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Reds Designate Matt Davidson For Assignment

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The Reds announced that they’ve designated infielder Matt Davidson for assignment.

Davidson, an offseason minor league signing for Cincinnati who previously appeared in the majors as a member of the Diamondbacks and White Sox, totaled 47 plate appearances for the Reds before they designated him. The 29-year-old homered three times during that short span, but he could still only put together a .163/.234/.395 line in 22 games.

Of course, Davidson is one of the rare major leaguers capable of playing a two-way game. He made his debut on the mound as a right-hander with the White Sox in 2018 and has added another 3 1/3 frames as a Red this season. Davidson gave up two earned runs on two walks (one strikeout) and four hits in 2020 prior to his designation.

Orioles Designate Dilson Herrera, Activate Chris Davis

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The Orioles have designated infielder Dilson Herrera for assignment, the team announced. The O’s reinstated first baseman Chris Davis from the 10-day injured list in a corresponding move.

The 26-year-old Herrera, whom the Orioles signed to a minor league contract last winter, joined their big league roster exactly a week ago. Herrera wound up going hitless with four strikeouts in six plate appearances. The former Met and Red now owns a .199/.290/.386 line with 11 home runs in 272 PA as a big leaguer.

Davis, meanwhile, will get yet another chance to try to put his career back on track in Baltimore. The former star slugger, 34, was a solid part of the O’s roster as recently as 2016, but his output has gone in the tank since then. Davis began this year with a .152/.173/.184 slash and no homers in 52 trips to the plate before landing on the shelf with a left knee injury. He’s in the fifth season of a seven-year, $161MM contract.

Brewers Release Justin Smoak

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The Milwaukee Brewers thought they might have a bargain when they signed first baseman Justin Smoak to a one-year deal with a team option this winter. A $5MM guarantee would be a bargain deal for a productive first baseman, and Smoak had been exactly that in the past. The 33-year-old was a 10-year big-leaguer worth 3.0 rWAR in 2017 and 2.0 rWAR in 2018. He struggled in 2019 to a triple slash of .208/.342/.406 with 22 home runs across 500 plate appearances – but the numbers weren’t so far off the previous two years, and there was cause for optimism.

Solid peripherals likely kept Smoak employed, as if you looked at his career 11.6 BB%, 23.6 K%, and .190 ISO, there ’s potential for a potent bat there. Even during a down 2019 season, he logged a 15.8 BB%, 21.2 K%, and .198 ISO. Add in a below-average .223 BABIP and it’s easy to see why the Brewers gambled on him. The BABIP didn’t bounce back, however, and the walk and strikeout rates both went the wrong way.

Maybe the thinking wasn’t misguided, but the results simply didn’t pan out as hoped. The Brewers released Smoak today after he passed through waivers, per MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy (via Twitter). He was DFA’ed on September 3rd when the Brewers put in a claim for Daniel Vogelbach.

Vogelbach’s struggles were at least equal to Smoak’s this season, but whether the Brewers see something in Vogelbach or have simply seen enough of Smoak, Smoak’s tenure in Milwaukee is now over. In 126 plate appearances, Smoak hit just .186/.262/.381 with a handful of home runs. Smoak’s major-league career may not yet be over, but he’ll likely need to accept a minor-league contract to keep going.

The 11th overall draft choice of the 2008 draft, Smoak played for the Rangers, Mariners, Blue Jays, and Brewers across 11 seasons. For his career, he owns a triple slash of .229/.322/.419 with 196 home runs.

Red Sox Roster Moves

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The Boston Red Sox have selected the contract of Christian Arroyo ahead of today’s doubleheader, per Chris Cotillo of Masslive.com (via Twitter). Deivy Grullon, recently claimed off waivers from the Phillies, will also join the club at their 29th man. In addition, Matt Hall has been optioned to the team’s alternative site, and Andrew Benintendi was transferred to the 45-day injured list. His season his likely over.

Hall, 27, made the Opening Day roster, and given the way Boston has needed to cycle through pitchers this season, he may not be done at the major league level this year. He needn’t do much to improve on his current numbers, however: Hall made 3 appearances including 1 start, surrendering a woeful 14 earned runs across 6 1/3 innings. Hall has an 11.23 career ERA across parts of three seasons with the Tigers and Red Sox.

Arroyo takes Hall’s place on the active roster, and he’ll get at least one start at second base today. The much-traveled infielder has suited up for the Giants, Rays, and Indians in his career, though he made just one defensive appearance for the Indians earlier this season. His greatest major-league success came with the Rays in 2018 when he slashed .264/.339/.396 over 20 games, but the versatile infielder has not yet demonstrated an ability to slug. Second base has been a bit of a dead zone for the Red Sox this season, however, so he’ll get a chance to compete with Jose Peraza, Michael Chavis, Yairo Muñoz, Tzu-Wei Lin, and Jonathan Araúz for keystone at-bats. Chavis, for his part, will start in left field today for the first time in his career.

