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Pirates Outright Nick Solak

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The Pirates announced that infielder Nick Gonzales has been reinstated from the 60-day injured list. Infielder/outfielder Nick Solak has been sent outright to Triple-A Indianapolis as a corresponding move. Solak has the right to elect free agency though the Bucs didn’t give any indication that he would do so. Righty Kyle Nicolas has also been recalled to take the roster spot vacated by Tanner Rainey being designated for assignment yesterday.

Solak, 30, was added to the roster just over two weeks ago. He didn’t get much action between then and now, getting just 11 plate appearances in four games. He recorded one hit, a single, and struck out twice. There wasn’t any previous indication he had been removed from the 40-man roster but it seems the Bucs quietly put him on waivers in recent days, presumably knowing that they would need a roster spot for Gonzales.

Once a notable prospect with the Rangers, Solak burst onto the scene in 2019 but has floundered in his subsequent big league appearances. He hit five home runs in his first 33 big league games while drawing walks at an 11.1% clip. That led to a .293/.393/.491 line and 126 wRC+ in that small sample. But in 850 plate appearances since that debut, he has hit .243/.314/.350 for a wRC+ of 86.

He only got into two big leagues games in 2023 and was stuck in the minors throughout 2024. He signed a minor league deal with the Pirates coming into 2025 and put up a huge .393/.452/.625 line in 32 Triple-A games. That was surely inflated by a .422 batting average on balls in play but he also had six home runs and a 9.5% walk rate. That got him up to the majors but, as mentioned, he didn’t get to play much.

Solak is out of options and can’t be sent to the minors without clearing waivers. Despite his huge Triple-A numbers this year, no club put in a claim. Since he has a previous career outright, he could elect free agency, though he would surely be limited to minor league offers. Whether it’s with the Pirates or another club, he figures to be getting playing time in Triple-A while hoping for a better major league chance in the future.

As for Gonzales, he suffered a non-displaced fracture in his left ankle during the first game of the season and has been on the IL since then. The seventh overall pick of the 2020 draft, he hasn’t hit much in the majors yet, with a .256/.300/.392 line and 88 wRC+ in 518 plate appearances. However, he put up a huge .301/.392/.531 line and 134 wRC+ in Triple-A over 2023 and 2024.

He has played a few different spots on the diamond but more second base than anywhere else. Gonzales is one of seven players the Bucs have used at the keystone this year. Adam Frazier has gotten the most playing time but Jared Triolo, Enmanuel Valdéz, Liover Peguero, Tsung-Che Cheng and Solak have also factored in. No one in that group has taken hold of the position so Gonzales might get a chance to seize it now that he’s healthy.

Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images

Yankees Place Luke Weaver On Injured List

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June 3: Weaver is now officially on the IL, per a club announcement. Right-hander Carlos Carrasco has also been designated for assignment. It was reported yesterday that he had been placed on waivers. To replace those two, righty Fernando Cruz has been reinstated from the IL and righty Yerry De Los Santos has been recalled. The club also reinstated infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. from the IL with fellow infielder Jorbit Vivas optioned down to the minors.

June 2: The Yankees expect to place closer Luke Weaver on the 15-day injured list, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN. Weaver injured his hamstring while warming up during Sunday’s game. Passan notes that the team has yet to finalize a timetable but suggests it may be a four-to-six week absence.

Weaver has been one of baseball’s best relievers since landing in the Bronx. He turned in a 2.89 ERA while ranking third in MLB with 84 relief innings last year. Weaver punched out more than 31% of opponents. He recorded 22 holds and supplanted Clay Holmes as Aaron Boone’s closer in September. Weaver saved four more games while adding 15 1/3 frames of three-run ball in the postseason.

The offseason Devin Williams trade was supposed to push Weaver back into the setup role he’d held for the bulk of 2024. That arrangement lasted for around a month. Williams allowed three or more runs in three of his first 10 appearances. The Yankees pulled him from the ninth inning by the end of April, hoping that a setup role would allow him to find his footing in his new home.

