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Oliver Drake

AL Central Links: Drake, Pineda, Chernoff, Herrera, Tigers

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Oliver Drake earned an unusual spot in the record books upon making his Twins debut on Saturday, as the right-hander became the first player in history to pitch for five different MLB teams in a single season.  After three waiver claims and a trade, the well-traveled Drake has now taken the hill for the Twins, Blue Jays, Angels, Indians, and Brewers since the start of the 2018 campaign.  “It’s definitely been a long year,” Drake told MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger and other reporters.  “It’s always a good thing to be wanted in this game. My wife definitely would appreciate being a little more settled. She’s been moving around a lot with me, and it’s kind of chaos. But it’s all part of it, it’s the lifestyle we live, and we’re just making the best of it.”  Drake had already taken a long journey of a different sense just to reach the Show, as he was a 43rd-round pick for the Orioles in the 2008 draft and didn’t crack the big leagues until 2015.  Ironically, Drake had a pretty stable run for much of his pro career, as he was a member of Baltimore’s organization until he was dealt to Milwaukee in April 2017.

Here’s more from around the AL Central…

  • Also from Bollinger’s piece, Michael Pineda will officially begin his rehab assignment with the Twins’ Gulf Coast League affiliate today.  This will mark the right-hander’s first action since undergoing Tommy John surgery in July 2017.  Minnesota signed Pineda to a two-year, $10MM contract last winter, with $8MM of that deal owed in 2019 as the team sees him as a potential rotation contributor when healthy.  If all goes well in his rehab, Pineda is slated to get some Major League innings under his belt when rosters expand in September.
  • Indians GM Mike Chernoff talks to The Athletic’s Zack Meisel (subscription required) about how a front office prepares for the trade deadline, as well as managing the hectic, last-minute flurry of calls and messages from other teams on deadline day itself.  Cleveland had already acquired Brad Hand and Adam Cimber to reinforce the bullpen earlier in July, leaving the team with one less positional target to worry about as July 31 approached.  “There have been times at the deadline where we’ve had multiple needs and you’re juggling a lot of different things at the same time….Because we addressed the bullpen much earlier in the process, we could really shift our focus to, ’How do we help the outfield?’ “, Chernoff said.  The piece is well worth a full read for an insight into the many factors that every team must juggle as it looks to make any trade, let alone multiple deals at the busiest time of the year for transactions.
  • Rosell Herrera’s rookie season has seen him go from the Reds to the Royals on a waiver claim, though now the 25-year-old looks to be shaping into a useful asset for his new club, the Kansas City Star’s Maria Torres writes.  Herrera hasn’t shown much at the plate (.257/.291/.358 over 159 PA with Cincinnati and Kansas City), though he has displayed some versatility, lining up at second base, third base, and all three outfield spots this season.  Torres details how Herrera, once a top-100 ranked prospect coming up in the Rockies’ system, first started playing the outfield since Colorado already had Nolan Arenado and Troy Tulowitzki on the left side of the diamond, and how wrist problems slowed his ascent through the farm system.
  • The trade that sent J.D. Martinez to the Diamondbacks in July 2017 was the first of six major deals made by the Tigers as they began their rebuilding process, and MLive.com’s Evan Woodbery looks back on the prospect haul that Detroit has collected in those swaps.  While it will obviously be several years before the impact of these deals can be fully assessed, the trade that sent Justin Wilson and Alex Avila to the Cubs at the 2017 deadline is already “a big win for the Tigers” since Jeimer Candelario has become a lineup regular.

Twins Claim Oliver Drake, Johnny Field

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The Twins announced Friday that they’ve claimed right-hander Oliver Drake off waivers from the Blue Jays and outfielder Johnny Field off waivers from the Indians. Drake will step right into the MLB bullpen, while Field will head to Triple-A Rochester for the time being. Minnesota already had two open spots on the 40-man roster, so no additional 40-man moves were necessary to accommodate the pair of claims.