Today should be a good day for Grullon, who not only returns to the majors, but does so against the team that recently designated him for assignment. The Triple-A All-Star will start the second game of today’s doubleheader behind the plate against his former team, per Cotillo. Presumably, he’ll be returned to the team’s alternate site at the end of the doubleheader, though he could easily return to the active roster at some point.

Benintendi fans will be less spirited by the news that he will miss the rest of the season. Boston’s left fielder played in just 14 games, slashing .103/.314/.128 without a home run in 52 plate appearances. A strained right rib cage sent Benintendi to the injured list. He has one more year on his current contract worth $6.6MM before facing a third year of arbitration. He is scheduled to be a free agent prior to the 2023 season.

White Sox Activate Gio Gonzalez

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The Chicago White Sox have activated Gio Gonzalez, per MLB.com’s Scott Merkin (via Twitter). Zack Burdi has been optioned to the team’s alternate site to make room on the roster.

Gonzalez has pitched both out of the bullpen and from the rotation this season. Given the injury concerns for the soon-to-be 35-year-old, Chicago could reason that the bullpen would be the prudent and more effective usage play for Gonzalez. Instead, they’re likely to put him back into their starting five for now alongside Lucas Giolito, Dallas Keuchel, Dylan Cease, and Dane Dunning. Keuchel has been struggling with a balky back, so getting Gonzalez tuned up and back to his usual innings-eating self could be a benefit for the Pale Hose come playoff time.

The veteran southpaw has the battle scars to mark his playoff resume. He’s made 8 starts in his postseason career for the Nationals and Brewers with his team’s going an even 4-4 in those games. Batters have hit just .215/.346/.393 over those 29 1/3 innings, while Gonzalez has racked up 27 strikeouts and a 4.91 ERA. In sum, Gonzalez has suppressed batter contact and power throughout his playoff tenure, but also struggled at times with command leading to short starts and an average start length of less than 4 innings. Still, when the playoffs roll around, 4 solid innings from a time-tested veteran might be preferable to relying on the youth of Cease and/or Dunning. Now that the White Sox have all guaranteed a playoff berth, we have only time in the way of learning the White Sox’ postseason strategy.

The 25-year-old Burdi made 8 appearances this season, and while 13.5 K/9 to 3.7 BB/9 are sound peripheral numbers, Burdi was saddled with an 11.05 ERA across 7 1/3 innings. An 8.57 FIP only paints a marginally better picture for the hard-throwing right-hander. Things started out well-enough when Burdi allowed just 1 earned run over his first four outings, but 8 earned runs over his final 3 1/3 marred the earlier performance and likely played a role in his demotion. The Illinois-native suffered a particularly brutal 1/3 of an inning at the hands of the Royals, surrendering a solo shot, an RBI single, and then another long ball to Maikel Franco that plated three and ended Burdi’s evening. Despite the rough outings, Burdi boasts an electric 98 mph fastball and will find his way back to the majors.

Royals Place Jorge Soler On IL

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The Kansas City Royals announced that outfielder Jorge Soler has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a right oblique strain. Matt Reynolds has been recalled to take his roster spot.

Soler has not appeared in a game since Saturday. The Royals had hoped he’d heal enough from a few days off, but they still hope to get him back before the end of the season. Soler hasn’t quite lived up to the ceiling he set in 2019, but he’s remained a power threat in the middle of the Royals’ order. He owns a triple slash of .235/.331/.456 on the year over 159 plate appearances with 8 long balls and a still-robust .221 ISO.

Ryan O’Hearn and Ryan McBroom have served as designated hitter the last two games. The Royals are likely to cycle different players through the role as long as Soler is out, using the spot to semi-rest regulars like Hunter Dozier, O’Hearn, or Maikel Franco.

Reynolds is a 29-year-old left-side infielder who’s previously appeared in the majors with the Mets and Nationals. He spent all of 2019 with the Nationals’ Triple-A club in Fresno, putting up an impressive triple slash of .295/.401/.521 with 16 home runs. It was his best season by a fair margin, but given his age, the Royals do not likely expect much from Reynolds. That said, he could be one of the players used to cycle through as designated hitter, or he could spell Franco on occasion at third.

Cardinals Activate Carlos Martinez, Option Dylan Carlson

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The St. Louis Cardinals announced the activation of pitcher Carlos Martinez from the injured list today. Martinez has been on the COVID-19 injured list since July.

The plan had been for Martinez to return to the rotation this year after pitching exclusively out of the bullpen in 2019. Martinez made just one start before the outbreak of COVID-19 shut down his season. He’ll likely return to the rotation for one of today’s doubleheader games.

