Cubs To Promote Danny Hultzen, Designate Taylor Davis
Sept. 7: Hultzen’s contract has officially been selected. In order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster, the Cubs have designated Taylor Davis for assignment.
Sept. 6: It has been a long and winding road for former first-round draft pick Danny Hultzen, but the path will finally pass through the majors. The Cubs southpaw has received his first MLB promotion, according to Brett Taylor of Bleacher Nation (via Twitter).
Hultzen, 29, was the second overall pick of the 2011 draft after excelling at the University of Virginia. He was seemingly breezing through the Mariners farm system when a spiraling series of injuries completely derailed his career.
It seemed like a longshot that Hultzen would be able to get back to functioning on the mound, let alone thriving. But he has opened eyes in 14 1/3 innings this year at Triple-A, allowing just two earned runs on a paltry four hits while racking up 23 strikeouts against nine walks.
Calling up Hultzen will require the Cubs to clear a place on the 40-man roster. The corresponding move isn’t yet known.
Mets Activate Jed Lowrie
The Mets are set to welcome one of their offseason additions, as infielder Jed Lowrie has been activated from the injured list, according to Tim Healey of Newsday. In addition, Dominic Smith has been transferred to the 60-day injured list and right-hander Drew Gagnon has been recalled from Triple-A.
Lowrie, one of the Mets’ significant signings of the offseason, has yet to play a game in his new uniform due to a series of left leg injuries affecting the knee, hamstring, and calf. Lowrie, 35, inked a 2-year, $20MM contract with the Mets but began the season on the injured list with a left knee capsule strain that emerged in Spring Training. However, a hamstring strain in May delayed the timetable for his recovery, and it seems that rehab subsequently snowballed into a complicated mess of recovery and re-injury.
With Robinson Cano and Todd Frazier installed at second and third base, respectively, it’s unclear just how much playing time Lowrie will receive. In that regard, not much has changed since Lowrie was signed, when the fit appeared questionable, given the team’s invested in Cano and the presence of promising youngster Jeff McNeil. At the very least, he’ll be able to offer some return on the first year of the Mets’ investment. He’s coming off a pair of productive seasons in Oakland, posting a cumulative OPS of .804, including a career-best 23 home runs last season. While he likely isn’t at full health yet, the Mets will hope for signs that Lowrie isn’t far off those numbers—not only for this season, but with an eye on 2020 as well.
Meanwhile, Smith may very well have played his last game this season; now on the 60-day IL, the earliest he could return would come in the final week of the regular season. If indeed his season is over, he’ll close the book on a breakthrough age-24 season in which he has slashed .278/.352/.506 in a part-time role. However, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports that there’s a chance he could be cleared to make another appearance or two, as he’ll be reevaluated in his recovery from a stress fracture in his left foot.
Michael Pineda Receives 60-Game PED Suspension
Minnesota Twins right-handed pitcher Michael Pineda has been suspended for 60 games for violating MLB’s drug policy, reports Jon Heyman of MLB Network. He’ll miss the remainder of the season and is not eligible for postseason play.
Per Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com, the 30-year-old Pineda tested positive for hydrochlorothiazide, a diuretic on MLB’s list of banned substances. Though that diuretic itself is not a performance-enhancing drug, it is often used in conjunction with PEDs for a masking effect. ESPN’s Jeff Passan adds that Pineda was initially tagged with an 80-game ban—standard procedure for first-time offenders—but an appeal brought that number down to 60 after providing evidence that the substance in Pineda’s system was not used as a masking agent for PEDs.
After undergoing Tommy John surgery in July 2017, Pineda caught on with the Twins on a two-year deal worth $10MM. Forced to sit out the entire 2018 season, Minnesota knew that it was only paying for one healthy season of Pineda, and his rebound has certainly been a respectable one. Though by no means a top-tier starter, he’s added depth to a Twins rotation that desperately needed it. He’s slotted in as the Twins third-best starter, posting a 4.01 ERA while racking up 146 innings for a playoff team. This year, he’s struck out 140 batters compared to just 28 walks, good for a clean 5.00 K:BB ratio.
His numbers have been even better over the last three-plus months, though, as it presumably took some time for the ex-Yankee to regain his feel for pitching after a lost season. Since the calendar turned to June, Pineda is sporting a sterling 3.10 ERA while striking out more than a batter per inning. During that stretch, he has indeed been the most reliable Minnesota starter.
