Astros Transfer Lance McCullers Jr. To 60-Day Injured List
The Astros transferred starter Lance McCullers Jr. from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list this evening, tweets Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. The move opens a spot on the 40-man roster for slugging outfielder Yordan Álvarez, who has been reinstated from the COVID-19 IL. Infielder Joe Perez was optioned to Triple-A Sugar Land to clear an active roster spot for Álvarez.
The move rules McCullers out for 60 days from the date of his original IL placement, April 4. He’ll be eligible to return to the big leagues during the first week of June, but he could begin a minor league rehab assignment before then if he’s healthy enough to do so. In either event, it’s clear the team didn’t anticipate McCullers being ready to contribute in the majors any time soon.
He continues to work his way back from a flexor tendon strain in his forearm, which he suffered during last year’s postseason. While it was initially believed he’d be ready for Opening Day — if not perhaps able to pitch through the injury during the 2021 World Series — McCullers admitted over the winter that he’d not healed as quickly as expected. The 28-year-old partially attributed his lack of progress to the lockout, which kept players on the 40-man roster from communicating with team medical personnel between the start of December and the second week of March.
McCullers fortunately had at least progressed to playing catch by last week, but it’s clear he’ll need some time to build up arm strength. He’ll require a throwing program before he’s able to embark on a rehab assignment, and he’ll surely need a couple starts to log some innings in the minors before returning to the big league rotation. There’s little question Houston will be cautious with their prized right-hander, who finished seventh in AL Cy Young balloting last season and is in the first season of a five-year, $85MM contract.
Houston has opened the season with a starting five of Framber Valdez, Jake Odorizzi, José Urquidy, Justin Verlander and Luis Garcia. Even without McCullers, that’s one of the league’s stronger quintets. Cristian Javier is working in relief but appears to be the top depth option. He’s coming off a promising 2021 and has tossed 4 2/3 scoreless innings with eight strikeouts so far this year.
Álvarez, meanwhile, is now in position to return to the lineup for the first time in a week. He has missed the past five games battling what manager Dusty Baker had called a stomach bug. Baker suggested last week he might ease Álvarez back into action, but he’ll reclaim his spot as a middle-of-the-order presence in Houston fairly shortly.
Tony Watson Announces Retirement
Veteran left-handed reliever Tony Watson is retiring after 11 seasons at the Major League level, he tells Stephen J. Nesbitt of The Athletic. Watson issued a statement thanking his teammates, peers, coaches and support staff members, as well as the four teams for which he pitched — Pirates, Dodgers, Giants, Angels — and his family and friends for their support throughout his career. Nesbitt further tweets that Watson originally hoped to continue on for at least a 12th season, but shoulder issues led him to call it a career.
As Nesbitt points out, Watson will step away from baseball as the all-time leader in holds (a statistic which has been recorded since 1999), having racked up 246 of them throughout his big league tenure. That’s a testament to the southpaw’s consistency and effectiveness. Not only did his reliability convince managers to give Watson the ball with small leads year-after-year, he frequently passed them along into the later innings by keeping runs off the board.
Watson exceeded 40 innings in ten of the the past eleven seasons, with only the shortened 2020 schedule keeping him from hitting that mark every year of his career. Only once did he post an ERA north of 4.00, and he allowed fewer than three earned runs per nine innings on four separate occasions. That included three straight excellent campaigns with the Pirates in 2013-15, during which time the University of Nebraska product tossed 224 1/3 innings of 1.97 ERA ball, stifling opposing hitters to a .212/.265/.297 slash line.
Amidst that run, Watson earned a deserved selection to the 2014 All-Star game. He struck out 26.6% of opposing hitters that year — the second-highest rate of his career — while posting a 1.63 ERA and leading the National League with 78 appearances. Watson remained eminently productive throughout his tenure in Pittsburgh, which concluded at the 2017 trade deadline when the non-contending Bucs shipped the impending free agent to the Dodgers. (That deal looks as if it’ll be a meaningful one for years to come in Pittsburgh, as now-top prospect Oneil Cruz went from L.A. in return).
As he was throughout his career, Watson proved an effective late-season addition for the Dodgers. He then signed a three-year deal with the division-rival Giants, where he remained a solid bullpen option. Between 2018-20, Watson posted a 3.20 ERA in 138 frames. He signed with the Angels in free agency last winter, but San Francisco brought him back via a deadline trade. Watson had run into some uncharacteristic struggles in Orange County, but he righted the ship for what’ll prove to be his final run in the Bay Area.
