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Brewers Notes: Hiura, Varland, Miller, Wiemer

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Brewers general manager Matt Arnold attempted to trade infielder Keston Hiura prior to this morning’s DFA, he told reporters in the wake of the move (Twitter link via Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel). Clearly, no deal came together. It’s still possible that the Brewers could find a trade partner in the coming days, but a DFA on the heels of an apparently tepid trade market also creates the possibility that Milwaukee will attempt to pass Hiura through waivers.

There’s no guarantee Hiura would be claimed, given his $2.2MM salary, prolific strikeout rates and limited defensive abilities. While he turned in a .226/.316/.449 batting line (115 wRC+) with 14 home runs in 266 plate appearances last year, Hiura also punched out at staggering 41.7% clip. He needed a .355 batting average on balls in play and a massive 29.8% homer-to-flyball rate just to get to a .226 average overall. It’s hard to imagine him sustaining either.

[Related: The Brewers’ Keston Hiura Dilemma]

Hiura’s strikeout rate has worsened each year since his sensational rookie debut back in 2019, when he hit .303/.368/.570. Since that time, he’s a .205/.293/.394 with a 38.5% strikeout rate and negative ratings for his glovework at second base. He’s been about average in 603 innings at first base, per both Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average. That Hiura is out of minor league options also contributed to both his DFA and the ostensible difficulty in finding a trade partner.

The DFA of Hiura and subsequent signing of Luke Voit were just a couple of many steps the Brewers took toward solidifying the roster today. The team also informed Rule 5 pick Gus Varland today that he’s made the Opening Day roster. (Fans of any team will want to check out the video of Arnold and skipper Craig Counsell informing Varland of the news.) Counsell also announced that Owen Miller made the roster while top outfield prospect Joey Wiemer has been reassigned to minor league camp (Twitter link via Adam McCalvy of MLB.com).

Varland pitched to a 4.15 ERA in eight spring appearances but also showed the potential to overpower opponents. Though he was tagged for three home runs, he also fanned 17 of his 35 opponents (48.6%) against just one walk in 8 2/3 innings. He’s had a brutal two seasons with the Dodgers’ Double-A affiliate in 2021-22 (combined 5.98 ERA), but the Brewers were intrigued by his raw stuff over his results, and at least thus far, that interest looks well founded.

That Varland landed with the Brewers of all teams is surely extra sweet to the right-hander, who’s from nearby Minnesota and noted during an emotional interaction with Arnold and Counsell that he has family in Milwaukee. He and his brother Louie Varland, who pitches for the pair’s hometown Twins, played their college ball at Division-II Concordia in St. Paul but can now both call themselves big leaguers.

Today marks even more of a homecoming for Miller, a Wisconsin native whom the team picked up in a trade that sent a player to be named later to the Guardians back in December. Miller hit just .243/.301/.351 in 472 plate appearances with Cleveland last year, fading after a hot April, but he slashed .385/.429/.487 this spring. He’s played all four infield positions in his brief MLB career — primarily first base and second base — but the Brewers gave him a look in center field this spring and could use him on the grass in 2023. Miller does have minor league options remaining, so he can be freely sent to Triple-A Nashville if he has a rocky stretch this season.

Some Brewer fans will be disheartened to see Wiemer, 23, sent to minor league camp — particularly after last year’s .287/.368/.520 showing in Triple-A. The 2020 fourth-rounder looks like one of the steals of his draft class after a big 2022 season and currently sits on the top 100 prospect rankings at Baseball Prospectus (65), MLB.com (90), FanGraphs (91) and The Athletic (91). He hit .262/.319/.429 with a pair of homers and a double in 47 plate appearances this spring.

As Counsell explained, the decision on Wiemer simply boiled down to playing time. The roster spot that was up for grabs was a part-time role off the bench, and the organization wants Wiemer and fellow top outfield prospect Sal Frelick to receive regular playing time down in Nashville. Given the prospect status of both Wiemer and Frelick, a strong start could force the team’s hand early on, but for now it looks like it’ll be Christian Yelich in left field, Garrett Mitchell in center and likely Brian Anderson in right field. Tyrone Taylor’s eventual return will be a factor at some point, but he’s expected to miss at least the first month of the season.

