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Braves Sign Jake Marisnick To Minor League Deal

By Darragh McDonald | September 3, 2022 at 9:26pm CDT

The Braves signed outfielder Jake Marisnick to a minor league deal, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. The deal is listed as taking place on August 30, which is significant as 11:59pm ET on August 31 was the postseason eligibility cutoff. Those within an organization but not on the 40-man at the start of September can still be added to the postseason roster to replace a player on the injured list via petition to the commissioner’s office.

Marisnick, 31, is in his 10th MLB season, having seen action with the Marlins, Astros, Mets, Cubs, Padres and Pirates. He’s never been a huge threat at the plate, as evidenced by his career slash line of .234/.272/.390. That amounts to a wRC+ of 81, or 19% below league average. However, he has always provided speed and defense, stealing 79 bases and 76 Defensive Runs Saved over his time in the big leagues.

This year, he signed a minor league deal with the Rangers in March but jumped ship to the Pirates as the season was beginning. About five weeks into the season, he required thumb surgery which kept him out of action for about two months. He was released in early August after appearing in just 31 total games for the Bucs on the year. He hit about at his career rate in that time but accrued six Outs Above Average.

The Braves have young superstar Ronald Acuna Jr. on the roster, though he’s been spending a lot of time at designated hitter due to lingering soreness in his return from tearing his ACL last year. That leaves the club with an outfield mix of Michael Harris II, Eddie Rosario, Robbie Grossman, Marcell Ozuna and Guillermo Heredia. Outside of Harris, none of that group is having a very good season. Should the club decide they want to bring up a glove-first option into the mix, they’ll have Marisnick on hand in the minors.

Astros Release Niko Goodrum

By Darragh McDonald | September 3, 2022 at 7:36pm CDT

Utilityman Niko Goodrum has cleared waivers and been released by the Astros, reports Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. He was designated for assignment by the club on Thursday.

Goodrum, 30, had a couple of solid seasons with the Tigers in 2018 and 2019, hitting 28 home runs and stealing 24 bags over that two-year stretch. His overall batting line of .247/.318/.427 was just barely below league average, as evidenced by his 98 wRC+. He played all over the diamond in that time, lining up at every position outside of the battery. He generally got quality marks for his glovework, helping him produce 4.5 wins above replacement total over those two campaigns, in the estimation of FanGraphs.

However, he’s been in a downward spiral since then, which started with a rough campaign in the shortened 2020 season. He hit .184/.263/.335 that year while striking out 38.5% of the time. In 2021, he bounced back a bit but still disappointed. His .214/.292/.359 batting line led to a wRC+ of 81, much better than the 63 from the year before but a drop off from prior seasons. His strikeout rate improved to 32.9% but was still well above the 23.2% league average.

After two straight down years, the Tigers cut bait and non-tendered him. The Astros decided to take a flier on Goodrum by signing him to a $2.1MM contract for 2022. He got into just 15 games with Houston, hitting a dismal .116/.156/.163 and striking out in 51.1% of his plate appearances. He was optioned to the minors and has been dealing with injuries ever since, only getting into 20 minor league games on the year. With active rosters expanding for September, the Astros decided to call up prospects Hunter Brown and Yainer Diaz, bumping Goodrum from the roster in the process.

Goodrum has more than three years of MLB service time, meaning that he would have been able to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency. However, only players with more than five years’ service time can do so while retaining the salary they are owed. That could have led to him accepting an assignment to stick with the Space Cowboys, though it now seems to be a moot point. With the club releasing him, they will be on the hook for the approximately $400K left on the deal, while Goodrum will return to the open market and look for his next opportunity.

Twins Place Jorge Polanco On IL, Select Jermaine Palacios

By Darragh McDonald | September 3, 2022 at 6:30pm CDT

The Twins announced that they have placed infielder Jorge Polanco on the 10-day injured list due to left knee inflammation, retroactive to August 31. To take his place on the active roster, they selected the contract of infielder Jermaine Palacios. To open a spot for Palacios on the 40-man roster, catcher Ryan Jeffers was transferred to the 60-day IL.

Polanco, 29, has been dealing with this knee issue for a while, having last played on August 27. IL placements can be retroactive but only to a maximum of three days. Minnesota’s primary shortstop for much of his career, Polanco has slid over to second base for the past couple of campaigns, yielding to Andrelton Simmons last year and Carlos Correa here in 2022. His bat has been just as productive as ever this year, as he’s hit 16 home runs and is slashing .235/.346/.405 on the season. That production is 20% better than league average, by measure of wRC+, just shy of his career best wRC+ of 124, outside of a five-game cameo in 2014.