Even as he neared his 37th birthday, the Iowa native was one of the better left-handed relievers in this year’s free agent class. He reportedly drew some interest from the Mets last month, but his shoulder will prevent him from giving it another go. Nevertheless, Watson steps away from the game as one of the more quietly effective relievers of the past decade. He posted a 2.90 ERA in 648 1/3 innings across 11 major league campaigns. In addition to his aforementioned holds record, he saved 32 games and struck out 570 batters. MLBTR congratulates Watson on his long, successful run and wishes him all the best in retirement.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Yankees Sign Derek Dietrich To Minor League Deal
The Yankees have signed infielder Derek Dietrich to a minor league contract, per Chris Hilburn-Trenkle of Baseball America. It’ll be the second straight season with time spent in the Yankees organization for Dietrich, who’s represented by All Bases Covered Sports Management.
Dietrich, 32, didn’t play in the big leagues last year, instead splitting the season between the Triple-A affiliates for the Yankees and Nationals. In a combined 302 trips to the plate during that time, he slashed .163/.338/.293 — a continuation of the struggles he’s endured in his most recent big league stints. Dietrich swatted 19 home runs with the Reds in 2019, going on an epic May hot streak that saw him swat 12 home runs in a month’s time while slashing .304/.400/.841. It’s been downhill since, however, as evidenced by a .143/.311/.302 slash in his past 236 Major League plate appearances.
Dietrich has drawn plenty of walks in recent years, both in the big leagues and in Triple-A, as he’s morphed into a three-true-outcome player. Since 2019, in 682 plate appearances between the Majors and Triple-A, Dietrich has homered, walked or struck out in 44.1% of his plate appearances. Add in another somewhat incredible 53 instances of being hit by a pitch, and 51.8% of Dietrich’s plate appearances have ended without a ball in play for defenders to field.
The Yankees have plenty of options at first base and second base, Dietrich’s primary positions, already on the depth chart. Anthony Rizzo and Marwin Gonzalez, both in the Majors, will see the lion’s share of time at first base. Old friend Greg Bird and Ronald Guzman are both playing in Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. At second base, the Yanks are set with DJ LeMahieu, Gleyber Torres and Gonzalez on the big league roster, to say nothing of journeymen Jose Peraza and Phillip Evans and top prospect Oswaldo Cabrera down in Triple-A. (Cabrera is on the 40-man roster.) Dietrich, who also has experience in left field and at third base, will give the Yanks another lefty bat to add to that mix in Scranton.
Reds Sign Ross Detwiler To Minor League Deal
The Reds have signed lefty Ross Detwiler to a minor league contract, per Baseball America’s Chris Hilburn-Trenkle. The CAA client hasn’t yet been assigned to an affiliate, but his deal with the team is also reflected on the Reds’ transactions log at MLB.com.
Detwiler, 36, split the 2021 season between the Marlins and Padres, working to a combined 4.64 ERA with a 27.1% strikeout rate, an 8.7% walk rate and a 39.9% ground-ball rate in 52 1/3 innings. Detwiler made five starts, albeit working primarily as an opener, though his work to kick off games did not go well. The well-traveled southpaw notched a 2.82 ERA as a reliever while holding opponents to an awful .186/.287/.311 batting line. As a starter, he tossed 7 2/3 innings and was clobbered for 13 runs on 14 hits (seven homers) and three walks, with opponents batting .378/.439/1.054.
The former No. 6 overall draft pick has had plenty of experience pitching both out of rotations and bullpens in the big leagues, but he’s been far more effective as a reliever late in his career. That goes beyond just the 2021 season; Detwiler had a nice year with the White Sox in 2020, tossing 19 2/3 innings with a 3.20 ERA out of the bullpen. Dating back to 2018, Detwiler has a 4.12 ERA, 22.1% strikeout rate and 8.2% walk rate in 83 innings as a reliever. Working as a starter in that time, he’s been tagged for a 6.96 ERA with just a 15.9% strikeout rate.
While Detwiler could technically give the Reds some rotation depth at a time when both Luis Castillo and Mike Minor are on the injured list, that recent track record makes him seem far likelier to serve as left-handed bullpen depth. Justin Wilson is currently the only lefty reliever in manager David Bell‘s bullpen, and Cincinnati doesn’t have another lefty option on the 40-man roster. Former Rockies reliever Phillip Diehl is in Triple-A Louisville, and Detwiler seems likely to join him there as an upper-level option once he gets built up.
Mike Minor Shut Down Following Setback In Shoulder Rehab
After letting Wade Miley go via waivers and trading Sonny Gray to the Twins in the offseason (amid other cost-cutting moves), the Reds attempted to restock the rotation in a trade that sent reliever Amir Garrett to the Royals in exchange for veteran southpaw Mike Minor. Not long after the trade, the Reds revealed that Minor was battling some shoulder issues and expected to begin the season on the injured list, though skipper David Bell suggested at the time that the shoulder soreness was not overly concerning.