However, that production will now be absent from any October games, with the suspension rendering Pineda ineligible for postseason play. That represents a considerable blow for the Twins, whose rotation has greatly benefited from the solid second-half presence of Pineda. Jose Berrios and Jake Odorizzi are an All-Star pairing, and Pineda would have given the Twins the makings of a respectable playoff rotation.
Instead, Kyle Gibson and Martin Perez will be relied upon to comprise half of that unit. Though Gibson and Perez have been valuable to the Twins in their own right, both have graded out a notch below Pineda, a disparity that could be magnified in a short series where pitching is often king. Gibson, currently on the injured list, is the more reliable of that duo: his 4.04 FIP compares favorably to Pineda’s and he owns a better track record of solid production. Perez, meanwhile, has made considerable adjustments to increase his staying power, though he still struggles with command and inconsistency. He is sporting just a 1.98 K:BB ratio to go with a 4.75 ERA.
Pineda issued a statement regarding his suspension through the MLB Players Association.
NHL’s San Jose Sharks Hire Former Dodgers GM Ned Colletti
In case last night’s report that Carlos Correa has hired Bobby Flay’s agent wasn’t strange enough for you — fear not, cravers of odd baseball news! The NHL’s San Jose Sharks announced today that they’ve hired former Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti as a professional scout. Sharks general manager Doug Wilson offered the following statement on the matter:
Ned has an extensive background working in professional sports and talent evaluation and he will bring a fresh perspective to our organization’s evaluation process. This was a unique opportunity to add someone of Ned’s experience to our staff.
Colletti has never worked in hockey before but does join the Sharks with more than three decades of experience working in a Major League front office — including 18 seasons as an assistant general manager or general manager of a Major League team. Clearly, the Sharks are convinced enough of Colletti’s hockey acumen to make a decidedly outside-the-box hire.
[Related: Pro Hockey Rumors’ coverage of the Sharks hiring Ned Colletti]
Colletti isn’t the only notable executive to completely change sports in recent years, but it seems he’ll have a more direct say in player evaluation than Paul DePodesta took on when joining the NFL’s Cleveland Browns as their Chief Strategy Officer in early 2016. (DePodesta, per the Browns, is “tasked with implementing systems and processes to strengthen the Browns organization and decision making” in his role with the team.)
Since being replaced by the Dodgers following the 2014 season, Colletti has been rumored to be a part of the GM searches for both the Diamondbacks and the Orioles, but he’s never signed on as an executive with another MLB organization. Colletti served as an adviser to Dodgers president Stan Kasten after being removed as GM and has also served as a television analyst with Sportsnet Los Angeles.
Aaron Sanchez To Undergo Season-Ending Shoulder Surgery
Aaron Sanchez won’t pitch again this season, as Astros GM Jeff Luhnow told reporters (including Mark Berman of KRIV Fox 26) that the right-hander is set to undergo shoulder surgery next week. The nature of the procedure or Sanchez’s recovery timeline isn’t yet known, as Luhnow said more details will be forthcoming after the surgery takes place.
Sanchez was already on the injured list (dating back to August 21) due to a sore right pectoral muscle, and though the severity of his shoulder problem isn’t yet established, it represents yet another troubling injury absence for the 27-year-old. Sanchez was plagued with a variety of blister, nail, and finger problems in 2017-18, and also missed over two months due to finger surgery in 2018.
These injuries derailed what was looking like a career on the rise, as Sanchez posted a league-best 3.00 ERA in 2016 for a Blue Jays team that reached the American League Championship Series. Since the end of that season, however, Sanchez has a 5.29 ERA, 7.4 K/9, and 1.54 K/BB rate over 272 1/3 innings for Toronto and Houston, as he has been unable to regain his past form even when healthy.
The Jays dealt Sanchez to the Astros as part of a four-player deal at the trade deadline, and the prevailing thought was that Sanchez could blossom with a change of scenery, particularly given how the Astros had proven to be adept at reviving pitchers’ careers or taking them to another level in recent years. This seemed like the case almost immediately, as Sanchez’s first start as an Astro saw him toss six hitless innings as part of a combined no-hitter.