With Polanco on the shelf, Nick Gordon has been manning the keystone this week. For the season, he’s hitting .279/.322/.440 for a wRC+ of 118. That should allow the club to avoid a significant downgrade on the infield, though it means Gordon is subtracted from an outfield mix that has lost Byron Buxton and Alex Kirilloff to the IL in the past month. The Twins are just a single game behind the Guardians in the Central division and four games back of the Blue Jays for the final Wild Card spot in the American League.

Palacios, 26, briefly made his MLB debut earlier this year when selected as a “substitute” while Correa was on the COVID IL. He got into eight games before being returned to the minors. He’s played 101 Triple-A games and hit .283/.341/.462 on the year for a wRC+ of 112. Defensively, he’s played primarily shortstop but also spent some time at each of the other infield positions as well as the outfield corners, giving the club some extra depth all around.

As for Jeffers, this move is largely a formality as he has been out of action since mid-July due to a thumb contusion. He will now be ineligible to return until 60 days from his initial IL placement, which would be mid-September. He recently resumed baseball activities but hasn’t yet started a rehab assignment and was targeting a late September return to action.

Mets Place Trevor May On IL, Select Bryce Montes de Oca

By Darragh McDonald | September 3, 2022 at 5:05pm CDT

The Mets announced tonight that they have placed right-hander Trevor May on the injured list, without providing a designation. Fellow right-hander Bryce Montes de Oca has been selected to take his place on the roster. Montes de Oca was not previously on the 40-man roster, which was full before these moves. Those facts, combined with the fact that the club didn’t provide an injury diagnosis, points to May being on the COVID IL. Players on that list don’t count against a club’s 40-man roster.

At this point, it’s not clear whether May tested positive for the virus, as players can also land on the IL for experiencing symptoms or for viral exposure. Without a positive test, there’s no minimum stay on the IL. But in the case of a positive test, MLB’s 2022 health regulations stipulate a 10-day absence, though a pair of negative PCR tests and approval from a trio of medical professionals (team doctor, league-appointed doctor, MLBPA-appointed doctor) can override that 10-day requirement.

It’s been a tale of two seasons for May, as he struggled immensely out of the gate. He had an 8.64 ERA after about a month, at which point he was placed on the IL due to triceps inflammation. He was out of action about three months, returning at the beginning of August and posting much better results. He has a 3.86 ERA since his return, along with an excellent 35.9% strikeout rate and 7.7% walk rate.

Montes de Oca, 26, was a ninth-round pick of the Mets in the 2018 draft. He missed the 2018 and 2019 campaigns due to injury and then 2020 due to the pandemic. He finally made his professional debut in 2021, climbing to Double-A by season’s end. This year, he began back at Double-A and posted a 3.12 ERA in 17 1/3 innings, striking out 31.2% of batters faced while getting grounders on 68.4% of balls in play. He did walk an obscene 18.2% of batters faced, but nonetheless got a promotion to Triple-A. He’s since registered a 3.90 ERA in 30 innings there, with a 35.3% strikeout rate, 37.7% ground ball rate and 15.4% walk rate. In July, FanGraphs ranked him the #25 prospect in the Mets’ system, noting that his fastball sits in the upper 90s with tailing movement. He will make his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game.

It’s not clear whether Montes de Oca has had his contract selected in the traditional way or as a COVID “substitute.” In the latter case, he would be eligible to be removed from the 40-man roster without first being exposed to waivers. Under the 2022 health and safety protocols, commissioner Rob Manfred has the sole discretion to determine whether teams are sufficiently impacted by COVID-19 to add a substitute to the roster.

Yankees Place Andrew Benintendi On IL, Designate Anthony Banda

By Darragh McDonald | September 3, 2022 at 4:10pm CDT

The Yankees announced a series of roster moves today, with outfielder Andrew Benintendi heading to the 10-day injured list with right wrist inflammation. Outfielder Estevan Florial was recalled in a corresponding move. Additionally, right-hander Ryan Weber has been selected to the big league club, with lefty Anthony Banda designated for assignment.

