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Cardinals Activate Miles Mikolas From Injured List

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The Cardinals have activated Miles Mikolas off the 10-day injured list, and the right-hander will start against the Cubs tonight.  Righty Seth Elledge was sent to Triple-A to open up a 26-man roster spot for Mikolas.

October 11, 2019 marked the last time Mikolas appeared in a big league game, as he allowed one run over six innings in Game 1 of the 2019 NLCS.  Flexor tendon surgery caused Mikolas to miss the entire 2020 season, and then shoulder problems delayed his return until today.

This isn’t the first time Mikolas’ Major League career has been interrupted, as he headed to Japan following the 2014 season and revived his stock with three outstanding seasons with the Yomiuri Giants.  After signing a two-year, $15.5MM deal with the Cardinals in the 2017-18 offseason, Mikolas took that new form back into MLB, finishing sixth in NL Cy Young Award voting in 2018.

That success led to another contract with St. Louis, as Mikolas signed a four-year extension worth $68MM.  Since that extension started with the 2020 season, however, Mikolas has yet to throw even a single pitch since that new deal kicked in, making it a questionable investment to date for the Cards’ front office.  Still, there is plenty of time for Mikolas to still deliver, and his return should further bolster the Cardinals’ pitching staff.

Jack Flaherty, Kwang Hyun Kim, and John Gant have all been very solid for the Cards this season, while Carlos Martinez and Adam Wainwright have been a little more inconsistent.  St. Louis plans to use a six-man rotation for the time being, unless plans change due to other injuries.

Mariners Claim Daniel Zamora From Mets

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The Mariners announced that left-hander Daniel Zamora was claimed off waivers from the Mets.  Zamora was designated for assignment just yesterday by New York, and now will quickly head to a new team.

Originally a 40th-round pick for the Pirates in the 2015 draft, Zamora reached the majors and posted a 4.08 ERA over 17 2/3 innings with the Mets during the 2018-19 seasons, striking out 24 of his 77 batters faced.  He didn’t make an appearance during the 2020 campaign, and Zamora has been hit hard in Triple-A action this season, with a whopping 20.25 ERA over four appearances and 6 2/3 innings for Triple-A Syracuse.

Despite those recent results, Zamora found a new home in short order.  Like many teams this season, Seattle has been dealing with a number of pitching injuries, and also put four players on the COVID list yesterday.  The Mariners currently have Aaron Fletcher as the only left-handed option in their bullpen, so there appears to be an opportunity for Zamora to find a place back in the majors.

Mets Designate Jake Hager

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The Mets designated outfielder Jake Hager for assignment, the team announced.  Right-hander Jordan Yamamoto was called up from Triple-A, and southpaw Stephen Tarpley was activated off the COVID-related injury list.

New York just selected Hager to the roster a week ago. The 28-year-old earned that promotion with a fantastic start to the year at Triple-A Syracuse, hitting .405/.436/.703 with three homers in 39 plate appearances. Hager only tallied eight plate appearances with the big league club this week, collecting one hit (a single). The Mets will have a week to trade him or expose him to outright waivers.

Yamamoto and Tarpley will add some depth to a New York pitching staff that went through seven relievers in last night’s 12-inning victory over the Marlins. Both hurlers have pitched in one game for the Mets this season.

Rangers’ Kohei Arihara To Undergo Shoulder Surgery

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Rangers right-hander Kohei Arihara will undergo surgery on his throwing shoulder, Texas GM Chris Young told reporters (including MLB.com’s Manny Randhawa and Sports Illustrated’s Chris Halicke).  The surgery will fix an aneurysm that was found in Arihara’s shoulder earlier this week.  It will be 12 weeks before Arihara can even resume throwing, so it is quite possible that Arihara’s 2021 season is finished.

Arihara was already on the injured list due to a contusion on his right middle finger, an issue that was revealed as being related to the aneurysm.  Young suggested that the aneurysm impacted Arihara’s performance over three starts prior to the IL placement, as Arihara was hit hard to the tune of a 17.28 ERA over 8 1/3 innings.

Baseball is hardly the first matter of concern at this point, however, as Young described the issue as “a very serious condition if it’s not treated, and we’re very fortunate that this was caught early and we didn’t continue to push it with [Arihara].”