NL Notes: Strahm, Mendick, Hamels, Panik

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With Ranger Suarez unlikely to be ready for the first turn through the rotation this season, Phillies manager Rob Thomson announced to reporters, including Alex Coffey of The Philadelphia Inquirer, that left-hander Matt Strahm would start the fifth game of the season for Philadelphia, joining Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler, Taijuan Walker and Bailey Falter in the rotation while Suarez is on the shelf.

Strahm signed with the Phillies as a reliever this offseason but has 25 career starts in the big leagues under his belt as well. That being said, his 5.08 career ERA in 108 innings of work as a starter pales in comparison to his 3.11 ERA in 196 2/3 relief innings. That said, Strahm nonetheless represents a serviceable option to fill in for Suarez in the short-term, particularly seeing as Thomson notes he will likely be limited to between 65 and 70 pitches in his first start, as he is not fully stretched out yet. That low pitch count could help him avoid facing batters for a third time, a challenge he has only faced in 75 plate appearances in his career to this point.

More from around the NL…

  • The Mets optioned infielder Danny Mendick to Triple-A today, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post. Mendick, who has experience at every position except for catcher and first base, suffered a torn ACL early last season, leading to his non-tender by the White Sox in November of last year. Mendick, who slashed a solid .289/.343/.443 in 106 plate appearances prior to his injury in 2022, eventually landed with the Mets on a one-year, $1MM contract. While he was in the mix for an Opening Day roster spot, he ultimately will serve as depth in Syracuse while the final spot on the bench goes to either Darin Ruf or Tim Locastro.
  • The Padres believe that veteran left-hander Cole Hamels will be able to contribute to the big league club sometime this summer, according to Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Hamels, 39, signed with the Padres on a minor league deal after years of battling injuries, with just 3 1/3 innings of work under his belt since the end of the 2019 season. Still, with a career 3.43 ERA in 2,698 innings of work during his fifteen year major league career, it’s easy to see why the Padres decided to take a chance on the possibility he could return healthy and effective.
  • The Giants have hired longtime second baseman Joe Panik as a special assistant, according to Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports. Panik, who won the World Series with the Giants in 2014, was an All Star in 2015, and won a Gold Glove award in 2016, last played in the majors in 2021 for the Blue Jays and the Marlins. He ended his career with a .700 OPS in 818 games, slashing .264/.328/.372. According to Pavlovic, Panik recently spent time working with some of San Francisco’s young infielders in minor league camp. Panik is happy in his new role, telling Pavlovic that “You kind of want to give back because there are a lot of coaches, a lot of people that helped me get to where I was. For me to be on the other side, it’s a little weird, a little different, but I’m enjoying that part of it.”

AL Central Notes: Guardians, McKenzie, Twins, Shaw

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The Guardians appear to have mostly finalized their Opening Day roster, though president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti noted to reporters (including Mandy Bell of MLB.com) that “there is some chance that we make an external acquisition, and if we do, that will affect the composition of our roster.”

Barring such an acquisition, however, it seems likely that Cleveland will open the season with three catchers on their roster, as both Cam Gallagher and Meibrys Viloria appear set to make the team and back up starting catcher Mike Zunino. With multiple back-up options, the Guardians are hoping that Zunino will have a lighter workload in 2023 after missing the second half of the 2022 season due to surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome. That comes at the expense of depth in the infield and outfield, however, as Gabriel Arias figures to be the sole infielder on the bench, with Will Brennan the sole outfielder. On the other hand, that should help both youngsters get additional playing time to aid their development. That’s particularly valuable for Arias, who played just 82 games last year between Triple-A and the majors after missing two months on the injured list last season.