Weaver drew back in as closer and has gone 8-9 in save chances. Despite a six-point drop in his strikeout rate, Weaver has been as effective as he was last season. He has only surrendered three runs in 25 2/3 frames. Boone will presumably provide an update on the team’s plans for the ninth inning when he meets with the New York beat before tomorrow’s series opener against the Guardians.

Williams has been far better of late, reeling off scoreless appearances in 10 of his last 11 outings. He’s striking out almost 40% of opponents in that time. Giving him the ninth inning is the most straightforward option. If the Yankees don’t want to do that, perhaps if they’re set on returning the role to Weaver once he’s healthy, then Mark Leiter Jr. or Fernando Cruz would be the other options. Cruz is expected back from shoulder inflammation tomorrow.

If Weaver does wind up requiring a 4-6 week recovery, the Yankees would get him back around the All-Star Break. They’d have a couple weeks to evaluate how their bullpen looks leading up to the trade deadline. Weaver is on track for free agency at the end of the season. He should have plenty of time to return and cement his status among the top two or three relievers in the class. He’ll probably be limited to a three-year deal as he enters his age-32 season, but he should command a strong annual value if he comes back without issue.

Yankees Designate Carlos Carrasco For Assignment

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June 3: The Yankees announced today that Carrasco has been designated for assignment while Cruz has been reinstated from the IL, as expected. Additionally, Luke Weaver landed on the 15-day IL, as was previously reported. Righty Yerry De Los Santos was recalled in a corresponding move. The Yanks also reinstated infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. from the IL and optioned infielder Jorbit Vivas.

June 2: The Yankees have placed right-hander Carlos Carrasco on outright waivers, reports Joel Sherman of The New York Post. Players can be placed on waivers without being designated for assignment, so it seems Carrasco is still on the roster for now. However, Sherman notes that righty Fernando Cruz could be coming off the injured list on Tuesday. The Yankees are off today, so it seems like Carrasco could be the corresponding move for Cruz tomorrow.

The veteran Carrasco was only just added to the Yankee roster yesterday. Their pitching staff had been used fairly heavily in the prior days. Facing the Dodgers this weekend, the Yanks used five pitchers in Friday’s 8-5 loss. Then on Saturday, they got creamed 18-2. Starter Will Warren only lasted an inning and a third in that game, forcing the Yankees to use seven other pitchers to get through the rest of the game. One of those was utility player Pablo Reyes but the larger point is that the bullpen got pushed pretty hard.

Carrasco was added to give the club a fresh arm just in case Sunday’s game was another nightmare but it thankfully went far smoother. Ryan Yarbrough started and gave the club six good innings in a game the club eventually won 7-3. Jonathan Loáisiga tossed the seventh and Devin Williams the eighth. Luke Weaver was going to toss the ninth but was held back due to some hamstring discomfort. Tim Hill came in instead and got the final three outs.

That seemingly puts Carrasco in the unfortunate position of losing his roster spot without getting into a game. He was with the Yankees earlier this year and logged 32 innings in a swing role but had a 5.91 earned run average in that time. He got bumped off the roster and cleared waivers. He accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and made two starts there. The first outing was fine but the second was rough, as he allowed five earned runs without making it out of the second inning.

It seems unlikely that Carrasco will be claimed. He just cleared less than a month ago and hasn’t been in great form since. However, it’s also theoretically possible that there’s a team which has been snakebit by injuries of late and is more willing to take a chance on Carrasco now than they were just a few weeks ago.

If he does go unclaimed and the Yankees outright him off the roster, he has more than enough service time to elect free agency. However, the last time he cleared, he accepted and reported to the RailRiders, so perhaps he would do so again.

Photo courtesy of Nathan Ray Seebeck, Imagn Images

Rockies Make Several Roster Moves

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The Rockies announced a slate of roster moves Tuesday, reinstating young righty Chase Dollander from the 15-day IL and placing fellow right-hander Tanner Gordon on the 15-day IL in his place, due to a strained left oblique. Gordon’s IL placement is retroactive to May 31. Colorado also placed righty Zach Agnos on the bereavement list and recalled right-hander Angel Chivilli. Additionally, infielder Aaron Schunk and outfielder Nick Martini cleared waivers and were assigned outright to Triple-A Albuquerque, per the MiLB.com transaction log. Martini elected free agency. Schunk has the right to do the same, by virtue of a prior outright assignment earlier this year, but there’s no indication he’s done so.

