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Sean Manaea To Return Sunday

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Oakland A’s lefty Sean Manaea is set to return to the big leagues when rosters expand. He will get the start against the Yankees on Sunday, tweets MLB.com’s William Ladson.

Manaea was emerging as the ace of Oakland’s staff when he hit the injured list with a left shoulder impingement in late August of last season. Eventual shoulder surgery has kept him behind the scenes of the 2019 season until now. At the time of the injury, Manaea had made 27 starts, going 12-9 with a 3.59 ERA/4.26 FIP across a career-high 160 2/3 innings.

He has been on a rehab assignment since early July where he appears back to his old tricks. In eight starts across High-A and Triple-A, he’s notched 13.1 K/9 while yielding 2.5 BB/9 and an overall 4.71 ERA.

The A’s currently field a veteran-laden, if starless rotation featuring Mike Fiers, Tanner Roark, Chris Bassitt, Brett Anderson, and Homer Bailey. A healthy Manaea should certainly buoy this group, as will the potential addition of prospect Jesus Luzardo at some point in September, though Oakland plans its September additions “to come in waves,” per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter).

Fiers/Roark/Bassitt/Anderson boast ERAs that are a combined 3.98 runs lower than their relative FIPs, though whatever dark arts the quartet are engaged in, they’ve not shared with likely odd-man-out Bailey. With a 5.52 ERA/4.02 FIP in 8 starts since joining Oakland, Bailey is the only one of the five whose ERA has underperformed relative to his FIP. He’ll get at least one more start today, but the A’s could very well use the additional roster space to give each of their veteran hurlers an extra day of rest.

Matt Harvey Won’t Opt Out Of A’s Contract, Will Try Relief Pitching

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Today marks the opt-out date in Matt Harvey’s minor league contract with the Athletics, though the right-hander is going to remain in the organization, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.  Harvey could be changing roles, however, as the A’s have asked him to make some Triple-A relief appearances.  The longtime starter is open to the idea, replaying he is “gonna give it the shot” in a text message to the Chronicle.

After an ugly 12-start stint with the Angels that resulted in a 7.09 ERA over 59 2/3 innings, Harvey was released in late July and then caught on with Oakland two weeks ago.  After two solid outings for Triple-A Las Vegas, Harvey’s third start in the A’s organization wasn’t as sharp, giving him an overall 3.60 ERA, 4.50 K/BB rate, and 10.8 K/9 over 15 total innings for Las Vegas.

Harvey has started 140 of his 145 career Major League games, with four of those bullpen outings coming last season after he lost his rotation job with the Mets.  It’s worth noting that when the Angels released Harvey, manager Brad Ausmus said the team didn’t explore using Harvey as a reliever since the team “didn’t think he’d take well to the role” (as per Maria Torres of the L.A. Times), which is perhaps telling given that the Angels have themselves been looking for relief help this season.

A move to the pen, however, might simply have been inevitable for a pitcher who simply hasn’t performed well since undergoing thoracic outlet syndrome surgery in 2016.  Harvey has a 5.89 ERA over 307 1/3 innings since the start of the 2017 campaign, with only a 6.9 K/9 and an ungainly 1.8 HR/9.  Slusser noted two days ago that Harvey was hoping to make a late-season rebound in Oakland’s rotation to help his free agent case this winter, and while Harvey could still market himself to starter-needy teams down the road, relief pitching is a relatively pragmatic short-term decision.

After all, Harvey could get himself a quicker path back to the big leagues as a reliever, given how the A’s have been short on reliable right-handed bullpen depth this season.  If he acclimates well to a relief role, Harvey could even wind up pitching some important September innings for a team in the midst of a pennant race.  Having a proven capability to work as a reliever would help Harvey in landing a Major League contract for next season, possibly as a full-time reliever or perhaps a swingman, whereas he would almost surely have to settle for another minors contract if he stuck with starting pitching.

Athletics Designate Wei-Chung Wang For Assignment

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The Athletics announced Thursday that they’ve designated left-hander Wei-Chung Wang for assignment and placed designated hitter Khris Davis on the paternity list. Wang’s spot on the 40-man roster will go to infield prospect Sheldon Neuse, whose previously reported promotion to the big leagues is now official. Davis can be on the paternity list until Sept. 1, and at that point rosters will expand, so it’s likely that Neuse will be with the MLB club through season’s end.