The 31-year-old Drake has already pitched for the Blue Jays, Brewers, Indians and Angels in 2018, making the Twins an incredible fifth MLB organization for which he’ll appear in a single season.

Drake has been rocked for a 7.57 ERA so far, but teams keep taking a chance on him, perhaps in part due to a strong 9.6 K/9 mark against 3.3 BB/9, as well as a healthy 13.3 percent swinging-strike rate. Drake also boasts terrific numbers in Triple-A, where he’s pitched to a 2.05 ERA with 155 punchouts against 43 walks in 110 innings of work. He’s out of minor league options, so the Twins (or a sixth MLB team) will have to carry him on the 25-man roster or try, once again, to pass him through outright waivers.

As for Field, the 26-year-old has batted just .213/.253/.373 through 179 MLB plate appearances this season, but he’s displayed some power and a bit of speed with six homers and a .160 ISO to go along with four steals. He’s drawn positive marks at all three outfield spots, in an obviously small sample, and has a career .271/.325/.440 slash in parts of three Triple-A seasons.

Blue Jays Claim Oliver Drake

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The Blue Jays have claimed right-hander Oliver Drake has off waivers from the Angels, the teams announced Thursday. He’d been designated for assignment by the Halos earlier this week. Drake will join the Major League bullpen, per the Blue Jays.

The 31-year-old Drake has already pitched for the Brewers, Indians and Angels this season, and the Jays will add a fourth entrant to that list. Drake has been clobbered for a 7.01 ERA in 25 2/3 innings this year, but he’s put averaged 9.5 strikeouts per nine innings pitched and has registered a solid 13.7 percent swinging-strike rate. He also comes to Toronto with a brilliant track record in Triple-A, where he’s pitched to a 2.05 ERA with 155 punchouts against 43 walks in 110 innings of work.

Angels Designate Oliver Drake

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The Angels announced today that they have designated righty Oliver Drake for assignment. His roster spot was needed for a series of other moves.

The Halos have made two additions to their active roster, activating veteran slugger Albert Pujols and recalling young starter Jaime Barria. In addition to dropping the out-of-options Drake, the club optioned right-hander Deck McGuire.

Drake, 31, has mostly sported strong K/BB numbers in the majors, but has continued to struggle to get outs. In 8 2/3 innings this year with the Angels, his third organization of the season, Drake recorded eight strikeouts while issuing just one walk but also coughed up five earned runs on 15 hits.

It’s certainly possible that Drake will end up staying in the Los Angeles organization if he clears waivers. But he has landed on another 40-man roster two of the prior times he was designated for assignment this year. (Drake also once ended up being outrighted by the Angels.)

There are certainly some positives for the right-hander. Drake has a solid 13.7% swinging-strike rate in his 25 2/3 total MLB innings this year and is averaging a career-best 93.4 mph with his fastball. He has likely been hurt by some poor batted-ball fortune: opposing hitters carry a .425 batting average on balls in play as well as a .377 wOBA that’s well over the .331 xwOBA that Statcast tracking suggests.

At the same time, it’s tough to dismiss completely that Drake carries a 7.01 ERA this season. Indeed, despite generally promising assessments from ERA estimators (3.35 FIP / 3.67 xFIP / 3.69 SIERA) over his 115 1/3 career frames, Drake has allowed 4.84 earned runs to cross the plate for every nine innings he has pitched in the majors.

Minor MLB Transactions: 6/20/18

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We’ll use this post to track the latest minor moves …

  • The Angels announced yesterday that righty Oliver Drake was outrighted to Triple-A after clearing waivers. Drake received multiple opportunities this year, seeing action with three clubs, but ended up being designated for assignment by each of them when he simply could not produce results to match his generally promising peripheral numbers. All said, in 19 2/3 innings to open the 2018 campaign, he has allowed 18 earned runs on 29 hits while recording 23 strikeouts and ten walks. Certainly, Drake has been unlucky to carry a 59.1% strand rate and surrender a .450 batting average on balls in play on only a 32.3% hard contact rate. But it’s a bottom-line business at the end of the day, and he will now have to await another opportunity in the upper minors.