Dollander, 23, was the No. 9 overall pick in 2023 and entered the season ranked as one of baseball’s top pitching prospects. He’s had a handful of rough starts since making his MLB debut in April but looked to be righting the ship prior to landing on the IL due to forearm tightness. Dollander held opponents to two runs or fewer in three of his four appearances prior to the injury and had rattled off 10 2/3 innings with three runs allowed (2.53 ERA) and a 13-to-5 K/BB ratio in a pair of road starts against the Rangers and D-backs.

Dollander will slot right back into the Rockies’ rotation and start tonight’s game in Miami, per the team. As one might expect, the right-hander has been far better on the road in his young career than at Denver’s hitter-friendly home park. Dollander has made four starts at Coors Field and four on the road, working to an 8.66 ERA at home compared to a 4.29 mark in other venues. Overall, he carries a 6.28 ERA with a roughly average 22.1% strikeout rate, an elevated 10.5% walk rate and a massive 2.33 HR/9 mark (with six of his ten home runs allowed coming at home).

The 27-year-old Gordon was a sixth-round pick by the Braves back in 2019. He landed with the Rox alongside reliever Victor Vodnik in the trade that sent Pierce Johnson to Atlanta a couple years back. Gordon was rocked for an 8.65 ERA in eight starts during last year’s debut campaign but has provided a more serviceable 4.24 ERA with a 14.1% strikeout rate, 4.2% walk rate and 41.4% grounder rate in three starts (17 innings) so far in 2025. The team didn’t specify the severity of Gordon’s strain, nor was a timetable for his return provided.

Martini, 34, was designated for assignment last week. He totaled 111 plate appearances as a Rockie and hit .225/.288/.294 despite being deployed almost exclusively in platoon-friendly situations. Only five of the lefty-swinging Martini’s plate appearances came versus southpaws.

Over a six-year span from 2018-23, Martini batted .268/.362/.412 with an 11.2% walk rate in 412 plate appearances in the majors. He’s always walked at a huge clip and has been an on-base machine in the upper minors, playing parts of eight Triple-A seasons churning out a .294/.399/.454 batting line in that time. He’ll be a depth option for teams looking for left-handed bats, but he’ll probably need to sign a minor league deal after struggling at the plate in both 2024 and 2025.

The 27-year-old Schunk went 6-for-28 with a double in 29 plate appearances in his second year of partial MLB work with Colorado. The 2019 second-round pick hit .234/.265/.330 in 98 big league plate appearances last year. Schunk shows solid contact skills in Triple-A and has played all four infield spots — primarily third base — but doesn’t walk often or provide much power.

Schunk is a career .291/.346/.469 hitter in 880 Triple-A plate appearances, but given the intensely hitter-friendly nature of the Pacific Coast League (and Albuquerque’s home park, in particular), that’s actually about 12% worse than league-average, by measure of wRC+. Assuming he sticks with the organization, he’ll give the Rockies some righty-hitting infield depth at multiple positions.

Chadwick Tromp Elects Free Agency

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The Orioles announced that catcher Chadwick Tromp has elected free agency in lieu of accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A Norfolk. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment a few days ago.

Tromp, 30, had a very brief stint on Baltimore’s roster. Catcher Adley Rutschman had a concussion scare last week, leaving Maverick Handley as the only healthy backstop on the roster. That prompted the club to add Tromp. However, Rutschman quickly recovered, which led to Tromp getting bumped right back off. Since he is out of options, Baltimore had little choice but to designate him for assignment. He appeared in two games for the O’s, going hitless in four plate appearances.