After following that start up with another strong outing, however, Sanchez struggled over his next two starts, and his first season for Houston will finish with a 4.82 ERA, 7.7 K/9, and 1.78 K/BB rate over 18 2/3 innings. While it’s a small sample size, Sanchez’s home run problems (already an issue in Toronto) worsened, as he surrendered five homers over those 18 2/3 frames.
Sanchez as seen as a potential relief weapon out of the Astros’ pen in October (he excelled in a similar role during the 2015 Blue Jays’ postseason run). Since Sanchez is no longer an option, it adds another question mark to an increasingly troubled Astros relief corps as the club approaches the playoffs. Ryan Pressly, Collin McHugh, and Brad Peacock are all on the IL, while closer Roberto Osuna has been rather homer-prone himself. It remains to be seen how healthy and effective the relievers will be to back up the all-world starting quartet of Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole, Zack Greinke, and Wade Miley.
Looking long-term, if the surgery require a long recovery period, Sanchez could even be in danger of being non-tendered by Houston in the offseason. He will be arbitration-eligible for a third and final time this winter, though he won’t carry a big price tag, after Sanchez made just under $1.271MM in 2019. With only a modest raise forthcoming, the Astros could decide to tender Sanchez a contract just to see what they can get from him next year, or perhaps work out a two-year extension to keep him into the fold for 2021 should Sanchez miss a large portion of the 2020 season.
Brewers Release Jeremy Jeffress
Sept. 3: The Brewers announced that Jeffress has been released. He’s eligible to sign with any other club at this point but would not be postseason eligible in 2019. The previous 2020 option on his contract was rendered moot when he was released, so any club signing Jeffress to a new deal would control him only through the end of the current season (unless a new club option were to be tacked on).
Sept. 1: The Brewers are set to release right-hander Jeremy Jeffress, tweets Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. As Rosenthal notes, the veteran reliever is currently on the 10-day injured list with a strained left hip.
It’s the culmination of a shocking turn of events for the 31 year-old, whose 1.29 ERA last season was a key reason Milwaukee advanced within a game of the World Series. The 2019 season has been nowhere near as effective for Jeffress (or the team), who has seen his strikeout rate drop from 29.8 percent to 20.4 percent. Despite strong walk and ground-ball numbers, Jeffress simply hasn’t been overpowering enough to get an adequate number of outs this year.
Jeffress had a club option covering his 2020 services, so evidently Milwaukee wasn’t interested in bringing him back at that rate and valued the 40-man roster spot over whatever they felt he could offer were he to get healthy. It’s possible to see Jeffress latch on elsewhere if an interested team feels comfortable with his medicals, but he’ll be ineligible for anyone’s postseason roster as a post-September 1 addition. It’s certainly arguable that Jeffress would be best suited sitting out the remainder of the season and turning his attention to the offseason, where his track record still seems likely to find him a major-league contract.
Dodgers Promote Gavin Lux
Sept. 2: The move is official. Lux’s contract has been selected from Oklahoma City, with Tyler White (whose season is over) moving to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man roster spot. The Dodgers also announced that they’ve reinstated lefty Julio Urias from the 60-day injured list and recalled right-hander Josh Sborz from Triple-A.
Sept. 1: The Dodgers are calling up star prospect Gavin Lux, manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times). Lux will make his MLB debut tomorrow, starting at second base for the NL West leaders.
Max Muncy‘s wrist fracture could have been the catalyst for the beginning of Lux’s time with the Dodgers, as Roberts said at the time that the club would “be more aggressive” with its September promotions if Muncy’s injury proved to be serious. While Muncy is only expected to miss around two weeks with his relatively minor fracture, that was still enough for L.A. to decide that more depth was required at second base.
Of course, it’s not as if Lux himself didn’t do everything he could to force the Dodgers’ hand. Lux has been nothing short of spectacular at Triple-A Oklahoma City this season, hitting .392/.478/.719 with 13 homers over 232 plate appearances. Even accounting for the extremely hitter-friendly conditions of the Pacific Coast League, the numbers were still astounding, and far from out of nowhere given Lux’s already-strong prospect status.