Wang, 27, has pitched to an aesthetically pleasing 3.33 ERA through 27 innings with the A’s this season, but he’s also managed just a 16-to-11 K/BB ratio with a 30.5 percent ground-ball rate in that time. His success has been propped up by a .231 average on balls in play and an 84.5 percent strand rate — neither of which seems particularly sustainable over a larger sample. Oakland isn’t short on lefty options in the ’pen, either; Ryan Buchter has been a constant in the bullpen for much of the past two seasons, and he’s joined there by deadline acquisition Jake Diekman and recently promoted top prospect A.J. Puk. That depth had relegated Wang to Triple-A Las Vegas, where he’s logged a 4.78 ERA with 24 strikeouts, eight walks and five homers allowed in 26 1/3 innings.

Although this season’s performance has been mixed both in Triple-A and at the MLB level, Wang does sport a career 3.20 ERA with 7.8 K/9 against 1.7 BB/9 in 115 2/3 innings of Triple-A pitching. If he goes unclaimed on outright waivers, he’ll have the right to reject an assignment to the minors in favor of free agency by virtue of the fact that he’s been outrighted off a 40-man roster in the past.

Even if Wang is claimed by another club, the former Rule 5 pick is in his final option season, thus hurting his chances of sticking with a team into the 2020 season. Any club could take a flier on Wang via outright waivers and give him a September bullpen audition, but because he’ll be out of options in Spring Training, he’d need to either break camp with a club or once again be placed on waivers.

Arguably The Most Underrated Athletic

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It seems as if the Athletics’ lineup is loaded with underappreciated hitters. How many really appreciate the excellence of third baseman Matt Chapman, shortstop Marcus Semien, first baseman Matt Olson or center fielder Ramon Laureano – four of the most valuable players in the game? If that group’s not truly getting its due, it’s no surprise outfielder/first baseman Mark Canha is also relatively anonymous on the national stage. After all, he’s a 30-year-old who has changed hands on multiple occasions since the Marlins chose him in the seventh round of the 2010 draft, and he’s just now amid the best season of his career. But what a season this has been for Canha, who’s quietly helping guide the Athletics toward their second consecutive playoff berth.

After joining the Miami organization, Canha found his way to Oakland back in December 2014 after the Rockies chose him in the Rule 5 Draft. The Rox immediately traded the Northern California native to his stomping grounds for right-hander Austin House and cash considerations. Now, it’s safe to say that’ll go down as yet another shrewd move in a career full of them for A’s executive vice president Billy Beane. House never pitched in the majors, while Canha emerged as a useful part-timer for the A’s even before his breakout this season.

The right-handed Canha debuted in the bigs in 2015, the season following his trade to Oakland, and immediately became a solid producer for the club. By measure of wRC+, Canha was an above-average hitter in two of four seasons from 2015-18. He totaled 2.0 fWAR in 411 plate appearances just a year ago on the strength of what was then a personal-best line of .249/.328/.449 (113 wRC+) with 17 home runs. Valuable contributions, to be sure, but Canha has taken it to another level this year and helped the A’s to yet another contending season. His output has been especially important for a team that has been forced to overcome long-term injuries to fellow outfielders Laureano and Stephen Piscotty.

As marvelous as Chapman, Semien, Olson and Laureano have been this year, no Athletic has been stronger at the plate than Canha. His whopping 149 wRC+ easily outdoes the rest of his teammates’, and ranks 11th in the league among those with 300 or more plate appearances. Some of the names in Canha’s company include Fernando Tatis Jr., Pete Alonso and Carlos Santana. Not bad for someone whom the majority of baseball fans have probably never heard of.

But what’s behind Canha’s prodigious .278/.392/.550 line and his 23 home runs in 375 trips to the plate? A massive increase in walks is the most obvious source. Canha entered the season with a lifetime walk rate of 6.6 percent in 1,127 PA. The number has skyrocketed to 13.3 this year. He’s swinging at far fewer pitches than before, especially outside the strike zone, which has led to more free passes.

Walk uptick aside, it’s not as easy to find reasons for Canha’s sudden outburst. Compared to last season, he’s hitting fewer line drives, more groundballs, more infield flies and, per FanGraphs, making less hard contact and more soft contact. All of that should lead to less power, yet Canha’s ISO (.272) is 72 points above last year’s figure and 88 points better than the mark he entered 2019 sporting. It helps, of course, that Canha has gone to left field more. He came into the year with a pull percentage of 44.3, which has leapt to 53.7 – a number that ranks sixth in the majors.

