade deadline now in the rear-view mirror, the Rays will have limited options to supplement this group. Fleming is on a rehab assignment and could come back shortly, though he has a career ERA of 4.86 around multiple IL stints of his own. Prospect Taj Bradley could be recalled from the minors, though his first 16 major league starts resulted in a 5.67 ERA. The Rays could also try to acquire players from outside the organization, though those will naturally be flawed options in one way or another.

The concerns with McClanahan will seemingly extend beyond the current playoff race, given the serious options that are on the table. If Tommy John surgery is ultimately required, that would likely wipe out his entire 2024 season as well, given that recovery usually takes at least 14 months after that procedure. That would be his second such surgery, as he underwent TJS back in 2015, prior to being drafted. The time off after flexor tendon surgery tends to be a little lighter but can still run close to a year.

McClanahan is currently 26 years old and will finish this season with his service time count at two years and 158 days. He’ll be a lock to qualify for arbitration as a Super Two player this winter, the first of four arb seasons before he’s slated for free agency after 2027. It’s possible that he ends up missing the entirety of his age-27 season, though he and the Rays will obviously be hoping that’s not the case.

Josh Jung To Undergo Thumb Surgery

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Rangers’ rookie third baseman Josh Jung will undergo surgery to stabilize a fracture in his left thumb, reports Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link). He’s expected to miss roughly six weeks.

Jung broke his thumb when he knocked down a Jorge Soler line drive in last night’s win over Miami. The Rangers placed him on the 10-day injured list today, recalling Jonathan Ornelas for his big league debut in his place. With the injury requiring surgical repair, Texas loses one of its top bats well into next month.

The six-week timetable leaves open the possibility of Jung returning during the regular season. If everything goes well, he could be back for the final two to three weeks of the schedule. Given how tightly contested the AL West is, it’s quite possible that stretch of play could determine the Rangers’ playoff standing. Texas leads the Astros by 2.5 games; they’re in strong position to at least secure a Wild Card berth, but the division would come with the added bonus of a first-round bye (since the AL Central winner is almost certain to be the third seed).

It’s a third straight season with a notable injury for Jung. After a broken foot in 2021, he injured his left shoulder in a weight room accident headed into 2022. That kept him from making his MLB debut until last September and probably contributed to a lackluster .204/.235/.418 showing in his first 26 games. After a healthy offseason, Jung has broken through as a middle-of-the-order presence in Arlington.

The former eighth overall pick owns a .274/.323/.489 line over 461 trips to the dish. While his strikeout and walk marks are middling, he has popped 22 homers. He leads American League rookies in longballs, putting him in strong consideration for Rookie of the Year. That’ll be far more challenging now.

As Ethan Hullihen points out (Twitter links), that could deal another hit to the team. Jung met the prospect criteria — appearing on at least two preseason Top 100 lists at Baseball America, MLB Pipeline and ESPN (he made all three) — for the Prospect Promotion Incentive. The Rangers carried Jung on the active roster from the start of the season. If he were to win Rookie of the Year, he’d net Texas an extra draft choice — as Julio Rodríguez did for the Mariners last season. That isn’t out of the question, but the injury reduces Jung’s chances of nabbing the award.

The more immediate concern, of course, is how to replace Jung at the hot corner. Ezequiel Duran figures to get the bulk of the playing time there. Duran, who has slumped since the All-Star Break following a stellar first half, is hitting seventh and manning third base tonight against Oakland southpaw Ken Waldichuk.

Yankees Designate Deivi Garcia For Assignment, Place Carlos Rodon On Injured List

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The Yankees announced a slate of roster moves prior to tonight’s game, most notably designating one-time top pitching prospect Deivi García for assignment and placing lefty Carlos Rodón on the 15-day IL with a strained hamstring. New York also reinstated Jonathan Loáisiga from the 60-day injured list — hence the need for a 40-man spot — and recalled lefty Nick Ramirez from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

García was once viewed as a potential mid-rotation arm. The 5’9″ righty appeared among Baseball America’s top 100 prospects going into both 2020 and ’21. He debuted with six starts during the shortened campaign, posting decent strikeout and walk numbers despite an ERA pushing 5.00. At the time, it seemed he was in line for a permanent rotation spot in the near future. At the very least, his high-octane stuff was expected to play out of the bullpen.

