Red Sox Select Jeurys Familia
Just a few days after signing Jeurys Familia to a minor league contract, the Red Sox have selected the veteran right-hander to the big league roster. In corresponding moves, right-hander Kaleb Ort was optioned to Triple-A, and Chris Sale (who recently underwent season-ending wrist surgery) was moved to the 60-day injured list.
Familia is looking for a new beginning after posting a 6.09 ERA over 34 innings with the Phillies this season. Philadelphia signed the righty to a one-year, $6MM this past offseason, but ended up releasing Familia last week. In signing Familia and promoting him to the MLB roster, the Red Sox now owe him just the prorated portion of the minimum salary, while the Phils are responsible for the remainder of that $6MM total.
It’s been a rough season for Familia, who has posted below-average walk and strikeout rates while allowing more hard contact than almost any pitcher in baseball. Familia is still averaging 95.7mph on his fastball, but that has been the only one of his pitches that has still been effective, as per Statcast’s metrics. Batters have been teeing off on Familia’s sinker, which has been his primary pitch for the majority of his career (and he still throws the sinker over 50 percent of the time).
Still, at least a couple of Familia’s metrics are more favorable, as his 3.91 SIERA and an eye-popping .408 BABIP indicate some level of bad luck, despite all of that hard contact. There isn’t much risk for the Red Sox in seeing if Familia can still contribute at the big league level, or at least provide a fresh arm within what has been a pretty middling Boston relief corps.
AL Central Notes: Robert, Guardians, Contreras, Tigers, Hinch
X-rays were negative on Luis Robert‘s left wrist, as the White Sox outfielder has been deemed day-to-day with a sprain. Robert suffered the injury on a stolen-base attempt in the bottom of the sixth inning in Friday’s game, and was replaced in center field for the top of the seventh.
Chicago’s next off-day doesn’t come until August 29, so there isn’t any room for Robert to get a break without leaving the White Sox undermanned on the roster. As such, a 10-day injured list visit could be necessary if there’s any lingering soreness, and the Sox might prefer to lose Robert for a few games now in order to get him fully healthy for the rest of the postseason race. Though he has already missed a couple of weeks (on the COVID-IL and on the regular IL due to blurred vision), Robert has still been a big contributor to the White Sox, hitting .301/.336/.454 with 12 homers in 354 plate appearances.
Other notes from around the AL Central…
- The Guardians were among the teams who had interest in Willson Contreras at the trade deadline, according to ESPN’s Jesse Rogers. The Cubs didn’t end up moving Contreras anywhere, while the Guards had a quiet deadline overall — they ended up moving a catcher themselves, dealing Sandy Leon to the Twins in a minor trade. Despite interest in both Contreras and the Athletics’ Sean Murphy, Cleveland stood pat at catching, leaving Austin Hedges and Luke Maile as the primary tandem behind the plate unless the Guardians look to call up top prospect Bo Naylor.
- A.J. Hinch ended any speculation that he might seek a move to the Tigers‘ front office, telling reporters (including The Athletic’s Cody Stavenhagen) earlier this week “I’m the manager. I plan on being the manager.” However, owner Chris Ilitch did state that Hinch would have some input on who might replace Al Avila as the club’s next general manager. To this end, Jon Heyman of The New York Post suggests that former Diamondbacks and Padres GM Josh Byrnes could be a candidate for the Detroit job — Byrnes and Hinch worked together in Arizona’s front office, with Byrnes giving Hinch his first managerial job in the Diamondbacks’ dugout. Byrnes has been working as the senior VP of baseball operations for the Dodgers since 2014.
Orioles Promote DL Hall
TODAY: The Orioles officially announced Hall’s promotion. Left-hander Nick Vespi was optioned to Triple-A to make room on Baltimore’s active roster.
AUGUST 12, 9:41pm: Hall will start Saturday’s game, Hyde confirmed to reporters (including Rich Dubroff of Baltimore Baseball). Kostka first suggested as much this afternoon.
2:59pm: Top pitching prospect DL Hall is traveling to meet the Orioles in St. Petersburg for their upcoming series against the Rays, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports (Twitter link). Manager Brandon Hyde confirmed that Hall was being promoted but suggested the team has yet to decide when he’ll first pitch (via Andy Kostka of the Baltimore Sun).