More from around the AL Central…

  • Sticking with the Guardians, manager Terry Francona told reporters, including Bell, that right-hander Triston McKenzie was dealing with right arm tightness that led to him being pulled from his start today after just one inning. McKenzie figures to be a key cog at the front of Cleveland’s rotation this year after he posted a 2.96 ERA in 191 1/3 innings of work last season, so long as his current ailment doesn’t prove to be more serious than initially believed. In the event that McKenzie misses time, the club could look to a depth option like Konnor Pilkington or Jason Bilous to fill McKenzie’s spot in the rotation.
  • The Opening Day pitching staff in Minnesota came into further focus today, as the Twins optioned Bailey Ober to Triple-A, per The Athletic’s Dan Hayes, following their decision to reassign Jeff Hoffman, per Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Ober figured to be pushed out of the rotation picture in Minnesota following the club’s acquisition of Pablo Lopez from the Marlins earlier this offseason, and will act as depth in Triple-A following an 11-start showing in 2022 where he posted a solid 3.21 ERA (120 ERA+) in 56 innings of work. Hoffman, meanwhile, signed a minor league deal with the Twins last month in order to compete for a long relief role i the Twins bullpen. Instead, right-hander Cole Sands seems poised to fill that role, leaving Hoffman to decide whether or not to make use of his opt-out clause this coming Tuesday.
  • Shortly after alerting him that he would not make their Opening Day roster, the White Sox announced that they had released right-hander Bryan Shaw from his minor league deal with the club. The veteran Shaw sports a 3.92 ERA in 714 2/3 innings of work during his career and is now poised to look for another club interested in his services for his age-35 season. Shaw made a strong case for himself this spring, pitching to a 1.08 ERA in 8 1/3 innings during camp.

AL East Notes: Rays, Franco, Hall

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Rotation plans for the Rays came into focus today as the club optioned Luis Patino and Yonny Chirinos to Triple-A, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter Links). That leaves left-hander Josh Fleming in line for the fifth starter’s spot behind Shane McClanahan, Jeffery Springs, Drew Rasmussen, Zach Eflin while Tyler Glasnow is on the shelf with a strained oblique.

Fleming, 27 in May, has largely struggled in his limited time with the Rays since his debut in the 2020 season, posting a 4.93 ERA (81 ERA+) with a 4.33 FIP in 171 2/3 innings of work. Of his 43 appearances with the Rays, 19 of those have come as a starter. While he has yet to establish himself as a quality option in the major leagues, it’s somewhat easy to see why the Rays chose him for the fifth starter job, as both Patino and Chirinos were torched this spring: Patino allowed 12 runs in just 9 2/3 innings while walking seven batters, while Chirinos gave up nine runs in 12 1/3 innings of work with six walks of his own. Both righties will begin the season in Triple-A and attempt to right the ship before likely returning to the majors sometime this year.

More from around the AL East…

  • Sticking with the Rays, manager Kevin Cash today told reporters, including Kristie Ackert of the Tampa Bay Times, that the club is optimistic that star shortstop Wander Franco will be available to play on Opening Day, saying the results of an MRI today on Franco’s quad were “favorable.” The club may not make a final decision on Franco’s availability to begin the season until rosters are due on Thursday, given the presence of Taylor Walls on the roster, who is poised to take over the shortstop role should Franco miss any time. Franco, of course, was long the top prospect in all of baseball and has already accumulated 4.7 fWAR just 153 games into his big league career. Should he manage to stay healthy in 2023 after suffering quad and wrist injuries last year, he’s sure to be an instrumental piece of the Rays this season as they attempt to return to the playoffs for a fifth straight season.
  • The Orioles have optioned left-hander DL Hall to Triple-A, per a team announcement. Hall, 24, is one of Baltimore’s top pitching prospects but struggled in his 11 game debut last season, surrendering nine runs in 13 2/3 innings of work. That being said, between the small sample size, the inflated .436 BABIP, and a strong 29.7% strikeout rate, Hall’s performance made his immense talent clear, even though the results didn’t match. Manager Brandon Hyde told reporters, including Roch Kubatko of MASN, that the club plans to build Hall up as a starter. Hyde went on to express certainty that Hall would contribute to the big league club this year. As things stand, the Orioles appear poised to open the season with a starting rotation of Kyle Gibson, Cole Irvin, Dean Kremer, Kyle Bradish, and Grayson Rodriguez.

Injury Notes: Nevin, Severino, Houser, Suarez, Suzuki

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As expected, the Tigers will place Tyler Nevin on the 10-day injured list to begin the season.  Nevin suffered a Grade 1 oblique strain a little less than three weeks ago, making it doubtful that the 25-year-old would be fully recovered in time for Opening Day.  However, it is possible Nevin won’t miss much time, as Tigers manager A.J. Hinch told reporters (including Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press) that Nevin is on pace to start a rehab assignment this week.