Things didn’t play out that way. García was tagged for a 6.85 ERA at Triple-A in 2021. He only made two MLB appearances that season. He followed up with a 6.89 ERA between Double-A and Triple-A the following season. The Yankees abandoned hopes of García as a starter this year, using him in relief for all but one of his 28 minor league appearances.

It hasn’t translated to markedly improved results. The 24-year-old owns a 5.67 ERA through 46 frames with the RailRiders. His 20.5% strikeout percentage is a few points below average and he’s walking almost 15% of batters faced. After three seasons of subpar production in the upper minors, the Yankees no longer feel they can keep giving him opportunities to figure things out.

Since the trade deadline has come and gone, New York will have to place García on waivers. It’s no sure thing he’ll be claimed at this point, though it wouldn’t be a surprise if another club takes a flier on his former prospect status. García still has a reasonably live arm, averaging 94.9 MPH on his heater during a pair of big league appearances this summer. There are clearly significant command issues he’ll need to iron out if he’s to emerge as even a solid middle reliever. García is in his last option season; if another team claims him, they could keep him in Triple-A for the rest of the year but would have to carry him on next year’s big league roster (if he holds a 40-man spot all offseason).

While García’s DFA marks a painful concession by the organization that he hasn’t developed as hoped, the loss of Rodón is clearly a bigger impact in the short term. Fortunately, it’s not expected to be a serious issue. Manager Aaron Boone told reporters it’s a low-grade strain that isn’t expected to keep him out for much longer than the minimum (relayed by Greg Joyce of the New York Post).

Rodón has had a frustrating first season in the Bronx. The two-time All-Star dealt with forearm and back issues that cost him the first half of the year. Since returning, he’s been ineffective through six starts. He owns a 7.33 ERA with a notably decreased 20.5% strikeout rate and lofty 14.8% walk percentage over 27 innings. His velocity remains at the same level as it was when he was dominating hitters with the White Sox and Giants the last two years. The injuries have clearly kept him from finding any kind of consistency to this point in his Yankee tenure though.

Loáisiga has missed over three months after surgery to remove a bone spur from his throwing elbow. He’s been limited to three appearances on the season. When healthy, the 28-year-old righty is one of New York’s better relievers. He racks up huge grounder rates and has a 3.53 career ERA.

MLB Issues Suspensions Following Guardians/White Sox Brawl

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Per a league press release, Major League Baseball has suspended White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson for six games and Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez for three games following the benches-clearing brawl between the two teams over the weekend. The league also announced one-game suspensions for Cleveland closer Emmanuel Clase, manager Terry Francona and third base coach Mike Sarbaugh. White Sox skipper Pedro Grifol was also suspended for one game. Guardians infielder Gabriel Arias and White Sox righty Michael Kopech were both fined an undisclosed amount.

Anderson and Ramirez are both appealing their suspensions, which will be held in abeyance until the appeals process has been completed. Clase will serve his suspension tonight, as will both managers. Sarbaugh will serve his suspension tomorrow.

The suspensions stem from a Saturday altercation on a slide at second base. Ramirez dove headfirst into the bag and felt Anderson applied a tag attempt to the head with too much force. Ramirez claimed after the game that his issues with Anderson predate Saturday’s contest, and he also alleged that Anderson was the aggressor and instigator of the fight (link via The Athletic). Anderson has not yet commented publicly.

Guardians Claim Ramon Laureano

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The Guardians announced that they’ve claimed veteran outfielder Ramon Laureano off outright waivers from the A’s. He was designated for assignment by Oakland over the weekend.

As a reminder, Major League Baseball did away with revocable August trade waivers five years ago. Laureano was claimed off (irrevocable) outright waivers. He’s now under Guardians club control through the 2025 season, and Cleveland will pick up the remainder of this year’s $3.55MM salary. The Guards currently have MLB’s tenth-worst record, indicating that the eight non-A’s clubs ahead of them — Royals, Rockies, White Sox, Cardinals, Nats, Tigers, Mets, Pirates — all passed on putting in a claim.

Just two years ago, the notion of Laureano being placed on waivers would’ve seemed difficult to fathom. From 2018-21, the now-29-year-old Laureano was a core piece in Oakland, batting a combined .263/.335/.465 (119 wRC+) and coupling that production with strong baserunning, respectable glovework in center and plus defense in right field.