Angels Activate Andrelton Simmons

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Angels shortstop Andrelton Simmons is on the lineup card for today’s game against the Athletics, as Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register was first to report. A corresponding move has not yet been announced for either Simmons’ activation nor starter John Lamb’s promotion, though Fletcher notes that infielder Nolan Fontana and right-hander Oliver Drake are not on the lineup card.

The reinstatement of Simmons comes as a surprise, considering that his original diagnosis after slipping on the dugout steps (grade 2 ankle sprain) implies at least a slight tear to a ligament. A return after the 10-day minimum stay on the disabled list, then, would seem to be an unexpected best-case scenario for the late-blooming Simmons, who has already improved upon his breakout 2017 season by posting 3.1 fWAR in just 59 games on the season so far. Simmons is slashing an excellent .330/.399/.460 with four homers and five steals on the year.

It’s at least some good news for an Angels club that has seen a wealth of back injury luck. Even with Simmons activated, the club has a significant number of players on the DL, including arguably their four best starting pitchers. The return of Simmons will no doubt provide a boost to both the club’s offense and defense, and fans will have to hope it can serve as a shot in the arm for their team, who currently sit 7.5 games outside of first place in the AL West.

Angels Claim Oliver Drake

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The Angels have claimed reliever Oliver Drake off waivers from the Indians, per a club announcement. He had been designated recently by the Cleveland organization.

Meanwhile, the Halos also announced that southpaw Ian Krol cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A. It is not yet clear if he accepted the assignment to the club’s top affiliate.

The 31-year-old Drake has had a rough go of things this year. He opened the season with the Brewers and then landed with the Indians. Despite recording 19 strikeouts and a 46.0% groundball rate in his 17 frames, he has coughed up 15 earned runs on 21 hits and nine walks on the year.

For the Halos, Drake will provide a fresh arm that still holds its share of intrigue. He has, after all, managed a 13.1% swinging-strike rate this season and has surely been unlucky to carry only a 51.6% strand rate and .412 batting average on balls put in play against him. Indeed, Statcast credits him with an appealing .311 xwOBA that significantly lags the actual .353 wOBA that has been produced by opposing hitters.

Indians Designate Oliver Drake, Recall Ben Taylor

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Ryan Lewis of the Akron Beacon Journal tweets that the Indians have designated right-handed reliever Oliver Drake for assignment and recalled fellow righty Ben Taylor from Triple-A to take his roster spot. Drake was charged with six earned runs in last night’s game against the Astros.

It’s the latest turn in the revolving door that’s been the Indians’ bullpen this season as they desperately search for lightning in a bottle to stabilize their relief corps. The Tribe’s bullpen currently ranks dead last in baseball with a 6.23 ERA, and have suffered many a loss at the hands of relievers who simply can’t seem to preserve leads for their stellar starting rotation. Last night’s loss may have been one of the most disheartening yet, as Indians fans watched Corey Kluber shut out Houston over 6 1/3 strong innings only to groan later as a five different relievers combined to allow four earned runs in the eighth inning and seven more in the ninth.

For Drake’s part in that nightmare, he allowed base hits to five Astros and beaned one more. All six of those players crossed the plate, and Drake managed to record just two outs. He’d been generally good for the Indians in three appearances prior to that, striking out four batters in 3 2/3 innings after being acquired from the Orioles. It’s worth noting that in his four appearances as an Indian, he owns a 12.46 ERA but a 2.65 FIP (though the microscopic sample size probably renders those numbers somewhat pointless).