A player with a previous career outright assignment has the right to elect free agency. This is the second time this year that Tromp has exercised that right. He started the year with Atlanta but had a tenuous hold on a roster spot since he burned his final option season in 2024. Sean Murphy started the season on the injured list, which got prospect Drake Baldwin to the majors. Murphy got healthy in the first week of April, sending Tromp into DFA limbo. He cleared waivers, elected free agency and signed a minor league deal with the O’s.

He’s now likely to get another minor league deal somewhere in the coming days, perhaps even returning to the Orioles. The fact that he cleared waivers suggests that no club is currently willing to give him a big league spot.

Tromp has 63 games of big league experience now, spread across six different seasons. He has a tepid .219/.229/.375 batting line over those campaigns. His glovework has generally received solid grades and he has shown more offensive potential in the minors. Dating back to the start of the 2022 season, he has a .256/.337/.427 line and 102 wRC+ in 872 Triple-A plate appearances.

Photo courtesy of Brett Davis, Imagn Images

Poll: Will The Diamondbacks Be Sellers This Summer?

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The Diamondbacks have been one of the better teams in baseball in recent years. The won the NL pennant just two years ago, and last season put together a strong 89-win campaign that just barely missed the playoffs due to a three-way tiebreaker with the Braves and Mets. After an offseason where the club brought in Josh Naylor and Corbin Burnes among a handful of other additions, it wasn’t hard to see the Diamondbacks serving as the main challenger to the Dodgers in the NL West, or at least as an early favorite for one of the NL Wild Card spots.

Things haven’t worked out that way, however. The Diamondbacks entered play today with a 28-31 record that leaves them in fourth place in the NL West, 7.5 games back of the Dodgers but also behind the Padres and Giants. Even in the NL Wild Card race, Arizona is five games back, in line with the records of likely sellers in other divisions like the Nationals and Reds. While they entered the season with a 60.4% chance to make the playoffs according to Fangraphs, today’s playoff odds give them just a 27.9% chance to play in the postseason this year. Those odds are a worrying sign, but they’re hardly the be-all and end-all; the Tigers (20.3%) and Mets (9.8%) both had slimmer odds at the postseason than that one year ago today and ended up not only making the playoffs but playing fairly deep into October.

What separates Arizona from last year’s surprise contenders, however, is that they clearly appear to be on the downswing. Burnes is having elbow troubles, leaving his future at the top of their rotation uncertain at best. Closer A.J. Puk is on the 60-day injured list with an uncertain timeline*. Zac Gallen hasn’t looked like himself all season, and Brandon Pfaadt was having trouble staying consistent even before he gave up eight runs without recording an out in his most recent start against the Nationals. An offense with players like Corbin Carroll, Geraldo Perdomo, Ketel Marte, and even Pavin Smith all hitting incredibly well feels as though it should be a slam dunk to make the postseason, but the club just doesn’t appear to have enough pitching to make a run as presently constructed without significant turnarounds from players like Gallen.

An argument could be made, however, that with Marte nearing the end of his prime years and players like Gallen, Naylor, Merrill Kelly, and Eugenio Suarez ticketed for free agency this winter, that the Diamondbacks would simply be best served supplementing the current roster with more pitching this summer and attempting to make a late-season run. A number of interesting arms could potentially be available this summer, ranging from mid-rotation pieces like Zach Eflin and Nick Martinez to relief help like Pete Fairbanks and Kyle Finnegan. Any of those options could help stabilize the pitching staff enough for Arizona’s vaunted offense to carry the rest of the load, and that’s before considering the unlikely but still feasible possibilities that teams like the Astros and Cardinals decide to dangle Framber Valdez and Ryan Helsley.

The complication with that, however, is that Arizona is already in very uncharted waters when it comes to payroll. Efforts to trade Jordan Montgomery to free up payroll space this winter were unsuccessful, and the fact that he ended up going under the knife before the season began put a stop to any hopes of moving him to make room for other players in the budget this summer. It’s at least theoretically possible ownership could be willing to green-light even more spending for a squad that RosterResource suggests is already costing the club $196MM this year, but it would hardly be a surprise if managing general partner Ken Kendrick was reluctant to invest in the team further without them showing more signs of life. Young players like Carroll, Jordan Lawlar, and Perdomo aren’t going anywhere, so it’s not hard to imagine the club being able to load up on talent this summer by moving players like Gallen and Suarez with an eye towards contending in 2026 and beyond.