Laureano, however, was hit with an 80-game PED suspension midway through the ’21 campaign and has never regained his footing. He was suspended for the final couple months of play in 2021, and that ban lingered into the 2022 season. He’s since missed time with oblique, groin and hamstring strains, as well as a fractured hand. Since returning from that PED suspension, Laureano has four IL trips and a collective .212/.285/.371 batting line in 158 games/629 plate appearances — effectively one full season’s worth of games.

The A’s have surely had varying levels of trade interest in Laureano over the past couple years, but they’ve understandably opted against selling low on a player whose value was once considerable. Unfortunately for the club, they’ll now lose Laureano for nothing more than the $1.07MM in salary relief they’ll gain with Cleveland claiming the outfielder and his contract. It’s a sub-par outcome that’ll draw ire from fans and criticism from pundits — particularly given the lackluster results of the current rebuilding effort. Laureano would likely have been non-tendered rather than given a raise this winter, so once a trade failed to materialize prior to the deadline, the A’s apparently shifted gear and simply looked to recoup some of salary obligation.

The final two months of the season will serve as an audition for Laureano in Cleveland, where outfield production is a near-annual concern. Guardians outfielders are batting a combined .248/.310/.342 this season, and the resulting 81 wRC+ (i.e. 19% worse than the MLB-average hitter) places the Cleveland outfield 29th of all 30 teams, leading only the last-place Royals. Steven Kwan is the only Guardians outfielder with even average offensive output at the plate this season, so the chance to buy low on Laureano for a cost of just over $1MM is a sensible roll of the dice for the team.

Laureano will at the very least provide a right-handed-hitting complement to lefty-swinging Will Brennan in right field, but the production (or lack thereof) from Brennan and center fielder Myles Straw is glaring enough that there ought to be an opportunity for Laureano to claim a larger role if the change of scenery proves beneficial.

Cole Hamels Retires

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The Padres announced Friday that veteran left-hander Cole Hamels, who’d signed a minor league deal in hopes of working his way back to the Majors in San Diego, has ended that comeback bid and retired.

Hamels, 39, was drafted by the Phillies with the No. 17 overall pick out of San Diego’s Rancho Bernardo High School back in 2002. By the time he’d wrapped up his first professional season — with 101 innings of 1.34 ERA ball — he’d vaulted up prospect rankings, checking in as the game’s No. 17 farmhand on Baseball America’s top-100.

While many first-round picks and top prospects fail to live up to those billings, Hamels shattered expectations and went on to become one of the generation’s finest pitchers. Despite being drafted out of high school, he reached the Majors less than three years after his selection, debuting with five shutout innings against the Reds in May 2006. Hamels posted a modest 4.08 ERA in 132 1/3 innings as a rookie but broke out with an All-Star season that saw him finish sixth in NL Cy Young voting the following year.

From 2006-15, Hamels starred for the Phillies. He and teammates Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins became synonymous with the Phillies organization during their halcyon days, serving as the foundation that ultimately brought a World Series title to the city in 2008. Hamels was sensational that season, firing 227 1/3 innings of 3.09 ERA ball, but he saved his best work for the postseason. On the game’s biggest stage, Hamels pitched 35 innings with a 1.80 ERA, compiling a 4-0 record and taking home MVP honors in both the National League Championship Series and in the World Series.

Hamels helped the Phils back to the postseason in each of the following three years. They repeated as NL champs in 2009 before dropping the World Series to the Yankees. Hamels had a relative down season in ’09 but rebounded to fire 208 2/3 frames of 3.06 ERA ball the next year. He secured his second All-Star nod and a fifth-place Cy Young finish with a 2.79 ERA over 216 frames in 2011.

The Phillies’ run of team success came to a close after that season. Philadelphia wouldn’t make the playoffs again until last year’s club took home another pennant. The down stretch of Philadelphia baseball was no fault of Hamels. He reached 30 starts each season from 2012-14 and posted an ERA below 3.60 in every year. Hamels secured another All-Star nod in 2012 and down-ballot Cy Young votes in two of those three years.

Midway through the 2012 campaign, the Phils signed him to a $144MM contract extension. While Hamels more than lived up to that investment, the team’s descent into a rebuild eventually led them to put him on the trade market. At the 2015 deadline, Philadelphia sent Hamels to Texas for a prospect package including Jorge Alfaro, Nick Williams and Jerad Eickhoff.