It’s been a half-decade since Hall entered the organization as the 21st overall pick in the 2017 draft. A Georgia high school product, he received a $3MM signing bonus on the strength of a mid-90s fastball and a curveball that most evaluators considered at least a plus offering. Hall also showed a promising changeup but had some questions about the consistency of strike-throwing ability.
That report — monster raw stuff paired with spotty control — has become perhaps even more extreme during his time in the professional ranks. Baseball America wrote over the offseason that Hall now touches 100 MPH and averages around 97 MPH on his heater. That’s atypical velocity for any starter but particularly rare for a left-hander. Among MLB starters with 30+ innings on the season, Jesus Luzardo and Shane McClanahan are the only southpaws averaging north of 96 MPH (although Carlos Rodon, Blake Snell and Aaron Ashby are all between 95.5 MPH and 96 MPH).
BA credits Hall with two distinct breaking pitches — a mid-80s slider and a somewhat softer curveball — and grades both as at least above-average offerings. The outlet also credits him with the solid changeup he’s long had in his arsenal, giving him one of the better repertoires for any young pitcher. Hall has appeared among BA’s top 60 overall prospects entering each of the past four years, and he earned the #59 ranking on the publication’s latest update from last week.
That elite arsenal has unsurprisingly translated into plenty of whiffs at the minor league level. Hall has fanned more than a third of opponents at every stop since hitting High-A in 2019. That includes a massive 36% strikeout rate through 18 starts with Triple-A Norfolk this season. Among International League pitchers with 50+ frames, only teammate Grayson Rodriguez (who’s widely regarded as the top pitching prospect in the sport) has punched out batters at a better clip.
Unlike Rodriguez, however, Hall has still yet to consistently harness his arsenal. He’s walked upwards of 10% of batters faced at each level and has doled out free passes to 13.9% of opponents in Norfolk. No qualified big league starter has a walk rate anywhere near that high, and it’s the third-highest mark among that group of International League hurlers with 50 or more innings. The free passes, paired with an elevated .340 batting average on balls in play against him, have contributed to a lackluster 4.76 ERA over his first 70 Triple-A innings.
Nevertheless, the Orioles are set to get a look at Hall against big league hitters in what is surprisingly a pivotal series for Baltimore. They’re 58-53 on the year, just half a game behind the Tampa Bay club against which he’s likely to make his debut for the American League’s last Wild Card spot. The next three games are arguably as important as any the franchise has played in over five years. Giving Hall the ball in any of those contests is a strong show of faith in the 23-year-old.
Hall is already on the 40-man roster, having been added last offseason to keep him from being taken in the Rule 5 draft that never wound up happening. He’s in the first of three minor league option years and could certainly bounce between Baltimore and Norfolk over the coming weeks. We’re already well past the date for Hall to get either a full season of service time or enough to have a serious possibility at qualifying for early arbitration as a Super Two player after 2024. Even if he’s in the big leagues from here on out, he won’t reach arbitration until after the 2025 campaign and won’t hit free agency until the 2028-29 offseason. That trajectory could be pushed back further by future options to the minor leagues.
Marlins Select A.J. Ladwig
10:25AM: The Marlins officially announced Ladwig’s selection, and he will be the 27th man for the doubleheader.
10:20AM: The Marlins will select the contract of right-hander A.J. Ladwig from Double-A, The Miami Herald’s Craig Mish reports (Twitter link). Since Billy Hamilton was outrighted off Miami’s roster yesterday, the Marlins already had an open spot for Ladwig on the 40-man roster. Miami faces the Braves in a doubleheader today, so it possible Ladwig could serve as the Marlins’ designated 27th player.
The righty is now poised to make his MLB debut at age 29. Originally an 11th-round pick for the Tigers in the 2014 draft, Ladwig had spent his entire pro career in Detroit’s farm system until being released in May, and he then quickly signed a new minors deal with the Marlins.
Ladwig has primarily pitched as a starter, being first on the mound in 137 of his 155 games. With only a 16.57% career strikeout rate, Ladwig doesn’t miss many bats, as he has relied on excellent control (3.63% walk rate) to retire batters. He has pitched at both the Double-A and Triple-A levels since 2017, though he didn’t pitch at all in 2019 due to Tommy John surgery, and then missed the 2020 campaign when the pandemic canceled the entire minor league season.