Selected as the 20th overall pick of the 2016 draft, Lux appeared on top-100 prospect lists (ranked 40th by Baseball America, 70th by MLB.com) prior to this season and zoomed up the various rankings as he continued to shred Triple-A pitching — the updated midseason ratings from Fangraphs, MLB.com, and BA all list Lux as the ninth-best prospect in baseball. As cited by the Fangraphs and MLB.com scouting reports, Lux’s hitting potential has been unlocked in the minors (even prior to 2019) by a number of swing changes, including more lift in his swing, as well as incorporating his hands and legs into his action at the plate.
Lux has played the majority of his games as a shortstop, but he also saw a lot of action at second base in preparation for fit into the lineup alongside stalwart Corey Seager in Los Angeles. It’s safe to assume that Lux will get the bulk of time down the stretch, as the Dodgers have the NL West long since wrapped up, and are now merely making adjustments for the playoffs. It certainly isn’t out of the question that Lux could force his way onto the postseason roster if he plays well in September, giving the Dodgers an embarrassment of depth once Muncy returns to their already-stacked roster.
Seager, Cody Bellinger, Justin Turner, and rookie catcher Will Smith look to be the only true everyday players on a Dodgers team that prizes versatility. A.J. Pollock is more or less the regular center fielder and Muncy will presumbly return to regular duty at second or first base when he returns. Beyond those names, Los Angeles boasts the likes of Chris Taylor, Joc Pederson, Enrique Hernandez, Matt Beaty, David Freese, the currently-injured Alex Verdugo, Jedd Gyorko, Kristopher Negron, and now Lux to rotate into the starting lineup and as late-game subs to maximize their chances in various matchups.
Beyond just what Lux can do this season, of course, he also represents a major building block for the future. The Dodgers resisted all trade offers for Lux both this season and in past years, and it’s fair to guess that L.A. has him penciled in at second base for years to come.
Twins, Marlins Complete Sergio Romo Trade
TODAY: Per Craig Mish of FNTSY Radio, the trade has been finalized with the Marlins sending cash considerations to the Twins. It had been previously reported that Minnesota would receive a player to be named later in addition to Romo and Vallimont.
JULY 27, 8:21pm: Both teams have announced the trade.
7:48pm: Righty Chris Vallimont is the minor league pitcher going to Minnesota, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. They’re also getting a player to be named later, Jon Morosi of MLB.com reports.
7:33pm: Romo is indeed going to the Twins, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets. The Twins are also getting a minor league pitcher, Joel Sherman of the New York Post relays. The Marlins will acquire first base prospect Lewin Diaz, according to Betsy Helfand of the Pioneer Press.
7:28pm: The Twins are “deep into talks” to acquire Marlins reliever Sergio Romo, Jeff Passan of ESPN reports. A deal’s likely to be completed.
The 36-year-old Romo served his purpose for the rebuilding Marlins, who signed him for $2.5MM in free agency last winter with the intent of eventually trading him. A former Giant, Dodger and Ray, the three-time world champion continued his effectiveness in Miami, where he notched a 3.58 ERA/3.88 FIP with 7.88 K/9 against 3.11 BB/9 in 37 2/3 innings. Romo also converted 17 of 18 save attempts.
Romo’s velocity maxes out in the mid-80s, making him one of the game’s least imposing hurlers, and he only induces ground balls at a 36.4 percent clip. However, Romo has long shown a penchant for forcing a boatload of infield pop-ups, having done so 14 percent of the time this season, and generating a large amount of soft contact. Romo ranks near the top of the league in hard-hit rate and exit velocity against, according to Statcast, which credits him with an even better expected weighted on-base average against (.276) than the .282 wOBA hitters have mustered off him this year.
Based on his career production and the numbers he has totaled this season, Romo should be a welcome pickup for the Twins, who’ve been in the market for bullpen help for weeks. And his addition shouldn’t preclude them from finding more late-game aid in the coming days. The Twins’ bullpen entered play Saturday ranking better than average in K/BB ratio (ninth) and FIP (11th), but the unit’s closer to middle of the pack in ERA (14th). Moreover, the Twins have jettisoned a handful of notable relievers – Mike Morin, Matt Magill, Adalberto Mejia and Blake Parker – since last week. Those four combined for just over 100 innings of work as part of Minnesota’s relief corps this season. Of their remaining arms, only closer Taylor Rogers and setup man Ryne Harper have recorded easily above-average numbers over a large sample of work.