Canha’s also capable of doing damage against both right- and left-handed pitchers, but he hasn’t necessarily wowed Statcast when he has made contact this season. His average exit velocity (88.7 mph) only ranks in the league’s 42nd percentile, while his hard-hit rate sits in the 53rd range. Canha has posted a .393 weighted on-base average that’s among the best in the game and easily trumps his .356 expected wOBA. However, the latter figure still falls into the game’s 77th percentile.

While Canha’s offense has been his calling card this year, he has also helped the A’s cause on defense, having amassed double-digit appearances at all three outfield spots and at first base. The overwhelming majority of Canha’s work has come in the outfield, where he has used his above-average speed to combine for 4 Outs Above Average, a pair of Defensive Runs Saved and a 0.6 Ultimate Zone Rating. The entire package has been worth 3.7 bWAR and 3.1 fWAR, all for a salary of just over $2MM. Canha has been one of the most cost-efficient players in the game this season, then, and that’s all the more crucial for low-budget Oakland. With another two years of arbitration eligibility remaining, Canha could continue as one of the club’s premier (and perhaps most underrated) players for at least a little while longer.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Athletics To Promote Sheldon Neuse

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With Khris Davis headed to the paternity list for the next three days, the Athletics are set to select the contract of infield prospect Sheldon Neuse, reports Martin Gallegos of MLB.com (via Twitter). It’ll be the first call to the big leagues for the 2016 second-rounder, who is widely considered to be among the organization’s top 10 prospects. Oakland will need to make a 40-man roster move to create room for Neuse’s promotion.

Neuse, 24, was originally drafted by the Nationals, who traded him to Oakland alongside Blake Treinen and Jesus Luzardo in the 2017 deadline deal that netted them Sean Doolittle and Ryan Madson. He’s had a strong season in Triple-A Las Vegas, hitting .317/.389/.550 with 27 home runs, 31 doubles, two triples and three steals in 550 plate appearances. While he struggled to make contact in his first run at Triple-A in 2018, Neuse has slashed his strikeout rate and upped his walk rate in 2019. He currently ranks eighth among Oakland farmhands according to both MLB.com and Baseball America, while Fangraphs tabs him ninth in the organization.

Third base is Neuse’s natural position, and that’s currently a rather occupied position in Oakland thanks to Matt Chapman. As such, he’s spent some time playing second base, shortstop and left field this season in an effort to build his versatility and carve out a path to a role on the big league roster. A two-way star in college at Oklahoma, there’s been some previous speculation about utilizing Neuse as a two-way player, but he’s yet to throw a pitch in a game setting since being drafted. As things currently stand, a utility role looks like the best path to playing time for him in the Oakland organization.

As a 2016 draftee who was selected out of college, Neuse would’ve required protection from the Rule 5 Draft this winter anyhow. That would’ve made him a candidate for a September call-up when rosters expand on Sunday, but he’ll get his first crack at the big leagues a few days earlier.

Padres Claim Nick Martini

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1:04pm: San Diego announced the move. Martini will join the active roster on Thursday, per an announcement.

12:49pm: In an intriguing development, the Padres have claimed outfielder Nick Martini off waivers from the Athletics, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter). The corresponding roster maneuvering isn’t yet known.

It’s a bit of a surprise to see the San Diego org summoning the bartender for the 29-year-old, left-handed-hitting outfielder. It remains to be seen whether Martini will have a shot at holding his roster spot over the course of the offseason.

To be sure, Martini seemed likely to be claimed by some team — so much so that it might’ve been expected he wouldn’t have made it to the San Diego organization’s spot on the waiver priority list. But the Friars already have an outfield mix that includes Wil Myers, Hunter Renfroe, Manuel Margot, and Josh Naylor. Only Naylor hits from the left side, but the club also still controls the southpaw-swinging Travis Jankowski.

Making any use of Martini this year will surely mean reducing the opportunities available to those other players. If nothing else, Jankowski’s roster footing now seems more tenuous than ever.

Perhaps the Friars think Martini could be a fourth outfielder candidate in 2020. He’s optionable, which certainly helps. There are some shades of Alex Dickerson, who was jettisoned earlier this year by the Pads. But holding open a role for Martini would create a tight squeeze once Franchy Cordero is added back to the mix, even assuming Naylor is sent back to Triple-A. It’s also certainly possible the Padres simply see this as a value proposition and intend to explore offseason trade possibilities involving any number of current assets.