Even a brief IL stint isn’t an ideal way for Nevin to begin his tenure with his new team, as he was only acquired by the Tigers in a swap with the Orioles back in December.  Nevin’s ability to play both corner infield and outfield positions makes him an interesting commodity on Detroit’s roster, as this versatility and Nevin’s right-handed bat made him a natural platoon partner or complement to such left-handed batters as Austin Meadows, Akil Baddoo, Nick Maton, or Kerry Carpenter.

More on other injury situations around baseball…

  • Luis Severino is another player headed for a season-opening IL stint, as the Yankees right-hander has suffered a lat strain.  This particular injury is a concern given that Severino missed over two months of the 2022 season with another lat strain, but the pitcher told reporters (including Greg Joyce of the New York Post) that this strain in lower in his back than last year’s problem and doesn’t seem as serious.  Severino suggested that he could miss “three or four starts,” but a more specific timeline isn’t known, since “I’m going to be a little bit cautious, but I think the Yankees are going to be more cautious than me.”  Last summer, Severino expressed both surprise and public displeasure with the Yankees’ decision to shift him from the 15-day to the 60-day IL, as he expecting a quicker return to action.
  • Brewers right-hander Adrian Houser left his spring outing yesterday due to groin tightness, and the club will further examine his status today.  The same injury bothered Houser both earlier in Spring Training and at the end of last season, resulting in an IL stint.  Considering the recurring nature of the groin problem and the close proximity to Opening Day, it certainly seems possible the Milwaukee could start Houser on the IL once more.  As the odd man out of a deep Brewers rotation, Houser had been tabbed for a relief role to begin the season, with the understanding that he is also the team’s unofficial sixth starter in the event of an injury.
  • Ranger Suarez played catch on Friday and Saturday, telling Alex Coffey of the Philadelphia Inquirer that his left arm still had some tightness but no pain.  In general, Suarez felt “nothing too bad” and his forearm was doing “better.”  Despite this fairly positive update, it still seems unlikely that Suarez will be able to avoid an IL trip given how the Phillies will probably be cautious with a case of elbow inflammation.  The left-hander was projected to be either the third or fourth starter in Philadelphia’s rotation this season, but with his likely absence for part of April, Bailey Falter will step into that vacancy in the starting five.  Matt Strahm or Michael Plassmeyer could take the fifth starter job, as top prospect Andrew Painter, Cristopher Sanchez, and Nick Nelson are also battling injuries.
  • The Cubs haven’t yet decided how they’ll replace Seiya Suzuki on their season-opening roster, as Suzuki will need a 10-day IL stint after missing the last month of Spring Training due to an oblique strain.  Suzuki is making such steady development in his rehab work that even though he’ll miss some time during the regular season, it may not be all that much time. “Whether you are trying to put somebody on the [40-man] roster that’s not on it or trying to fill a gap for 10 days is a big deal,” Cubs manager David Ross told Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times and other reporters.  “And it’s a big decision.  We have so much talent and a lot of depth here.  We would like to keep as much as we possibly can because of the long journey we’re about to start.”

Orioles Notes: Givens, Tate, McCann

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Mychal Givens’ status for Opening Day is uncertain, as the veteran reliever is battling knee soreness and hasn’t pitched since March 16.  His readiness is perhaps even more doubtful after this morning’s throwing session, as Givens was working off a mound and throwing to batters before cutting the session short.  According to reporters on the scene (including MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko), Givens threw only 10 pitches and then left the mound in visible anger, even throwing his glove to the ground.

A trip to the 15-day injured list is looking increasingly likely in the wake of today’s news, and it’s a tough setback considering that Givens seemed to be relatively close to returning.  Givens played catch on flat ground on consecutive days, and told Kubatko and other reporters yesterday that “for me, just getting the reps in is what I need, even if it’s a back field game.  If I can get a couple more outings just to get my feet to rhythm and body in rhythm….[I can] get back to being in game mode.”

In a relatively quiet Baltimore offseason, Givens was one of the team’s more high-profile additions, agreeing to a one-year deal worth $5MM in guaranteed money (there is also a mutual option for 2024).  The 32-year-old was signed to bring some veteran experience to a pretty young Orioles bullpen, and Givens still has plenty to offer on the mound, after posting a 3.38 ERA over 61 1/3 innings with the Cubs and Mets in 2022.