In Diaz, 22, the Twins are parting with a player they originally signed out of the Dominican Republic for $1.4MM in 2013. Baseball America (subscription required) just ranked Diaz as the Twins’ 10th-best prospect earlier this month. BA lauds Diaz’s defensive ability at first, though it’s worth pointing out he has also excelled on the offensive side in 2019. After opening the season on a tear at the High-A level, Diaz advanced to Double-A for the first time and has since slashed .309/.348/.602 (165 wRC+) with six home runs in 135 plate appearances.
Also 22, Vallimont joined the Marlins as a fifth-round pick just last year. Back then, BA highlighted Vallimont’s fastball – which can hit 96 mph – and “wipeout slider.” More recently, the outlet rated as him as Miami’s 27th overall prospect. Vallimont has produced terrific results this year between the Single-A and High-A levels, where he has combined for a 3.16 ERA with 10.4 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 in 105 1/3 innings.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Indians Activate Carlos Carrasco, Dan Otero
In heartwarming, if expected, news, the Indians announced today they have activated Carlos Carrasco from the 60-day injured list. The club also activated right-handed reliever Dan Otero.
It has been a trying season for Carrasco, who was shut down indefinitely in May after being diagnosed with leukemia. While he hasn’t had time to ramp up to a starter’s workload, he’ll be available in short stints for Cleveland’s postseason push. They’ve had to weather a number of injuries, but they still sit half a game up on Tampa and Oakland for the AL Wild Card. They’re also within shouting distance of the Twins in the AL Central, sitting 4.5 games out with a month to play.
Otero has been out since May 31 with right shoulder inflammation. The 34 year-old is amidst his second straight trying season, sporting just a 9.5% strikeout rate in 23.2 innings. He’s no longer an integral part of a strong Cleveland bullpen.
Tyler Naquin Suffers Torn ACL
Indians outfielder Tyler Naquin will miss the remainder of the season after an MRI revealed that he has a torn right ACL, writes Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com. The injury was initially announced as a knee sprain, but today the Indians learned that it was in fact as bad as it looked, with Naquin carted off the field after a violent collision with the outfield fence at Tropicana Field. With Naquin heading to the injured list, the Indians have recalled Jake Bauers to take his spot on the active roster.
It is yet unknown if Naquin will opt to undergo surgery to repair the ligament, and while a 2019 return is out of the question, a more precise timeline is likewise unknown. However, it stands to reason that Naquin could miss a significant portion, if not the entirety, of next season.
It’s a devastating break for the Indians and Naquin, 28, who has emerged as a critical part of his team’s second-half success. He had been enjoying his best offensive season since his rookie year in 2016, along with much-improved performance in the outfield, where he has graded out as an above-average defender. His bounce back from a pair of disappointing seasons has been crucial in revitalizing the Cleveland outfield, which stood out as perhaps the club’s most pressing need on Opening Day.
The progress that Naquin, Oscar Mercado, and Yasiel Puig have made will now hit a roadblock, which could hardly come at a worse time for the Indians, who have already lost one of their stars, Jose Ramirez, and find themselves in the thick of the American League playoff race. The team is still within range to overtake the Twins for the AL Central, and while they still own the first Wild Card spot, they’ll need to fend off a pair of strong teams in Oakland and Tampa Bay.
In light of today’s news, though, they’ll have to do so without Naquin, who will likely give way to a combination of Bauers and Greg Allen in left field. That pair has netted roughly replacement level production; while not unplayable in the outfield, there’s little doubt that they come in a step below Naquin, a difference that is magnified in significance for a team in Cleveland’s position. Allen, like Naquin, saw his offensive output jump forward in July, though he’s regressed noticeably in August. For his part, Allen has stood out as a defensive left fielder, though the same can’t be said for Bauers, who has spent the last month in the minor leagues after the arrival of Puig and Franmil Reyes.
Between Naquin, Ramirez, and a slew of pitchers including Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, and Mike Clevinger, the Indians have had their playoff hopes tested by health-related absences to some of their most important contributors. Though they have thus far managed to succeed in the face of those injuries, the season’s final month will no doubt be a considerable challenge, and unexpected contributors will need to emerge if the club is to reach the postseason for the fourth consecutive season.