Arihara signed a two-year, $6.2MM contract with Texas in the offseason, a deal that cost the Rangers an additional $1.24MM in posting fees to Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, Arihara’s NPB team.  Arihara was a stalwart member of the Fighters’ rotation from 2015-20, posting a 3.74 ERA over 836 innings with a pitching repertoire that relied more on control and off-speed pitches rather than velocity.  (Arihara’s fastball averaged only 91mph this season.)

The Rangers and their fans saw some of this during Arihara’s first four starts of 2021, presumably before his aneurysm problems developed.  Arihara had a 2.21 ERA over his first 20 1/3 innings pitched in the big leagues, issuing 13 strikeouts against three walks.  If this is indeed it for Arihara in 2021, he’ll finish his rookie campaign with a 6.59 ERA/5.57 SIERA in 28 2/3 innings.

Young didn’t comment on how Texas would address Arihara’ rotation spot, though Hyeon-Jong Yang would seem like the favorite to remain in the starting five.  Drew Anderson, Brock Burke, or Wes Benjamin are some of the most likely options at Triple-A if the Rangers dipped into the farm system.

Marlins Place Jordan Holloway On 10-Day IL, Select Shawn Morimando

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The Marlins have placed righty Jordan Holloway on the 10-day injured list, GM Kim Ng told the Miami Herald’s Jordan McPherson and other reporters.  The Marlins will select the contract of left-hander Shawn Morimando to take Holloway’s spot on the active roster, and right-hander Elieser Hernandez will be moved to the 60-day IL to open up a 40-man roster spot for Morimando.

Holloway threw one inning in last night’s 6-5 loss to the Mets, but left the game due to groin soreness.  Holloway was the second of 10 Miami pitchers to take the mound during the 12-inning game, and the addition of Morimando gives the Marlins at least one more fresh arm heading into today’s action.

While Holloway’s 19.2% strikeout rate and 13.7% walk rate are both well below average, the righty has nonetheless been effective over 17 2/3 innings of work this season, posting a 2.55 ERA.  Holloway’s 5.20 SIERA reflects some significant good fortune, but Holloway has avoided damage with some outstanding hard-contact numbers.

Morimando is now in line to receive his first MLB action since the 2016 season.  Originally a 19th-round pick for the Indians in the 2011 draft, the lefty’s Major League resume consists of 4 2/3 innings for Cleveland in 2016.  Since that cup of coffee in the Show, Morimando pitched in the Blue Jays’ farm system in 2018-19 and he had a stint in the Australian Baseball League before inking a minor league deal with Miami this past offseason.

Hernandez has only pitched in one game this season due to biceps inflammation, so the shift to the 60-day IL covers the time he has already spent on the sidelines.  The right-hander has already thrown one rehab outing, and Hernandez should be in line for at least one more rehab start before being eligible for activation.

Rays Promote Taylor Walls, Claim Deivy Grullon From Mets

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The Rays have officially promoted infield prospect Taylor Walls, as was originally reported yesterday in the aftermath of the club’s four-player trade with the Brewers.

This is one of multiple transactions for the Rays, as Tampa also claimed catcher Deivy Grullon off waivers from the Mets, then optioned Grullon and the newly-acquired Drew Rasmussen to Triple-A.  Right-hander Chris Mazza was also sent to Triple-A after being activated off the 10-day injured list.  Left-hander Cody Reed was moved to the 60-day injured list to open up a 40-man roster spot.

With Willy Adames off to Milwaukee, the Rays addressed their shortstop vacancy not by calling up uber-prospect Wander Franco, but rather yet another well-regarded Tampa Bay farmhand in Walls.  Defensively, Walls has long been big league-ready, as he is considered a plus defender at shortstop and “widely considered the best defensive player at any position in the Rays’ Minor League system,” as per MLB Pipeline’s scouting report.  Walls has also stolen 66 bases (though in 99 attempts) during his minor league career and hit .327/.468/.490 over 62 Triple-A plate appearances this season.

This is the fifth time Grullon has been claimed off waivers since September 2020, and the second time Tampa Bay has claimed him in as many months.  After initially taking Grullon from the Reds in early April, the catcher was again DFA’ed later in the month and claimed by the Mets.  Through it all, Grullon has yet to appear in any Major League games in 2021, but he’ll now head to Triple-A as a depth option.

Shoulder inflammation cost Mazza just under a month of action.  The righty posted an 8.49 ERA over his first 11 2/3 innings with the Rays, after being acquired from the Red Sox in the February trade that also brought Jeffrey Springs to Tampa.