Perhaps the best news for the Diamondbacks at this point is that there’s still nearly two months until the deadline, meaning they won’t need to make a decision for at least a few more weeks. A late June stretch where the club enjoys nine consecutive games against the Rockies, White Sox, and Marlins could easily provide just the sort of shot in the arm Arizona needs to get right back into the thick of the Wild Card race, especially if they’re able to take series against more middle-of-the-road clubs like Atlanta, Cincinnati, and Toronto over the next two weeks.

How do MLBTR readers think the Diamondbacks will ultimately handle their deadline dilemma? Will they push their chips in with the 2025 club, or dangle players like Gallen in hopes of building a stronger team for next year? Have your say in the poll below:

*This post originally stated that Puk was done for the year. MLBTR regrets the error.

Ryan Bergert Expected To Join Padres Rotation

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Ryan Bergert is tabbed as the Padres probable starter for tonight’s matchup against the Giants. San Diego will recall the 25-year-old righty from Triple-A El Paso today. Bergert will go opposite Landen Roupp in his first major league start.

Bergert has been up once before. He was promoted in late April and tossed four scoreless innings in four lower-leverage situations. He’ll take on a more significant role this time around. As Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune writes, Bergert seems positioned to get a look as the fifth starter. Michael King has been out for a couple weeks with a shoulder issue. The Padres recalled Kyle Hart to take the first start in what would have been King’s spot. Hart gave up five runs through 4 2/3 innings against Miami and was promptly optioned back to Triple-A.

Dylan Cease, Nick Pivetta, Stephen Kolek and Randy Vásquez occupy the top four rotation spots. The Padres are four days into a stretch of 14 consecutive game days. They’re off next Thursday but will again play 14 straight after that. That doesn’t allow them to comfortably work around the fifth rotation spot with bullpen days. Hart and Matt Waldron have each been optioned within the past couple days. They can’t be recalled for a couple weeks barring an injury. The Padres wouldn’t have sent them down if they were planning on either being their short-term fifth starter regardless.

King has an uncertain return timeline. The Padres said last week that he’s dealing with a pinched nerve. They’ve stressed that there’s nothing structurally wrong but indicated they don’t know how quickly the nerve irritation will subside. Yu Darvish has been out all season with elbow inflammation. He was pulled off a rehab assignment after experiencing soreness last month. According to the MLB.com injury tracker, he has been throwing side sessions but he’ll presumably need at least one or two rehab starts once he’s ready to resume game action.

Bergert, a sixth-round pick out of West Virginia in 2021, ranked as San Diego’s #21 prospect at Baseball America over the winter. BA credited him with three average to slightly above-average pitches and decent control. He’s working mostly behind a 94 MPH fastball and mid-80s slider in Triple-A. He may need to lean a little more heavily on his changeup to handle left-handed hitters at the MLB level.

The approach has worked well enough for him in El Paso. Bergert has posted a 3.75 ERA with a 24% strikeout rate over nine starts. He’s unlikely to work through a lineup three times very often, however. Bergert hasn’t topped five innings in any start this year. He’s mostly pitching 3-4 inning stints. Bergert tossed four scoreless with four strikeouts during his most recent appearance last Wednesday.

Reds To Add Joe La Sorsa To 40-Man Roster

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The Reds intend to select lefty reliever Joe La Sorsa onto their 40-man roster, reports Ari Alexander of KPRC 2. He’ll remain with Triple-A Louisville, as the team will immediately option him back to the minors. Cincinnati has an open 40-man spot after last week’s Alexis Díaz trade, so there’s no need for a corresponding move.

La Sorsa triggered an upward mobility clause in his minor league deal over the weekend. That required the Reds to gauge interest from other teams in selecting his contract. If any other team were willing to do so, Cincinnati would either have to carry him on their own 40-man roster or let him join another team. They took the former approach to keep him in the organization, but he still has two minor league option years and can remain in Louisville through the end of next season if he holds his 40-man spot for that long.