Benintendi, 28, left last night’s game after appearing to injure himself on a swing. Last night’s X-rays came back negative, but it seems the ailment is enough that the Yanks will keep him out of action for another ten days at least, as they try to figure out what’s going on. “Just not sure, like, where we thought, may not be injured,” Boone says in the video shared by Marly Rivera of ESPN. “So, they got to get more CT scans. I just got briefed on it a little bit so I really don’t have much for you other than he is going on the IL but it’s a little inconclusive right now exactly what.”

Given that uncertainty, it’s hard to know exactly how serious this will be for the Yankees. However, even a minimum absence could have an impact in this late stage of the season, as there are just over four weeks remaining on the regular season schedule. Acquired from the Royals prior to the trade deadline, Benintendi is having a solid season at the plate, one of his best showings in years. His .302/.371/.397 battling is 21% better than the league average hitter this year, as evidenced by his 121 wRC+. That’s just shy of his career best in that department, as he registered a 123 wRC+ back in 2018.

The Yanks will have to do without his production for at least the next week and a half, with the results of the continued testing still to determine the next steps. Until then, they will have to get by with an outfield mix consisting of Aaron Judge, Aaron Hicks, Oswaldo Cabrera, Marwin Gonzalez, Tim Locastro and Florial. Giancarlo Stanton could theoretically be a factor as well, though he’s been used exclusively in the designated hitter role since returning from his own IL stint. Despite running away with the AL East for much of the season, the club has been in a rough slide lately, seeing their lead over the Rays slip to just five games. They would surely love for someone in that group to step up and make up for Benintendi’s absence in order to help keep them in the driver’s seat down the stretch.

Banda, 29, previously pitched for the Pirates and Blue Jays earlier this year, in addition to a brief stint in the minors for the Mariners. He signed with the Yankees on Sunday and made two appearances in pinstripes. The first one went well enough, as Banda entered the club’s game against Oakland on Sunday with one out and no one on in the fifth. He surrendered a walk sandwiched between two outs to finish the inning. His second appearance came last night and didn’t go nearly as well. With the Yanks down 5-0 to the Rays in the eighth, Banda entered with two men on and faced six batters, walking three of them, hitting another and giving up two singles. That leaves with a 40.50 ERA through two thirds of an inning as a Yankee, though a 6.75 ERA on the season overall. Despite that unfortunate ERA, he does have a career-high 22.2% strikeout rate on the year. The Yankees will place him on outright waivers or release waivers in the coming days, though Banda would have the right to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency, by virtue of having been previously outrighted in his career.

As for Weber, 32, he’s bounced on and off New York’s roster all year long, generally faring well in brief stints with the big league club. He was first selected in June but was designated for assignment the next day. He cleared waivers, elected free agency and re-signed with the club on a new minor league deal. That same cycle happened two more times, making today the fourth time he’s been selected to the roster, never staying in the majors more than about a week. He has a 1.17 ERA in 7 2/3 innings over those sporadic showings, in addition to a 3.86 ERA in Triple-A for the year. His control has been excellent at both levels, as he has a 3.8% walk rate in the bigs and a 3.0% rate in the minors, much lower than the 9.1% average for an MLB reliever this year.

Lindsey Adler of The Athletic tweeted word from Boone about Benintendi’s IL placement before the moves were officially announced. Bryan Hoch of MLB.com relayed the Banda-Weber swap before the official announcement.

Twins Reinstate Tyler Mahle From 15-Day Injured List

By Mark Polishuk | September 3, 2022 at 2:55pm CDT

The Twins officially reinstated Tyler Mahle from the 15-day injured list, prior to Mahle’s scheduled start tonight against the White Sox. Left-hander Jovani Moran was optioned to Triple-A to create roster space.

Mahle missed just a little beyond the 15-day minimum, as he was retroactively placed on the IL on August 18 due to inflammation his right shoulder. The issue caused Mahle to leave his last start after 2 1/3 innings, but an MRI came back clean, and the Twins even considered only skipping Mahle for a single start in the hopes that he could avoid the injured list altogether. However, the team opted for some caution given that Mahle also missed three weeks in July due to a shoulder strain.

That injury created doubt as to whether or not Mahle would be healthy enough to be traded by the August 2 deadline, but after he returned from the IL, the Reds indeed moved Mahle in exchange for three prospects. Mahle was off to a nice start with Minnesota before his injury, posting a 2.51 ERA over three outings and 14 1/3 innings in a Twins uniform.