As for Taylor, he’ll be up for his second stint with the Indians, having allowed just a single earned run in 3 1/3 innings so far this season while striking out five of the 13 hitters he faced. Prior to this season, Taylor had spent his entire career in the Red Sox organization. On the whole, he owns a 4.79 ERA and 4.26 FIP for his career across 20 2/3 innings.

 

Indians Acquire Oliver Drake From Brewers

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Right-hander Oliver Drake, whom the Brewers designated for assignment on Tuesday, has been traded to the Indians for cash considerations. The move was announced by Milwaukee via its Twitter account. The Indians have yet to announce a corresponding move.

On the surface, it’s not difficult to understand why the Brewers designated Drake for assignment; he sports an alarming 6.70 ERA on the season while walking a whopping 8 batters in just 12 2/3 innings on the young season. But while the walk rate is certainly a valid concern, the bloated ERA can be blamed in part on an absurd .400 batting average on balls in play against the righty. That’s been one contributing factor towards a 59.1% strand rate; league average usually sits around 70-72%, while Drake’s career average comes in just under that range at 67.7%. In short, he certainly has nobody to blame but himself for the runners he put on base via free passes, but he’s also suffered from some considerably poor fortune as far as those runners crossing the plate.

The positive signs offer some encouragement for Drake’s outlook with his new club. His 10.66 K/9 so far is a career-high mark, about a batter per nine above his career rate of 10.11. He’s also induced ground balls from 52.9% of opposing hitters this season, which sits just outside the top 25% of qualified relievers in MLB. And while Drake’s 6.70 ERA on the year is an eyesore, his 2.70 FIP is a much more palatable figure and suggests he’s likely to make some improvements in the run-prevention arena.

If he can just improve his control a bit, it’s certainly possible the Indians could end up with another surprise diamond in the rough, as they did last year with both Nick Goody and Tyler Olson. That would be a welcome sigh of relief for a club that’s feeling the pains of losing relief ace Andrew Miller to the DL; their bullpen sports an ERA north of nine in his absence and has shuffled through a small army of relievers in the past four days alone (as MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian recently noted). Regardless of whether Drake can perform at a high level, it’s a low-risk move for a club in desperate need of some stability in its relief corps.

Brewers Select Wade Miley’s Contract, Designate Oliver Drake

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The Brewers announced that they’ll formally select the contract of left-hander Wade Miley prior to tomorrow’s game and designate right-hander Oliver Drake for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Miley, who signed a minor league deal with the Brewers but opened the season rehabbing a groin injury, will be added to the Brewers’ rotation now that his rehab assignment has been completed.

The 31-year-old Miley has made three rehab starts with Milwuakee’s Double-A affiliate, totaling 11 2/3 innings and allowing four earned runs on a dozen hits and two walks with 14 strikeouts. The former D-backs/Red Sox/Mariners/Orioles southpaw is coming off a dreadful stint with the O’s, having limped to a 5.75 ERA  in a season-plus in Baltimore, but he’s posted a 35-to-10 K/BB ratio in the Brewers organization between Spring Training and his rehab stint (31 2/3 innings).

[Related: Milwaukee Brewers depth chart]

He’ll join a Milwaukee rotation that includes Chase Anderson, Zach Davies, Jhoulys Chacin and Junior Guerra for the time being as they await the return of Jimmy Nelson from shoulder surgery. Miley is stepping into the rotation spot of fellow southpaw Brent Suter, who has already been moved to the bullpen in advance of the widely anticipated addition of Miley to the starting mix.

Drake, meanwhile, has gotten off to a miserable start to his 2018 season, yielding nine runs on 14 hits and eight walks in 12 2/3 innings. To his credit, he’s punched out 15 hitters in that time and induced grounders at a well-above-average 52.9 percent clip while not allowing a home run. The righty has totaled 102 1/3 innings in the Majors between the Orioles and Brewers, averaging better than 10 strikeouts per nine innings with solid ground-ball tendencies, though he’s been haunted by shaky control and a strand rate that falls quite a bit below the league average.

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