Reed only went to the 10-day IL on Wednesday, marking the second time this season that Reed has been sidelined by a numbness/weakness issue in his left thumb.  Manager Kevin Cash told Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times and other reporters that Reed has yet to see a specialist about the problem, though it’s probably safe to assume that next step is coming soon.  The left-hander has a 3.72 ERA over 9 2/3 relief innings for the Rays this season.

Brewers Designate Billy McKinney, Option Pablo Reyes

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The Brewers designated outfielder Billy McKinney for assignment and optioned infielder/outfielder Pablo Reyes to Triple-A.  The moves created roster space for Willy Adames and Trevor Richards, both acquired in yesterday’s trade with the Rays.  Righty Alec Bettinger was also called up from Triple-A.

McKinney was initially seen a possible DFA candidate during Spring Training since he is out of options and the Brewers ostensibly had a crowded outfield, but several injuries resulted in McKinney receiving quite a bit of playing time.  McKinney appeared in 40 games and hit .207/.260/.359 in an even 100 plate appearances, mostly working as a left fielder but also seeing action in nine games as a first baseman.

Once a top-100 prospect, McKinney is still just 26, and he has played for five different organizations.  Considering his value as a bench player, it’s quite possible another team plucks him off the DFA wire.  Milwaukee manager Craig Counsell said as much to reporters (including MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy) today, noting that “Billy did a nice job for us and he’s probably going to be tough to keep moving forward here.  He’s got a good chance to get claimed [off waivers] probably.“

Indians Option Triston McKenzie To Triple-A

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The Indians sent right-hander Triston McKenzie to Triple-A Columbus, as originally noted on MLB.com’s transactions page and confirmed by multiple reporters.  Right-hander Kyle Nelson was called up to take the open spot on the active roster.

Selected 42nd overall in the 2015 draft, McKenzie has been a fixture on top-100 prospect list for the last few years, even though forearm and shoulder injuries sidelined him for all of the 2019 season.  As a result, this will be McKenzie’s first appearance in Triple-A baseball, after pitching 90 2/3 innings at the Double-A level in 2018.

The Tribe saw enough in McKenzie at their alternate training site last season to promote him to the big leagues without the benefit of any Triple-A time, and McKenzie made an immediate impression.  He posted a 3.24 ERA and a strong 33.1% strikeout rate in his first 33 1/3 career innings, and it seemed like he was on his way to becoming Cleveland’s latest homegrown pitching star.

While McKenzie’s future is still bright, the 2021 season has been a speed bump.  McKenzie has a 6.89 ERA over 31 1/3 innings, still with a big strikeout rate (30.6%) but not much else positive within his metrics.  The 23-year-old has among the worst hard-contact numbers of any pitcher in baseball, and his garish 20.8% walk rate is the highest of any hurler in baseball with at least 30 innings pitched.

The extreme control problems are unusual, since McKenzie had very solid and even above-average walk rate during his minor league career.  It’s possible the numbers could just be an aberration, though the Tribe will let him work things out at Triple-A rather than risk more struggles at the big league level.

For taking over McKenzie’s rotation spot, Logan Allen might be the easiest choice to fill in, though he has also struggled over five starts with the Tribe this season.  Jean Carlos Mejia or Cal Quantrill could be stretched out as starters, or Eli Morgan or Scott Moss might be options at Triple-A.

Royals Acquire Domingo Tapia

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The Royals have acquired right-hander Domingo Tapia from the Mariners, as announced by both teams.  The M’s will receive cash considerations in their end of the deal.  Tapia has been assigned to Kansas City’s Triple-A affiliate.

Signed as an amateur free agent by the Mets in 2009, Tapia finally made his MLB debut last season, tossing 4 1/3 innings for the Red Sox.  Seattle acquired him via waiver claim last October, and Tapia tossed two scoreless innings before the Mariners designated him for assignment earlier this week.

Tapia has a 4.11 ERA over 691 1/3 innings in the minors.  He has only a 17.6% strikeout rate against minor league batters, but Tapia is more of a grounder specialist, regularly topping the 50% threshold for groundball rates during his time in the Mets’ and Reds’ farm systems.  Tapia will likely serve as a big league-ready depth option out of the Royals bullpen.

To create space on the 40-man roster for Tapia, Kansas City transferred righty Jesse Hahn to the 60-day injured list. Hahn, who was placed on the 10-day IL on April 12 with a right shoulder impingement, will now be out of action until at least June 11.

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