Getting Mahle back in pretty short order is a sign of relief for a Twins club that is battling for both the AL Central (one game behind the Guardians) and for a wild card spot (four games behind the Blue Jays). Today’s game has particular import for the Twins, as the White Sox are only two games behind Minnesota in the standings.

AL Notes: Rizzo, Aguilar, Guardians, Pagan, Rangers, Heim, Huff

By Mark Polishuk | September 3, 2022 at 2:25pm CDT

Anthony Rizzo has been dealing with back problems for much of the season, and the Yankees first baseman received an epidural on Thursday that will sideline him for the next few games. The plan is to have Rizzo in the lineup on Monday when the Yankees open a homestand against the Twins, manager Aaron Boone told reporters (including Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News). “This is something that should give him a lot of relief the rest of the way this season,” Boone said, also noting that Rizzo received a clean MRI on his back earlier in August.

The lingering back problems are a likely cause of Rizzo’s slump in August, as the first baseman has hit only .200/.282/.371 in his last 78 plate appearances. Rizzo still has a healthy 136 wRC+ for the season even despite these recent struggles, but the Yankees surely need him back at full production for both the playoffs and what has become a surprisingly competitive AL East race with the surging Rays.

Orioles Claim Anthony Castro, Designate Phoenix Sanders

By Mark Polishuk | September 3, 2022 at 1:53pm CDT

The Orioles announced that right-hander Anthony Castro has been claimed off waivers from the Guardians, and subsequently optioned to Triple-A. Right-hander Phoenix Sanders was designated for assignment in a corresponding move. In addition, Baltimore outrighted infielder Richie Martin to Triple-A, as Martin cleared waivers after being designated earlier this week.

Castro has pitched in each of the last three MLB seasons, all with different teams — the Tigers in 2020, the Blue Jays in 2021, and the Guardians in 2022. Cleveland acquired Castro from Toronto for Bradley Zimmer back in April, and Castro ended up posting a 7.43 ERA over 13 1/3 relief innings in the majors.

Within that small sample size, Castro issued 10 walks and allowed five home runs. Control has been a persistent problem for Castro throughout his nine pro seasons, though at least at the minor league level, Castro has been able to mitigate a lot of those free passes due to some solid strikeout rates and grounder rates that routinely sit above the 50% threshold. Over 596 1/3 minor league innings, Castro has a 3.47 ERA.

Between these decent numbers and a mid-90s fastball, Castro drew the Orioles’ interest, and he’ll now provide some extra bullpen depth for the surprise contenders. He’ll take the place of Sanders, who was himself a waiver claim off the Rays roster less than two weeks ago.

Sanders has yet to see any Major League action with the Orioles, so his big league resume consists of the 14 2/3 innings he tossed for Tampa Bay earlier this season. The 27-year-old’s first taste of the Show resulted in a very respectable 3.07 ERA. Pitching mostly as a reliever during his career, Sanders posted a 3.46 ERA and a 29.55% strikeout rate over 260 innings in the minor leagues.

However, his work at Triple-A this year has been a struggle, with Sanders delivering only a 6.19 ERA over 32 frames. Some back problems could be partially responsible, or perhaps Sanders had trouble adjusting to his first time being shuttled up and down between the minors and the Rays’ roster. Given his past track record, it would seem possible that another club might grab Sanders in yet another waiver claim.

Giants Place Alex Wood On 15-Day Injured List

By Mark Polishuk | September 3, 2022 at 1:10pm CDT

The Giants placed left-hander Alex Wood on the 15-day injured list due to a shoulder impingement, with the placement retroactive to September 1. Outfielder Bryce Johnson was called up from Triple-A to take Wood’s spot on the active roster.

Given the date, it is possible Wood has thrown his last pitch of the 2022 season. Manager Gabe Kapler told reporters (including Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area) that the team will re-evaluate Wood in a week’s time to see if a return is feasible. Since the Giants are all but officially out of the wild card race, the club might decide to shut Wood down for the remainder of the campaign. San Francisco will go with a bullpen game to cover Wood’s next scheduled start, and possibly for the rest of the season if Wood indeed doesn’t return.