Dillon Tate is another Orioles reliever facing an injury problem, as the righty is still recovering from a forearm/flexor strain suffered in November.  Manager Brandon Hyde said that Tate is tentatively planned to return by the middle of May, so while Tate will begin the season on the 15-day injured list, the O’s haven’t considered placing him on the 60-day IL.  It is possible that a 60-day placement might yet come if Tate hits any setbacks, but he has seemingly been making pretty steady process, including a mound session yesterday.

On the catching front, James McCann has been bothered by some soreness in his left side, and his Opening Day availability might also be in doubt.  “We’ve got some big steps to overcome these next couple days to be sure,” McCann told MLB.com’s Jake Rill and other reporters, “but again, it’s one of those things, for me, better be safe than sorry.”

McCann is unfortunately no stranger to side injuries, as he missed just under a month of the 2022 due to a left oblique strain.  While this current soreness is also on his left side, McCann said his current issue is in a different area, and “it’s only minor” compared to his strain.

The Orioles acquired McCann in a December trade with the Mets, as New York also included $19MM of the $24MM owed to the catcher over the 2023-24 seasons.  McCann will give Baltimore some veteran catching depth behind Adley Rutschman, but the O’s will have to dig deeper down the depth chart if McCann ends up having to spend any time on the 10-day IL to fully recover.  Anthony Bemboom and Mark Kolozsvary have some MLB experience and are currently slated for the Orioles’ Triple-A team, though neither backstop is on the 40-man roster.

NL West Notes: Gonsolin, Profar, Senzatela, Cron, Cobb, D’backs

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Tony Gonsolin suffered an ankle sprain earlier this month, and the injury is already set to place the right-hander on the 15-day injured list to begin the season.  The Dodgers have yet to share a more specific recovery timeline for Gonsolin, but The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya writes that late April probably represents the earliest we could see Gonsolin make his 2023 debut.  On Friday, Gonsolin did some mound work for the first time since his ankle injury.

Losing a pitcher of Gonsolin’s caliber for at least a month isn’t news for the Dodgers, but the team is better equipped than most to withstand such a significant loss to the rotation.  Los Angeles had a pair of promising young arms competing for the right to be Gonsolin’s replacement, with Ryan Pepiot getting the nod over Michael Grove.  Pepiot will get a chance to build on the 36 1/3 innings he threw in his MLB debut season, and establish himself as the team’s top depth option in the event of future injuries.

More from around the NL West…

  • Jurickson Profar finally left the free agent market when he signed with the Rockies last week, but the outfielder has yet to actually join his new club due to visa issues, manager Bud Black told The Denver Gazette’s Danielle Allentuck and other reporters.  Profar is still in his native Curacao and slated to visit the consulate on Monday, with the hopes of being able to join the Rox in time for Opening Day.  It is possible Profar might still need some ramp-up time during extended Spring Training given that he only recently signed, but Profar is at least in game shape, after playing with the Netherlands during the World Baseball Classic.
  • Sticking with the Rockies, Antonio Senzatela’s recovery from ACL surgery hit another key checkpoint yesterday, when the righty faced hitters for the first time.  Senzatela is expected to return to the Rockies sometime in May, and he told MLB.com’s Thomas Harding that after yesterday’s 20-pitch session, “I feel like I’m getting closer…My knee is feeling good, everything is feeling good.”  In more immediate injury news, Black told Harding and other reporters that C.J. Cron could return to the lineup as soon as today, as the first baseman has missed the last 10 days due to back spasms.
  • Alex Cobb has been slowed by a knee contusion suffered after Miguel Vargas lined a ball off the Giants right-hander’s knee on March 11.  Cobb told Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle that the swelling has now also moved up into Cobb’s hamstring area, but the veteran righty got through a bullpen session with no issue yesterday.  Barring any setback, Cobb is still penciled in to start against the Yankees on April 1, with a simulated game planned as his last ramp-up outing prior to the regular season.
  • From injury updates to roster battles, as the Diamondbacks still have to identify their fifth starter and the final two spots in their bullpen.  The two battles are somewhat intertwined, as Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic writes that with Ryne Nelson and Drey Jameson competing for the final rotation job, whomever isn’t used as a starter could take one of the two bullpen roles.  Carlos Vargas, Peter Solomon, and Ryan Hendrix are also competing for spots in the relief corps. [UPDATE: Nelson has been named the fifth starter and Jameson will take one of the bullpen jobs, Piecoro tweets.  Solomon is out of the running for a relief role, as the D’Backs reassigned him to their minor league camp.]