Regardless, it’s clear that Martini stirred real interest in the San Diego front office. He certainly impressed in a 55-game big-league debut showing last year, though the A’s never saw fit for a second round this season. While he received only 13 MLB plate appearances in 2019, Martini did boast a .328/.432/.482 slash line and impeccable 51:49 K/BB ratio over 329 plate appearances at Triple-A.

West Notes: Athletics, Giants, Rangers

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Let’s take a look around the majors’ West divisions…

  • With the Athletics looking to add a third catcher when rosters expand, they’re set to choose between minor leaguers Sean Murphy and Dustin Garneau, manager Bob Melvin told Martin Gallegos of MLB.com. “There will be a lot of talk leading up into Sunday on who that will be,” Melvin said. The more hyped option is certainly Murphy, one of the best prospects in baseball (MLB.com ranks him 44th). The 24-year-old has gotten his first extensive action at the Triple-A level this season and laid waste to enemy pitchers, whom he has teed off on for a .337/.415/.702 line (158 wRC+) with 10 home runs in 123 plate appearances. However, injuries have led to an abbreviated campaign for Murphy, and the A’s might not promote him yet if they don’t expect him to garner much playing time. In that case, the edge would go to the veteran Garneau, who was with Oakland earlier in the season before it outrighted him to Triple-A on Aug. 19.
  • The Giants are shutting down right-handed reliever Trevor Gott for two weeks because of a Grade 1 UCL sprain and a flexor strain, according to Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic. Surgery’s not an option at the moment, fortunately, and manager Bruce Bochy’s hopeful Gott will pitch again this season. If not, this will go down as an encouraging year for Gott, whom the Giants acquired from the Nationals for cash considerations in February. While Gott has put up an unappealing 4.44 ERA in 52 2/3 frames, he has also notched a 3.12 FIP with 9.74 K/9 against 2.91 BB/9 and almost doubled his swinging-strike rate since last year (from 5.6 percent to 10.8).
  • More from Baggarly, who tweets that righty Johnny Cueto’s another Triple-A start away from rejoining the Giants. The 2018 Tommy John patient’s scheduled to take the ball Saturday, after which the Giants hope to activate him. That would seem to align with Bochy’s Sept. 8 projection for Cueto. The Giants’ playoff hopes are all but dead at this point, but they’ll nonetheless be glad to welcome Cueto back in advance of 2020. Next season will be the second-last guaranteed campaign of the six-year, $130MM contract San Francisco handed the then-ace prior to 2016.
  • The Rangers are contemplating September promotions for hard-throwing minor league relievers Joe Barlow and Demarcus Evans, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports. Neither pitcher is on the Rangers’ 40-man roster, which is full, but the team plans to add the soon-to-be Rule 5-eligible pair in the coming months anyhow, as Grant notes. The 23-year-old Barlow has largely mowed down pro hitters since he joined the Rangers as an 11th-round pick in 2016, though he has struggled over his first 15 1/3 Triple-A innings this season. Evans, 22, was a 25th-rounder in 2015 who has risen to Double-A ball for the first time this season. He has overcome a high walk rate there (5.4 per nine) to post a microscopic 1.08 ERA with 14.58 K/9 in 33 1/3 innings.

Matt Harvey Could Opt Out Of Contract

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Matt Harvey’s just under two weeks into his time with the Athletics organization, and the union between the two sides might not last much longer. The right-hander told Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle that the minor league contract he signed with the team Aug. 14 includes a chance to opt out this Thursday. It’s unclear how interested Harvey is in taking advantage of that opportunity, but Slusser posits that the club might not have room to call him up in the coming days.

Harvey made his third start for the Athletics’ Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas on Tuesday, when he surrendered four runs on seven hits and four walks in five innings. Harvey was much more effective in his previous two outings, combining for 10 frames of five-hit, two-run ball with 11 strikeouts against no walks. That was unquestionably one of the best two-start stretches of 2019 for the 30-year-old Harvey, who limped to a 7.09 ERA/6.35 FIP with 5.88 K/9 and 4.37 BB/9 over 59 2/3 frames with the Angels before they released him July 23. The Halos ate the rest of the former Mets ace’s $11MM salary in the process.