As per most of the advanced metrics, Wood’s 2021 and 2022 numbers have been pretty much identical, with the southpaw posting a 3.60 SIERA last season and a 3.45 SIERA this year. However, a few less bounces have gone Wood’s way, as while his real-world ERA was a solid 3.83 in 2021, that number ballooned to 5.10 in 2022. Wood got great results from his sinker in 2021 and his slider was also a plus pitch, but both offerings have been below average this year in Statcast’s view.

Kapler noted that Wood has been trying to pitch through his shoulder problem, which could explain this downturn in production and, in particular, Wood’s recent shaky outings. Over his last three starts and 12 1/3 innings, Wood has been tagged for a 7.91 ERA.

Shoulder and back injuries have hampered Wood in the past, most notably during the 2019-20 seasons when he pitched only 48 1/3 total big league innings. Wood did rebound during the 2020 playoffs to help the Dodgers win the World Series, and he pitched well after signing a one-year, $3MM free agent deal with San Francisco in the 2020-21 offseason. That resulted in a new two-year, $25MM contract to rejoin the Giants last winter.

Carlos Rodon is widely expected to opt out of his contract and re-enter free agency, leaving the Giants with Wood, Logan Webb, Alex Cobb, Jakob Junis, and Anthony DeSclafani under contract or under arbitration control for 2023. DeSclafani is a question mark after missing most of the season due to ankle surgery, but the Giants still have a decent core rotation in place, even if some additions will likely need to be made.

Tanner Houck To Undergo Back Surgery

By Steve Adams | September 3, 2022 at 12:53pm CDT

TODAY: Houck will indeed undergo back surgery next week, Cora confirmed to WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford and other reporters. The current expectation is that the right-hander will be ready for the start of Spring Training.

SEPTEMBER 2, 3:37pm: After meeting with another specialist, Houck will likely undergo back surgery, Cora announced to reporters (Twitter link via MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo).

11:35am: What the Red Sox hoped would be a fairly short-term injury for righty Tanner Houck could actually prove to be a season-ender. Houck, who was placed on the 15-day injured list in early August due to lower back inflammation, has yet to resume baseball activity, and manager Alex Cora tells reporters there’s a “good chance” he could miss the remainder of the year at this point (link via MassLive.com’s Chris Smith). Houck met with a back specialist yesterday, and there will be more information on his outlook in the near future.

Houck was diagnosed with a disc issue in his back not long after being placed on the injured list, and while he was slated to throw a bullpen session earlier in the week, that didn’t happen due to continued discomfort. Cora, Smith notes, said he was not sure whether Houck would require surgery to address the issue.

Prior to his injury, Houck had stepped up as a key late-inning option for the Sox, going 8-for-9 in save opportunities and adding a hold along the way. Since a May 15 shift to the bullpen, Houck has pitched to a pristine 1.49 ERA with a 22.6% strikeout rate, a 7.5% walk rate and a huge 58.2% ground-ball rate in 36 1/3 innings. Houck, John Schreiber, Garrett Whitlock and Matt Strahm have been Boston’s most reliable bullpen arms in 2022, though Whitlock has also spent time in the rotation and Strahm and Houck have now both missed substantial time due to injury.

The 26-year-old Houck has long rated as one of the better prospects in the Red Sox organization, and through parts of three big league seasons, he’s demonstrated the reasoning behind that evaluation. The 2017 first-rounder has tallied 146 big league innings, dating back to 2020, and carries a 3.02 ERA with a strong 27.6% strikeout rate, a roughly average 8.7% walk rate and an above-average 49.3% grounder rate. He’s worked both as a reliever and as a starter, finding success in both roles (3.22 ERA as a starter, 2.66 as a reliever).

While this wouldn’t be the manner in which the Sox hoped to see his first full big league season end, Houck has largely solidified himself as a key piece of the team’s long-term plans — whichever role he ultimately occupies. Houck will finish this season with one year and 100 days of Major League service time, giving him five additional seasons of club control (and another two years before he even reaches arbitration).

The Sox will see Nathan Eovaldi, Michael Wacha and Rich Hill all reach free agency at season’s end — Wacha recently told the Globe’s Peter Abraham that he’d “definitely like to” re-sign in Boston — which could create a potential rotation vacancy for Houck. At the same time, there’s plenty of fluidity in the relief corps, particularly with Strahm also set to reach the market as a free agent. Houck could help stabilize the bullpen as well. That flexibility is a boon for the front office as they look to revamp the staff this winter, broadening the options they can explore both via free agency and trade.

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