Minor went on a rehab assignment last week, but the lefty suffered a setback in his first appearance with Double-A Chattanooga. Per The Athletic’s C. Trent Rosecrans, Minor has now been shut down for the time being and returned to Cincinnati. He’s back into a rest-and-rehab program and will need to build arm strength back up whenever he’s cleared to begin throwing. At present, there’s no timetable for Minor’s return.
It’s a depth blow to a Reds rotation that is also without top starter Luis Castillo, who’s also been sidelined thanks to shoulder issues. Castillo’s work early in camp was delayed by shoulder soreness, but he’s said to be healthy now and is throwing to hitters as he ramps up toward a rehab assignment of his own. The Reds have previously expressed optimism that Castillo could return late this month. With both Castillo and Minor shelved, Cincinnati has been deploying Tyler Mahle, Reiver Sanmartin, Vladimir Gutierrez and top prospects Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo as its starting five.
The setback to Minor figures to only further rile a fanbase that wasn’t happy with the Reds’ offseason direction. Cincinnati let Miley go on waivers to spare a $1MM buyout on a $10MM club option they weren’t going to exercise — the Cubs claimed him and happily picked that option up — but months later took on about $7.3MM in salary to acquire Minor on the heels of a less-productive season. Of course, Cincinnati couldn’t have known early in the offseason that they’d manage to successfully jettison the remaining three years and $35MM on Eugenio Suarez‘s contract. The money saved in the Jesse Winker/Suarez trade with the Mariners surely played a role in the Reds’ decisions to acquire Minor and sign free agents Tommy Pham, Donovan Solano (also currently on the injured list) and Hunter Strickland.
Minor, 34, is in the second guaranteed season of a two-year, $18MM contract originally signed with Kansas City. The Reds hold a $13MM club option on him with a $1MM buyout, though the Royals agreed to pay that buyout as part of the trade. Over the past two seasons, Minor has a 5.18 ERA in 215 1/3 innings, albeit with much more palatable strikeout and walk rates (23.2% and 6.7%, respectively).
Red Sox Place Kevin Plawecki On Covid IL
The Red Sox are placing catcher Kevin Plawecki on the Covid-19-related injured list after he tested positive this morning, tweets Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com. Plawecki and a pair of Red Sox staff members had positive tests this morning. The two staffers are not on the coaching staff, tweets Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe.
Catcher Connor Wong is already headed to Fenway Park from nearby Triple-A Worcester in a corresponding move. Plawecki’s placement on the Covid list will temporarily open a 40-man roster spot, though Wong is already on the 40-man, so for the time being Boston’s 40-man roster will be at 39 players.
Major League Baseball’s 2022 health-and-safety protocols, which were jointly agreed upon by the league and the players association, stipulate a 10-day absence for players who test positive, but it’s not a strict 10-day requirement. Plawecki will be able to return to the team sooner if he has a pair of negative PCR tests, goes more than 24 hours without a fever and is approved both by a Red Sox medical official and a panel of one MLB-appointed and one MLBPA-appointed third-party medical expert (the “joint committee”). Plawecki is vaccinated, tweets ESPN’s Joon Lee.
The 31-year-old Plawecki has appeared in four games for the Sox thus far, collecting a hit, a walk and a sacrifice fly in 12 plate appearances. He’s in his third season with Boston and enjoyed a career-best run at the plate in 2020-21 with the Sox, hitting a combined .305/.364/.414 in 262 plate appearances. Wong, 25, went 4-for-13 with a double and a triple in last year’s MLB debut with the Red Sox. One of three players the Sox received in the trade that sent Mookie Betts and David Price to the Dodgers, Wong hit .256/.289/.442 in 208 Triple-A plate appearances last season and is out to a 4-for-16 start with the WooSox thus far in 2022.
AL Notes: Red Sox, Houck, Angels, Rendon, White Sox, Kelly
Tanner Houck indicated that he is not vaccinated against COVID-19, and therefore, he will be unable to travel to Toronto to make his scheduled start later this month, per Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe. Players do not have to be vaccinated, but any traveler heading into Canada does. Houck is scheduled to pitch against the Blue Jays in Boston on Thursday, putting him in line to start in Toronto the following Tuesday (April 26). The Red Sox will have to shift their rotation around, potentially pushing Houck’s next start to the following series in Baltimore. This shouldn’t be a big issue for Boston, as the club won’t play in Toronto again until a 3-game set at the end of June. They also play in Toronto for three of the season’s final six games. So at the end of the year this could be something that Boston has to think about, but that’s a problem for another day.