Through it all, Ladwig has a 4.34 ERA over 783 1/3 innings during his minor league career, including a 4.43 ERA over 65 frames for the Marlins’ Double-A affiliate this year. He’ll now get his first shot at the majors, and as Ladwig told The Detroit News’ Chris McCosky this past February, that hope of reaching the Show sustained him throughout the ups and downs of his career. “I just need to keep working and get up there. I still dream about it, all the time,” Ladwig said.
Angels Notes: Trout, Lorenzen, Duffy, Bradley, Moniak, Iglesias
Mike Trout has been cleared to run and throw, and the former MVP is scheduled to take batting practice on the field today. Trout and Angels head trainer Mike Frostad spoke with reporters (including Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register) yesterday, with Trout expressing confidence that he’ll be able to return to the lineup “sooner rather than later.” A more specific timeline isn’t yet known, as Trout may require a minor league rehab assignment.
Trout has now missed a full month of action due to left ribcage inflammation and back spasms, and Frostad’s past update about Trout’s larger-scale back problems (a costovertebral dysfunction) left concern over both Trout’s short-term and near-term future. Given that Trout ended up missing almost all of the 2021 season due to a calf problem that just kept lingering, fans probably won’t be fully relieved until they actually see Trout back on the field, no matter this latest positive news about his rib injury.
More on the Halos…
- Frostad also provided details on several other injured Angels players, including 60-day injured list members Michael Lorenzen, Matt Duffy, and Archie Bradley. Lorenzen has thrown two bullpen sessions this week and will face live batters on Tuesday. The right-hander (who has sidelined by a shoulder strain) is tentatively expected to be activated from the 60-day IL when first eligible on September 2. Duffy’s first eligible activation date is August 26, and the infielder is slated to start a minor league rehab assignment next week as he makes his return from back spasms. The news isn’t as good on Bradley, who has been out since late June with a fractured right elbow and has yet to start throwing, though Frostad suggested that Bradley could start throwing this week. Given Bradley’s long layoff and the amount of rehab still to come, he might not pitch again in 2022.
- Mickey Moniak‘s season was though to be in jeopardy when the outfielder fractured the tip of his left middle finger, which sent him to the 10-day IL on August 7. Frostad said that Moniak’s stitches were removed yesterday, and depending on how he heals, might be able to return even if Moniak might still be playing through some discomfort. Acquired from the Phillies as part of the Noah Syndergaard trade at the deadline, Moniak played just five games for the Angels before hitting the injured list.
- The Mets and Yankees were among the teams also interested in acquiring Raisel Iglesias prior to the deadline, the New York Post’s Jon Heyman writes. However, neither New York club was willing to cover all of the $51.5MM remaining on Iglesias’ contract, while other teams were willing to take that deal entirely off the Angels’ books. Los Angeles ended up moving Iglesias to the Braves for Tucker Davidson and Jesse Chavez, but though the Halos dealt Iglesias and Syndergaard, Shohei Ohtani remained. “Half the teams or more” around baseball inquired about Ohtani, Heyman reports, and Heyman views owner Arte Moreno’s refusal to trade Ohtani as a missed chance. With Ohtani set for free agency after the 2023 season, there has already been a lot of speculation that he could be on his way out of Anaheim, and in search of a potential record-setting contract that reflects his unique two-way skillset.
Fernando Tatis Jr. Suspended 80 Games For Performance-Enhancing Drug Violation
Fernando Tatis Jr.’s 2022 season is over. In a stunning development, Major League Baseball announced Friday afternoon that the Padres star has tested positive for Clostebol, a banned performance-enhancing substance. He’s been suspended for 80 games without pay, effective immediately. Tatis, who confirmed he’s already dropped an appeal he’d initially filed, goes on the restricted list.
Tatis released a statement via the MLB Players Association (Twitter link):
“I have been informed by Major League Baseball that a test sample I submitted returned a positive result for Clostebol, a banned substance. It turns out that I inadvertently took a medication to treat ringworm that contained Clostebol. I should have used the resources available to me in order to ensure that no banned substances were in what I took. I failed to do so.
I want to apologize to (owner Peter Seidler), (president of baseball operations A.J. Preller), the entire Padres organization, my teammates, Major League Baseball, and fans everywhere for my mistake. I have no excuse for my error, and I would never do anything to cheat or disrespect this game I love. … I am completely devastated. There is nowhere else in the world I would rather be than on the field competing with my teammates. … I look forward to rejoining my teammates on the field in 2023.”