The young talent never really panned out for the Phils, but Hamels kept producing in Texas. He’d throw 546 2/3 frames of 3.30 ERA ball as a Ranger, securing a fourth All-Star nod in 2016 and helping Texas to a pair of playoff berths. At the 2018 deadline, a then-rebuilding Texas club shipped him to the Cubs. Hamels provided Chicago with 12 starts of 2.36 ERA ball for the stretch run. The Cubs brought him back on a $20MM club option; he’d pitch to a 3.81 ERA over 27 starts the following season.

Hamels signed with the Braves over the 2019-20 offseason. Shoulder injuries limited him to one 3 1/3 inning appearance during the shortened schedule — which would unfortunately prove his final MLB outing. Shoulder injuries have derailed subsequent comeback attempts with the Dodgers and San Diego over the last three years.

While injuries robbed Hamels of his final couple seasons, he was one of the sport’s most durable and effective pitchers for well over a decade. The southpaw had 10 years in which he reached at least 190 innings, including eight seasons of 200+ frames. Only Justin Verlander logged a higher workload between 2006-19. Hamels posted a sub-4.00 ERA in 11 of his 14 seasons (excluding his one-start 2020), a remarkable stretch of consistency.

All told, Hamels threw just under 2700 innings while allowing 3.43 earned runs per nine. He won 163 games, struck out 2560 hitters and threw 17 complete games. He had a 3.41 ERA over 100 1/3 career postseason frames — highlighted by the aforementioned 2008 run to a title and World Series MVP. MLBTR congratulates Hamels on a fantastic career and wishes him the best in retirement.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Padres Shut Down Joe Musgrove With Shoulder Inflammation

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The Padres are shutting down starter Joe Musgrove for three weeks after an MRI revealed inflammation in the capsule of his throwing shoulder, the team informed reporters (including Dennis Lin of the Athletic). While the club is hopeful he’ll be able to return at some point this season, he doesn’t figure to be back until well into September at the earliest.

San Diego placed Musgrove on the 15-day injured list before today’s matchup with the Dodgers. Trade pickup Rich Hill takes his spot on the active roster. San Diego also reinstated Eguy Rosario from the 60-day injured list and optioned him to Triple-A. The Friars cleared a 40-man spot by designating Brent Honeywell for assignment a couple days ago.

Musgrove began the season on the IL after breaking his toe in a Spring Training weight room accident. He was back on the Petco Park mound by late April and has again been one of the sport’s better starters. Over 17 appearances, the righty has tallied 97 1/3 innings of 3.05 ERA ball. He’s striking hitters out at a 24.3% clip against a tidy 5.3% walk rate.

It’s the kind of production the Friars have come to expect from the 30-year-old righty. Musgrove has an ERA of 3.18 or better in each of the past three seasons. He posted a career-low 2.93 mark over 30 starts last season. Midway through the year, the San Diego native signed a $100MM extension — seemingly sacrificing some earning upside to stick with his hometown club.

It doesn’t seem the Friars were aware of the seriousness of Musgrove’s injury at the deadline. The club scratched him from his scheduled start Wednesday morning but initially hoped he’d return to the mound next week. That won’t happen but makes their Tuesday acquisition of Hill all the more important. The former Pirate will assume a rotation role behind Blake Snell, Yu Darvish, Seth Lugo and perhaps Nick Martinez. Righty Michael Wacha is also on the shelf with a shoulder issue.

Rosario, 23, debuted with seven games for the Friars last season. He’d missed the first four months after breaking his ankle over the offseason.

Mariners Release Kolten Wong

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The Mariners announced Friday that infielder Kolten Wong has cleared waivers and been released. Seattle had designated the veteran second baseman for assignment in the waning hours before the trade deadline.

That DFA officially ended a disappointing Seattle tenure. The M’s acquired Wong from the Brewers last offseason, sending Jesse Winker and Abraham Toro to Milwaukee in a change-of-scenery deal that hasn’t worked for anyone involved. Wong opened the season as the M’s second baseman but played his way to the bench with a career-worst showing.

Over 67 games, the veteran hit .165/.241/.227 with just a pair of home runs. His walk and strikeout numbers each went in the wrong direction, while his rate of hard contact plummeted by ten percentage points. Wong’s bat-to-ball skills and strike zone awareness remained slightly above-average, but he rarely made an impact when he put the ball in play.