AL West Notes: Angels, Astros, Brantley

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Angels manager Phil Nevin indicated to reporters (including Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register) that the club would not be naming right-hander Carlos Estevez as the closer to open the season, instead opting for a committee approach to open the season. Estevez signed with the Angels earlier this offseason on a two-year deal and was expected to step into the closer role to open the season, but that does not appear to be the plan, at least for the start of the 2023 campaign.

Still, Nevin told reporters that Estevez “is definitely going to get some big outs late in the game most of the year for us,” leaving the door open to the right-hander remaining the conversation to close games for the Angels this season. The Angels have a fairly deep group of pitchers with late inning experience at the back of their bullpen in addition to Estevez that includes Ryan Tepera, Matt Moore, Aaron Loup and Jimmy Herget.

The Angels were aggressive in acquiring shorter-term assets this offseason in order to immediately improve the club during two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani’s final year of club control. The additions of Hunter Renfroe, Gio Urshela, and Brandon Drury lengthened the lineup and provided depth in case of injuries while the club signed Tyler Anderson to deepen the starting rotation. The additions of Estevez and Moore to the bullpen this offseason certainly improved upon the group of relievers the Angels would’ve otherwise had, but it’s an open question whether or not they did enough to make up for the still-lingering loss of Raisel Iglesias, who was dealt to the Braves at the last trade deadline.

More from around the AL West…

  • Astros manager Dana Brown told Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle and other reporters that extension conversations with outfielder Kyle Tucker and left-handed starter Framber Valdez are “on pause” for the time being. Brown noted that while it’s possible talks could restart during or after the season, Jose Altuve’s thumb surgery forced Brown to divert attention to other areas of the roster. Both Tucker and Valdez are under team control through the end of the 2025 season, giving the club plenty of time to revisit contract negotiations ahead of the duo’s pending free agency.
  • Sticking with the Astros, the club was already expecting to be without left fielder Michael Brantley to start the season, but it now appears he’ll be out of action for longer than a minimum 10-day IL stint. Manager Dusty Baker told reporters (including Rome) that Brantley would join the team in Houston for World Series celebrations next week before returning to the club’s Florida facilities in order to continue his rehab and ramp-up process. Brantley missed most of the last season following shoulder surgery, but has been a consistent, quality bat for Houston when healthy, slashing .306/.368/.464 (128 wRC+) in 379 games since joining the organization in 2019. Jake Meyers figures to draw starts in center field while Brantley is absent, with Chas McCormick sliding over to left.

Red Sox Notes: Alfaro, Goodrum, Tapia, Allen

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Catcher Jorge Alfaro is in camp with the Red Sox on a minor league deal and it was reported about three weeks ago that he has an upward mobility clause in his contract. Today, Chris Cotillo of MassLive has the details on how that will play out.

If Alfaro is not added to the club’s 40-man roster today, he can request that the Sox email the other 29 clubs, which they must do within 24 hours. Those other clubs will then have 24 hours to express their interest in giving Alfaro a spot on their own respective rosters. If one or multiple clubs are willing to give Alfaro a spot, Boston has 72 hours to decide whether or not to add Alfaro to their roster or let him join one of the other interested teams. If more than one team is interested, the Sox can choose which one he goes to.

The Red Sox only have two catchers on their 40-man roster at the moment, who are Reese McGuire and Connor Wong. The latter of those two was dealing with a hamstring strain earlier in spring, which seemed to open the door for Alfaro to get a job. However, Wong now seems healthy and back in the mix for a spot on the Opening Day roster. The Sox would surely love to keep Alfaro around as depth in the event another injury pops up, but it will depend on his level of interest from other clubs around the league.