- Anthony Rendon took his day of rest today, sitting out the Sunday game for the second consecutive week. This could be a pattern for Rendon, at least early in the season, per The Athletic’s Sam Blum (via Twitter). Manager Joe Maddon is cognizant of the fact that, despite it being a new season, Rendon is still coming off surgery. Given the money that Rendon is owed over the next five seasons, it certainly makes sense to value Rendon’s long-term health. The All-Star third baseman turns 32 in June.
- Joe Kelly is probably looking at an early May return to the active roster, if all goes well. He threw bullpen sessions today and looked good, but the club is still likely targeting late April for a rehab assignment to Charlotte, per The Athletic’s James Fegan (via Twitter). Kelly has yet to make his Southside debut, having begun the season on the injured list.
Phillies Notes: Herrera, Girardi, Schwarber
Odubel Herrera is on his way to a rehab assignment with Lehigh Valley, which could mean a return to the active roster by next Friday when the club returns home, per Alex Coffey of the Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter). Without Herrera, 25-year-old Matt Vierling has been starting most games in center, but he’s struggled to the tune of a 14 wRC+ (though the sample size is a mere 24 plate appearances).
23-year-old Simon Muzziotti was called up, but Muzziotti has yet to garner regular playing time. Herrera figures to step in as the regular starter when he returns, while Vierling will shift mostly to a short-side platoon. It would not be surprising to see Muzziotti optioned back to Triple-A at that time so that he can get more regular playing time. The Phils have largely been functioning with a four-man bench.
On the whole, the Phillies haven’t gotten off to the kind of start that they expected after a winter that included a couple big-name additions. It’s incredibly early, of course, but today’s loss dropped Philly to 4-6 in their first ten. After noticing some trends he doesn’t like, manager Joe Girardi has started tinkering with his lineups to find better balance, writes The Athletic’s Matt Gelb. Namely, Kyle Schwarber has been bumped from the leadoff spot down to fifth. J.T. Realmuto will move from the two hole down to one. Girardi didn’t like how easy it was for teams to bring in a southpaw to face both Schwarber and Bryce Harper with only Realmuto in between, so Girardi will now use both Nick Castellanos and Rhys Hoskins to separate his lefties.
Buck Martinez Stepping Away From Broadcast Booth
Blue Jays broadcaster Buck Martinez is unfortunately stepping away from the booth after receiving a cancer diagnosis. Martinez announced the decision himself with a press release, presented here by Sportsnet. The Blue Jays responded with a show of support. Martinez will undergo treatment, after which he hopes to be able to return to the booth.
Martinez has long been an ambassador for the Blue Jays, going all the way back to his playing days. Martinez spent the final six seasons of his 17-year playing career with Toronto. He would even go on to manage the club from 2000-01. He’s now been part of the Toronto organization for four decades.
But the 73-year-old has become closely aligned with the Blue Jays from his work in the booth. While he has some experience as a national broadcaster, he is now in his 12th year with Sportsnet announcing Blue Jays’ games, notes MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson. Blue Jays games certainly won’t be the same without Buck’s familiar commentary over the next couple of months. We here at MLBTR wish Martinez a speedy recovery as he, in his words, fights the good fight.
Rays Option Tommy Romero
The Rays sent righty Tommy Romero to Triple-A after today’s game, opening a roster spot for the recently-acquired Javy Guerra to be added to the active roster tomorrow, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter). The Rays have also announced the roster moves.
Romero tossed two innings to close out today’s 9-3 win over the White Sox. He allowed on earned run on a solo home run to Gavin Sheets while striking out three. It was his second appearance since joining the active roster last week. In his Major League debut, Romero got the start against the A’s, but managed to record just five outs (one strikeout) while walking five, serving up two hits, and three earned runs. Romero has risen the ranks of the Rays system somewhat surprisingly, and he will no doubt find his way back to the bigs this season as a multi-inning swingman.
Guerra was acquired from the Padres for cash considerations yesterday. The hard-throwing righty was a fairly well-regarded prospect before seeing his career consistently derailed by injures. He even briefly held the top spot in the Padres system back in 2016 per Baseball America, but that was back when he was a shortstop. He was converted to a pitcher during Spring Training in 2019. As a recent convert who can light up the radar gun, the 26-year-old is a perfect project for Tampa’s brain trust.
It will certainly be interesting to track Guerra’s progress in Tampa. Since he’s out of options, he cannot be sent back to Triple-A without being exposed to waives – which is precisely how they’ve acquired him in the first place. The Rays, as we know, love to shuttle pitchers back-and-forth between the bigs and Triple-A. He joins Chris Mazza, Matt Wisler, and Brooks Raley as members of the bullpen who cannot be optioned without being exposed to waivers.