With roughly a month left in the regular season, Harvey would like to showcase himself in the bigs before another trip to the open market in the winter, Slusser notes. Ideally for Harvey, he’ll be able to enter some team’s rotation before the season’s out. It’s in question whether he’ll be able to do that as an Athletic, though, with Slusser pegging him as a relief candidate for the club.

The wild card-contending A’s are riding with a rotation of Mike Fiers, Chris Bassitt, Tanner Roark, Brett Anderson and Homer Bailey at the moment, and rehabbing left-handers Sean Manaea and Jesus Luzardo may be above Harvey on the starting pecking order when they’re healthy enough to return to the majors. Meanwhile, the A’s might prefer righties Paul Blackburn and Daniel Mengden to Harvey for a bullpen spot, per Slusser, which could help influence him to exercise his opt-out clause.

AL Injury Notes: Buxton, Price, Laureano, Pence

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Out since Aug. 2 with a left shoulder subluxation, center fielder Byron Buxton still isn’t ready to rejoin the Twins’ roster, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports (subscription required). Buxton is coming back to the Twins, but only because his rehab assignment hit a snag. He has been dealing with discomfort in his shoulder this week, though an MRI didn’t reveal any new inflammation, per Hayes. “We’re still optimistic that he’s still going to help this team at some point before the season’s end,” said general manager Thad Levine, who added he’s “very confident” Buxton will slot back into the Twins’ lineup this year. While Buxton has been on the IL three times in 2019, he has nonetheless managed 2.8 fWAR in 295 plate appearances, thereby helping Minnesota to a three-game lead in the American League Central.

  • Red Sox southpaw David Price “believes” he’ll come off the IL to rejoin this weekend in Anaheim, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com writes. A TFCC cyst in Price’s left wrist has kept him from pitching in the majors since Aug. 4, which was a particularly forgettable start for the 34-year-old. Price gave up seven earned in 2 2/3 innings against the Yankees then, raising his 2019 ERA from 3.86 to 4.36 in one fell swoop. The hurler’s other numbers are much better, however, as he owns a 3.64 FIP with 10.77 K/9 and 2.65 BB/9 across 105 1/3 innings.
  • Athletics center fielder Ramon Laureano has been on the shelf since July 29 with a shin injury, though it’s possible he’ll return without embarking on a rehab assignment, per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. Laureano has been racking up at-bats at the A’s minor league complex, and he could rejoin the team this weekend or during an upcoming homestand that starts next Tuesday, Slusser suggests. Oakland has done well without Laureano, evidenced by the fact that it holds the AL’s second wild-card spot, but he has been one of the drivers of its success this season. The 25-year-old has slashed .284/.334/.518 with 21 homers, 12 steals and 3.0 fWAR through 419 trips to the plate.
  • The Rangers placed outfielder Hunter Pence on the IL on Tuesday (retroactive to Aug. 24) with a lower back strain, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News tweets. The club recalled infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa from Triple-A Nashville in a corresponding move. It’s the second IL placement of the season for Pence, who missed a few weeks earlier in the summer on account of a groin strain. Injuries aside, this season has been a resounding success for the 36-year-old Pence, who earned his fourth All-Star appearance last month. After back-to-back woeful campaigns with the Giants, Pence took a minor league contract with the Rangers in the offseason and has since logged a stout .297/.358/.552 line and smacked 18 home runs in 316 plate appearances.

Athletics Designate Nick Martini

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The Athletics have designated outfielder Nick Martini for assignment, per a club announcement. His designation will make 40-man room for just-promoted first baseman/outfielder Seth Brown.

Martini was a seventh-round pick of the Cardinals in 2011 who proved to be a shrewd minor league signing for the Athletics last season. He earned his first major league promotion in the first week of June in 2018 and then proceeded to slash an impressive .296/.397/.414 (129 wRC+) with 1.3 fWAR in 179 plate appearances, though he only hit one home run over that span. Unsurprisingly, the left-handed Martini did just about all of his damage against righty pitchers.

Even though Martini was an easily above-average hitter at the major league level a year ago, he hasn’t been much of a factor in the bigs this season. The 29-year-old collected just 13 PA with the 2019 A’s before they cut him, instead spending almost all of the campaign with their Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas. Across 329 trips to the plate, Martini has put up a strong .328/432/.482 line in the minors with eight home runs and almost as many walks (49) as strikeouts (51), good for a 129 wRC+ that matches his MLB production from 2018. With two minor league options left, it’s possible someone will claim Martini on waivers.

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