The 27-year-old La Sorsa made 41 MLB appearances with the Rays and Nationals between 2023-24. He owns a cumulative 4.47 earned run average across 50 1/3 innings. La Sorsa’s sinker has sat in the 87-88 MPH range during his big league tenure. The lack of velocity has contributed to a below-average 19.2% strikeout rate. His velocity is up across the board this year in Triple-A. His sinker is sitting closer to 92 MPH, while he has pushed his sweeping slider from the mid-70s to north of 78 MPH on average. He’s running his four-seamer up to 94 MPH, though he has continued to lean on the sinker as his main pitch.

The uptick in stuff intrigued the Reds and presumably at least one other team. It hasn’t resulted in improved results, though. La Sorsa owns a 3.92 ERA with matching 16.1% strikeout and walk rates across 20 2/3 frames for Louisville. He’s getting whiffs on only 7.1% his offerings, which is two percentage points lower than last year’s Triple-A swinging strike rate. La Sorsa had managed a 2.25 ERA with much better command over 56 innings in the Nats’ system last season. The Reds will give him some more time to try to establish the command of his bigger stuff.

The Opener: Vientos, Caglianone, MLBTR Chat

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Here are three things for MLBTR readers to keep an eye on throughout the day:

1. Vientos undergoes imaging:

The Mets won a tight game over the Dodgers last night, but the celebration was belied by an air of unease after infielder Mark Vientos suffered a hamstring injury in the top of the tenth inning while running to first base. Vientos told reporters (including Anthony DiComo of MLB.com) he wasn’t sure how severe the injury was, but he immediately underwent testing after being removed from the game. Manager Carlos Mendoza acknowledged to reporters that the injury “didn’t look good,” but the club would just have to wait and see the test results, which are expected to come back later today.

The 25-year-old Vientos was a breakout star for the Mets last year but has slumped through 53 games this season, hitting .230/.298/.380 (93 wRC+) with shaky defense. He’d lost playing time at third base to Brett Baty but has seen plenty of time at DH. If he ends up missing time, some combination of Starling Marte, Jared Young and infielder Ronny Mauricio will see more reps. Mauricio, who missed all of 2024 due to an ACL tear, is reportedly being called back to the big leagues today which further lends credence to the idea that Vientos could be IL-bound. After a slow start to the season in the minors as he shook off some rust, he’s caught fire in Triple-A, hitting over .500 in nine games to boost his season-long minor league line to .323/.384/.508 in 19 games.

2. Caglianone to debut:

It’s an exciting day for fans of the Royals, as 2024’s No. 6 overall pick is poised to join the roster. Jac Caglianone has emerged as one of the top power-hitting prospects in baseball as he’s utterly torched minor league pitching this season. After a slow start to his pro career at High-A and in the Arizona Fall League last season, he’s kicked things into high gear in 2025 with a .322/.389/.593 slash line across 50 games at the Double- and Triple-A levels. He’s already crushed 15 homers in just 229 plate appearances, including six in dozen games at Triple-A.

Primarily a first baseman during his years in college, Caglianone has begun getting work in at the outfield corners in the run-up to his debut and appears likely to get the opportunity to cement himself as a cornerstone of the Royals’ lineup in the outfield. Caglianone’s first game in the majors is slated to begin at 6:45pm local time this evening in St. Louis, where the Royals will be taking on Cardinals right-hander Andre Pallante (4.23 ERA).

3. MLBTR Chat Today:

We’re now officially into the month of June, leaving less than two months until the July 31 trade deadline. The rumor mill has already begun to kick up in recent days, ranging from club plans for the deadline to specific connections between players and teams with even a few actual trades sprinkled in. Whether you’re looking ahead to the deadline or still trying to sort between the contenders and pretenders, MLBTR’s Steve Adams has you covered in a live chat scheduled for 1pm CT today. You can click here to ask a question in advance, join in live once the chat begins, or read the transcript once the chat is complete.

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