The Padres released a briefer statement of their own on the news:
“We were surprised and extremely disappointed to learn today that Fernando Tatis Jr. tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance in violation of Major League Baseball’s Joint Prevention and Treatment Program and subsequently received an 80-game suspension without pay. We fully support the Program and are hopeful that Fernando will learn from this experience.”
Preller confirmed to reporters (including Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune and Dennis Lin of the Athletic) that the organization learned about the suspension this afternoon, around two hours before it was made public. The Padres baseball ops leader was forthright about his frustration, suggesting that “over the course of the last six or seven months, I think (trust has) been something that we haven’t really been able to have.” That’s presumably in reference to the motorcycle accident that fractured Tatis’ wrist. Preller continued, “I think we’re hoping that from the offseason to now, that there would be some maturity. And obviously with the news today, it’s more of a pattern and something we’ve got to dig a little bit more into. I’m sure he’s very disappointed, but at the end of the day, it’s one thing to say it. You have to start by showing it with your actions.”
Tatis will go the entire 2022 season without appearing in a major league game. (Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets that he’ll also be barred from representing the Dominican Republic in next spring’s World Baseball Classic). The star shortstop sustained a fracture in his left wrist in an offseason motorcycle accident, an injury that was revealed when he reported to the team in Spring Training. He underwent surgery and was out of action for months. There was finally light at the end of the tunnel, with Tatis sent to Double-A on a rehab assignment last week. He’d played in four minor league games and was set to rejoin the big league club within a couple weeks. That’ll no longer be the case.
The Padres have 48 more games on the regular season schedule. That’ll leave him in position to miss as many as the first 32 games of the 2023 season as well, although Tatis’ suspension would be reduced for any playoff games he misses (if the Padres reach the postseason this year).
It’s a crushing blow to a San Diego team that enters play Friday night in possession of the National League’s final Wild Card spot. They’re just a game clear of the Brewers, setting the stage for a tightly contested pennant race. If they’re to get to the postseason, the Friars will have to do it without the elite midseason reinforcement on whom they’d been counting.
That’s not to say the Padres are doomed. They’ve been without the two-time Silver Slugger winner all season, and they’re nevertheless 12 games above .500 with a +40 run differential. The deadline blockbuster to add Juan Soto and Josh Bell looms larger than ever now. San Diego still has a fearsome middle of the order anchored by Soto, Bell and Manny Machado, while Jake Cronenworth and Jurickson Profar have each hit at above-average levels.
There’s no way to replace a player who owns a .292/.369/.596 slash line through his first three big league seasons, but the Padres are in as good a position as a team can reasonably be to weather Tatis’ absence. They’ve gotten strong play from Ha-Seong Kim at shortstop in his second MLB season. The former KBO star is hitting .247/.324/.371 through 392 plate appearances, exactly league average offense by measure of wRC+. Public metrics have pegged Kim as one of the sport’s top defensive shortstops, making him a more than adequate fill-in for the remainder of the season.
Perhaps the greater roster ramification is that San Diego now has little recourse to replace scuffling center fielder Trent Grisham. Tatis had been slated to play both shortstop and center field on his rehab assignment, and he may well have gotten more time in the outfield down the stretch. While Kim has held down shortstop effectively all year, Grisham owns a .195/.292/.357 line over 411 trips to the plate. He has continued on as the primary center fielder, although Wil Myers has gotten the nod the past three times the Friars have faced a left-handed opposing starter. Skipper Bob Melvin figures to stick with at least a soft platoon arrangement for the stretch run.
While the team will feel the strongest repercussions down the stretch this year, Tatis’ lack of availability in 2022 has to be alarming to the organization over the long term. He’s under contract for another 12 seasons beyond this one under the extension he signed in February 2021. That $340MM deal is the fourth-largest in MLB history, and there’s arguably no one more important to the franchise’s long-term future.
That deal is backloaded. Tatis’ forfeited salary during the suspension, while substantial, isn’t nearly as significant as it would have been had he tested positive a couple years from now. He’ll lose the remainder of this year’s $5MM salary (approximately $1.5MM) as well as around a month’s worth of next year’s $7MM salary. The extent of his salary forfeiture is dependent on how many games he loses next season, which is subject to how far into the playoffs the Friars get this year. He’s likely to miss around 20% of the schedule, which would translate to around $1.3MM in lost salary next year.
Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported that Tatis had failed a PED test and was facing a suspension.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Yankees Notes: Dominguez, Severino, Carpenter
The Yankees were known to be interested in Luis Castillo before the trade deadline. Jon Heyman of the New York Post sheds some light on the team’s discussions with the Reds, reporting that New York put outfield prospect Jasson Dominguez on the table. Heyman reiterates that New York refused to make top shortstop prospect Anthony Volpe available, however, and it’s unclear whether they were amenable to giving up fellow infielder Oswald Peraza either.
Volpe and Peraza are the only two Yankees farmhands who appeared on Baseball America’s most recent ranking of the league’s top 100 prospects. Dominguez checks in fifth in the New York system, per BA. The highest-profile player in the 2019-20 international amateur class, the switch-hitting Dominguez has big power potential but is now seen by many evaluators as likely to eventually move to a corner outfield position. He’s impressed offensively during his first full season at an affiliate, however, hitting .265/.373/.440 with nine homers and 19 stolen bases over 324 plate appearances in Low-A before being bumped up to High-A last month.
Details on the Yankees conversations with the Reds are ultimately an historical footnote, as Cincinnati wound up shipping Castillo to the Mariners for a package headlined by infielders Noelvi Marte and Edwin Arroyo (each of whom appeared among BA’s top 50 farmhands). The Yankees then pivoted to Oakland in their search for an impact starter, landing Frankie Montas for a prospect package headlined by Ken Waldichuk and JP Sears.
Some additional notes on the Yankees big league club:
- Luis Severino has missed the past month after suffering a lat strain, but he’s making progress in his rehab. The righty threw off flat ground of a distance of 120 feet this afternoon, as Bryan Hoch of MLB.com was among those to relay (Twitter link). He’s scheduled for a bullpen session on Monday, his first mound work since landing on the injured list. Severino was transferred to the 60-day IL earlier this month (to his chagrin), but Hoch suggests the club anticipates he’ll make multiple starts in September. That indicates he’s on track to be reinstated around when first eligible during the second week of next month.
- Infielder Matt Carpenter, meanwhile, went for a visit with a specialist after fracturing his left foot on a foul ball on Monday (relayed by Hoch and Marly Rivera of ESPN). He’ll go a couple weeks without weight-bearing and be reevaluated at some point next month. Further testing confirmed the preliminary diagnosis of a 6-8 week recovery timetable for Carpenter’s return to game action, giving him a chance to make it back for a postseason push. The 36-year-old mashed at a .305/.412/.727 clip through 47 games after signing with the Yankees in May, so it’d be a key boost if the club could welcome his left-handed bat back for the stretch run. Carpenter will be a free agent at year’s end, so a late-season comeback and productive showing in October would also serve as a nice boost to his market.
Pirates Select Austin Brice
The Pirates announced they’ve selected right-hander Austin Brice onto the major league roster. Pittsburgh placed righty Yerry De Los Santos on the 60-day injured list in a corresponding move.
Brice is back for a second stint with the Bucs. He made two appearances, tossing 3 2/3 innings of two-run ball, before being designated for assignment. Brice passed unclaimed through waivers and accepted an assignment back to Triple-A Indianapolis, where he’s logged the majority of the season. The 30-year-old owns a 4.41 ERA through 34 2/3 innings of relief there, fanning batters at a quality 27.2% clip against a solid 8.6% walk rate. Brice has also induced ground-balls at an above-average clip in the minors to earn his way back.
A former ninth-round pick, Brice has gotten to the majors in each of the last seven years. He’s pitched for the Marlins on two separate occasions, along with stints as a Red, Red Sox and Pirate. In 165 2/3 career innings, he owns a 5.16 ERA with slightly worse than average strikeout and walk rates. Brice is out of minor league option years, meaning he’ll have to stick on the active roster or again be designated for assignment.
De Los Santos, 24, made his major league debut this season. He’s come out of the bullpen 26 times, posting a 4.91 ERA but showing more interesting peripherals. He’s averaged north of 95 MPH on his fastball, induced grounders at a very strong 52.8% clip and posted a league average strikeout rate (albeit without many whiffs on a per-pitch basis). That’ll unfortunately be his entire body of work for 2022, as he’s dealing with a lat strain in his throwing shoulder. With less than 60 days remaining on the regular season schedule, De Los Santos’ season is over.