Chris Hatfield of SoxProspects.com reports that utility player Niko Goodrum also has an upward mobility clause that gets going today, though it’s not known if it will take the exact same shape as Alfaro’s. The 31-year-old signed a minor league deal with the Red Sox on the heels of a rough season with the Astros. He hit .116/.156/.163 last year while striking out in 51.1% of his 45 plate appearances. He was optioned by the Astros but an injury limited him to just 20 minor league games for the year. He was released by Houston and the Red Sox took a flier on him but he’s hitting just .178/.275/.178 in spring so far. He can play all over the diamond but likely has steep odds of making the team, as he’s competing against guys who already have roster spots. Rob Refsnyder and Jarren Duran are candidates for a backup outfield job, while Bobby Dalbec and Yu Chang are potential bench infielders.

Another option for a job with the Red Sox is outfielder Raimel Tapia, who’s also in camp on a minor league deal. Hatfield adds that Tapia can opt-out of his deal on Monday if not added to the roster. Tapia was with the Blue Jays last year and hit .265/.292/.380 for a wRC+ of 90. With the Sox moving Enrique Hernández to cover shortstop while Trevor Story is injured, they have some uncertainty in center field. Adam Duvall is set to be the regular option there, though the 34-year-old has never seen extended time there. Tapia has primarily been a left fielder in his career, though he did play center in 38 games last year and the Sox are reportedly open to using him there as well. Perhaps that ability to play center gives him an edge in the battle for bench jobs in Boston, though he’s not on the 40-man right now. The club will evidently have to make a decision in the next couple of days or they could watch him walk away from his contract. He’s having a nice spring, hitting .325/.372/.600 thus far.

The Sox currently have a full 40-man roster and would have to open up some spots if they want to add anyone from this group. Should any of this group not make the club and then end up sticking around, they will have more options to opt out in the future. Per Hatfield, Goodrum can opt out on May 1 and July 1, Alfaro on June 1 and July 1 and Tapia on July 1. Additionally, outfielder Greg Allen has an upward mobility clause on May 15 and June 15.

Blue Jays Notes: White, Bullpen, Pearson

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Blue Jays manager John Schneider told reporters today, including Keegan Matheson of MLB.com, that right-hander Mitch White is dealing with elbow inflammation. The injury seems likely to force White to start the season on the injured list, as he had already been slowed earlier this spring by a shoulder impingement.

White, 28, was acquired by Toronto in a deal with the Dodgers last summer and struggled down the stretch, posting a 7.74 ERA in 43 big league innings with the Blue Jays last year. Despite those concerning numbers, White pitched a fair bit better than they would indicate. A sky-high BABIP of .368 and a strand rate of just 54.3% during his time pitching for Toronto last year help to explain his solid 3.76 FIP even as his strikeout rate dropped to just 15.3% with the Blue Jays. White also looked better in the first half of the year with Los Angeles, posting a 3.70 ERA with a 19.8% strikeout rate in 56 innings of work for the Dodgers.

Given his success with the Dodgers and unfortunate luck in his first stint with the Blue Jays, White seemed likely to make the bullpen as the primary long relief option for the club. With that no longer feasible, Matheson notes that right-hander Zach Pop appears poised to make the Opening Day roster. Pop impressed in 39 innings of work in 2022 split between Toronto and Miami, recording a sterling 2.77 ERA largely backed up by his 2.96 FIP.

While this set-up would leave the Blue Jays without a traditional long reliever in their bullpen, Schneider seems unperturbed by this, telling reporters that both Pop and fellow righty Trevor Richards, who opened four games for the Jays last year as a spot starter, can both be options to go multiple innings if necessary.

Schneider’s comments come on the heels of another round of cuts from Blue Jays camp, including former top prospect Nate Pearson. The right-handed Pearson, now 26, missed most of the 2022 season with mononucleosis after struggling to a 5.18 ERA in 33 big league innings across the 2020 and 2021 seasons. Now a full-time reliever, Pearson figures to get another chance in the big leagues at some point this season, but that opportunity will not come on Opening Day.

Also among today’s cuts was right-hander Zach Thompson, who Toronto acquired from the Pirates earlier this offseason after pitching to a 5.18 ERA in 121 2/3 innings in a swing role for Pittsburgh last year. Thompson figures to be a depth option for the Blue Jays’s rotation this year alongside players like Thomas Hatch and Bowden Francis, who were also among today’s cuts from big league camp.

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