While power has never been Wong’s strong suit, he’s topped double-digit homers on five occasions — including each of his two years in Milwaukee. He’s stolen only one base after swiping 17 last season. The Mariners have turned to rookie José Caballero as their primary second baseman of late and acquired left-handed hitting Josh Rojas as a versatile infield piece in the Paul Sewald deal.

Wong’s defense has also dropped over the past couple seasons. A two-time Gold Glove winner, he was one of the sport’s top keystone defenders at his peak. Public defensive metrics rated him well below-average last season, however. Wong said late in the year he’d been playing through a leg issue that sapped some of his mobility. That offered some hope for a defensive rebound that hasn’t really materialized. Wong logged 513 1/3 innings at second base for Seattle. Defensive Runs Saved pegged him five runs below par, while Statcast estimated him one run worse than average.

In the immediate aftermath of Wong’s DFA, reports suggested the Red Sox had engaged the M’s in trade talks. No deal came to fruition by the deadline, making a release an inevitability. Wong long surpassed the five-year service threshold which allows players to refuse a minor league assignment while retaining the guaranteed money on their contract.

Wong is playing on a $10MM option, which the Brewers had exercised before trading him. Seattle took on that money in the deal. He is due around $3.12MM through season’s end. The M’s will pay virtually all of that sum. Any team that signs Wong would owe him the prorated $720K minimum rate for time spent on the big league roster, which comes out of Seattle’s obligations.

Rays To Promote Curtis Mead

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The Rays are planning to call up top infield prospect Curtis Mead for his Major League debut today, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. He’ll take the roster spot that was vacated when ace Shane McClanahan was placed on the injured list yesterday. Mead is already on Tampa Bay’s 40-man roster.

Mead, 22, came to the Rays in what originally looked like a minor swap with the Phillies but could end proving impactful for both clubs. Tampa Bay sent lefty Cristopher Sanchez to Philadelphia back in November of 2019, and while he’s has reached the Majors and contributed quite nicely this season (2.66 ERA in nine starts), Mead is widely regarded as one of the game’s most advanced hitting prospects. He checks in at No. 31 on MLB.com’s ranking of the sport’s top 100 prospects and also checks in at No. 67 over at Baseball America and No. 20 at FanGraphs. The Australian-born infielder has spent time at third base, second base and first base throughout his time in the minors, with many scouting reports on him pegging him as a long-term second baseman due to questions about his arm strength at third base.

There’s little questioning Mead’s hit tool, however. He’s punched out in just 12.8% of his plate appearances at Triple-A and just 15.7% of his minor league plate appearances overall. He’s hitting .291/.379/.453 this season, albeit with just three home runs on the year. He’s tacked on 16 doubles and a pair of triples as well, and his impressive 12.8% walk rate couples with that high-end hit tool to drive that strong on-base percentage.

Despite the meager power output in 2023, scouts still give Mead anywhere from above-average (55) to plus (60) raw power on the 20-80 scale. He missed the second half of the 2022 season with an elbow strain and he also missed time earlier this year after being plunked on the wrist. It’s quite possible those injuries have tamped down his power somewhat this year; he swatted 13 home runs in 331 plate appearances last season before hitting the injured list.

FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen calls Mead “one of the more dangerous hitters in the minor leagues,” touting his simple swing, his all-fields power and a rapidly improving approach at the plate that makes him a more complete hitter. Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com credit him with a hefty 65-grade hit tool on the 20-80 scale and peg him for an eventual 20 to 25 home runs on an annual basis. Baseball America is even higher on the offensive profile, tabbing him with a 70 hit tool and projecting 25-plus homers per year. All three outlets raise concerns about his throwing strength and his eventual position, but there’s a strong consensus that Mead’s bat will make him a productive everyday player regardless.

As with just about any Rays prospect, Mead’s exact role with the big league team probably will be difficult to peg. Tampa Bay has Yandy Diaz at first base, Brandon Lowe at second base and Isaac Paredes enjoying a breakout season at third base. There are certainly at-bats to be had at designated hitter, where the team has used a rotating cast of characters — Harold Ramirez chief among them. Manager Kevin Cash will probably work Mead into the mix at various positions for the time being, while Mead’s ongoing defensive development will determine where he lands on the diamond in the long-term.

As things currently stand, Mead can be controlled all the way through the 2029 season and won’t be arbitration-eligible until after the 2027 campaign, although future optional assignments can alter those timetables.

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