Rangers, Tyler Duffey Agree To Minor League Deal
The Rangers are signing reliever Tyler Duffey to a minor league contract, reports Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link). The veteran righty was released by the Twins earlier this week. Darren Wolfson of SKOR North adds (on Twitter) that Duffey’s deal comes with multiple opt-out opportunities.
Duffey had spent a decade in the Minnesota organization, entering pro ball as a fifth-round pick in 2012. He reached the majors three years later, initially struggling as a starting pitcher before finding success upon moving to the bullpen. Duffey broke out in 2019, when he posted a 2.50 ERA through 57 2/3 innings. That came with a stellar 34.5% strikeout percentage and a tiny 5.9% walk rate, kicking off a three-year run in which he was quietly one of the better high-leverage relievers in the league.
The Rice product pitched to a sterling 1.88 ERA during 22 appearances in the abbreviated 2020 season, followed by a 3.18 mark over last year’s full schedule. Duffey’s strikeout and walk numbers went in the wrong direction last season, but that still marked a third straight solid campaign. He posted a 2.69 ERA over 144 innings between 2019-21, striking out 29.8% of batters faced while holding the opposition to a .200/.273/.316 slash line.
Minnesota surely hoped for more of the same this season, but Duffey hasn’t been able to consistently get on track in 2022. He owns a 4.91 ERA across 44 innings with a 21.1% strikeout rate that is well below the marks he’s posted in his best seasons. He’s also surrendered eight home runs and generated swinging strikes at an 11.1% clip that, while around the 11.7% league average for relievers, is about four points lower than Duffey’s 2019-20 peak. He’d allowed runs in three of his four most recent appearances before Minnesota let him go.
There’s no downside for the Rangers in taking a shot to see if Duffey can recapture his pre-2022 form. The Twins remain on the hook for the rest of his $3.8MM salary, and Texas would only owe him the prorated portion of the $700K league minimum if he makes the big league roster. (That’d be subtracted from the Twins payments). The 31-year-old is headed to free agency at the end of the season regardless, but he’ll be a late-season depth option for a Texas bullpen that ranks 11th in the majors with a 3.71 ERA.
Dodgers Select Tony Wolters, Designate Rylan Bannon
The Dodgers announced they’ve selected catcher Tony Wolters to the big league roster. He’ll take the spot of Austin Barnes, who’s going on the family emergency list (a placement that can last anywhere from three to seven days). To create space for Wolters on the 40-man roster, Los Angeles designated infielder Rylan Bannon for assignment.
Wolters is up for the first time this season to make his Dodgers debut. The longtime Rockies backstop also suited up with the Cubs last season. He’ll be making a big league appearance for a seventh straight year if he gets into a game. The lefty-swinging Wolters hasn’t done much at the plate as a big leaguer, owning a career .236/.322/.315 line in over 400 contests despite playing the bulk of his home games at Coors Field. He’s rated as an excellent pitch framer throughout his MLB career, though, and he’s cut down an above-average 30.7% of attempted basestealers in the big leagues.
The 30-year-old has spent the entire 2022 season with Triple-A Oklahoma City after signing a minor league deal last summer. He’s hitting .216/.311/.269 over 50 games, drawing walks at a strong 11.4% clip but not connecting on a single home run and striking out at a 26.4% rate. He’ll offer a defense-minded backup behind Will Smith while Barnes attends to a family matter.
The Dodgers just claimed Bannon off waivers from the Orioles earlier in the week. It was a return to the 26-year-old’s original organization, as he entered pro ball as a Dodgers draftee back in 2017. Los Angeles included Bannon in the Manny Machado trade a year later, and he’s spent most of the past four years in the upper minors with the O’s. His return to the Dodgers could prove very brief, as he’ll now find himself back on waivers within the next few days.
Bannon has played in four big league games with Baltimore this season, the first MLB action of his career. He’s otherwise spent the year with the O’s top affiliate in Norfolk, putting up a .229/.347/.407 line over 326 trips to the plate. Bannon has hit 11 homers and walked in 13.8% of his plate appearances, but he’s punched out at a 26.7% clip this year.