To make room on the 40-man roster, Ryan Meisinger was designated for assignment. Meisinger, 26, made two appearances, logging 2 2/3 scoreless frames, allowing 1 hit and 4 walks, while striking out 3. After making his major league debut with the Orioles in 2018, the Cardinals selected Meisinger off waivers and stored him in Triple-A for 2019, where he put up 35 frames of a 3.09 ERA.

Dylan Carlson has also been optioned to the team’s alternate training site to make room on the active roster. The move was made primarily because of a lack of playing time for Carlson, per Derrick S. Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). The 21-year-old outfielder slashed .162/.215/.243 across 79 plate appearances during his first taste of the show.

Given the other options available, it’s a little suspect that the Cardinals couldn’t find playing time for Carlson – should that have been their goal. Fellow outfielders Dexter Fowler and Austin Dean remain out following COVID-19 protocols. Other options in the outfield have struggled for the Cardinals. Lane Thomas (52 wRC+, 225 PA) and Tyler O’Neill (76 wRC+, 98 PA) are options to flank Harrison Bader (140 wRC+) in the grass, though Tommy Edman and Rangel Ravelo could also see time in the outfield. Brad Miller has some experience in the outfield, but the Cardinals have yet to play him there.

Minor League Baseball President Announces Retirement

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President of Minor League Baseball Pat O’Connor will retire at the year’s end, per The Athletic’s Evan Drellich (via Twitter). O’Connor has served as President since 2007, while spending 24 years in total with the minor league baseball offices and 34 years in professional baseball.

Minor League Baseball released a statement, provided by JJ Cooper of Baseball America. The statement reads, in part: “During his presidency, O’Connor oversaw a period of unprecedented increase in revenues and franchise values as Minor League Baseball attracted over 40 million fans in each of the last 15 seasons (2005-19), and in 2008, Minor League Baseball drew over 43 million fans for the first time since 1901.”

The future of Minor League Baseball remains very much in the air after losing this season to the pandemic. Even before the pandemic, however, tensions were rising the between Major and Minor League Baseball offices. MiLB has resisted contraction, but instead of losing a couple of teams, the whole system is in danger of falling under the control of Major League Baseball. All of which led MiLB to change their negotiation team early in August. Of course, the team that was brought in was said to be more in line with O’Connor – as opposed to Minor League Baseball team owners – so O’Connor’s retirement could foretell the end of MiLB as presently constituted.

Giants Considering Move To The Bullpen For Jeff Samardzija

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When the Giants signed Jeff Samardzija following the 2015 season, his durability was a driving factor for the then-defending champs. The Shark put up 411 innings over his first two seasons, but the back three years of the deal have been marred by persistent injury. After just 44 2/3 innings in 2018, Samardzija did manage to rebound for 181 1/3 innings as a 34-year-old last season with a 3.32 ERA/4.59 FIP. This season it’s been more injury woes for the Hoosier.

Now that his contract is set to run out at the end of this season, the Giants are still working to get Samardzija back into uniform, but they’re running out of time. The veteran righty made just 3 starts this season before being put on the injured list with a shoulder impingement. Samardzija threw 50 pitches in a simulated game on Saturday, and while he could return to the rotation, the Giants are considering a move to the bullpen, per Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle. Given the shortened timeline for this season, and the lack of traditional avenues for rehab starts, the bullpen might be the only way Samardzija pitches again in a Giants uniform.

It wouldn’t be the first time Samardzija worked out of the pen. He began his career as a reliever for the Chicago Cubs way back in 2008. He would throw one inning in relief for the Cubs in the postseason that year while getting swept out of the playoffs by the Dodgers. It wasn’t until 2012 that he would establish himself in the rotation with 28 starts and a 3.81 ERA/3.55 FIP. And it wasn’t until 2016 that he’d find himself in the postseason again, this time with the Giants – facing the Cubs. Chicago would run him after two innings and defeat the Giants on the way to breaking their World Series drought.

All these years later, there would be some poetry to Samardzija finding himself back in the bullpen for a Giants squad fighting to make the postseason. When healthy, Samardzija has continued to be a useful arm, and he’ll be an interesting free agent at season’s end, if a low-cost one. The Shark may no longer be at the top of the food chain, but if he can return to help  the Giants’ pen, Samardzija might be able to circle the free agent waters for one last payday.

Braves Place Max Fried On IL, DFA Charlie Culberson, And Other Roster Moves

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The Atlanta Braves announced a number of roster moves this morning, the most consequential of which was placing ace Max Fried on the injured list, retroactive to September 6th, the team announced. Also, Kyle Wright was recalled and Jacob Webb reinstated from the injured list. Fan favorite utility man Charlie Culberson was designated for assignment.

Fried might be the single most important player on the Braves roster right now as the only reliable high-end arm in the rotation. In the wake of Mike Soroka’s season-ending injury, Mike Foltynewicz’s demotion, and Cole Hamels’ injury, Fried has ably stepped up and developed into an ace for the Braves. He’s currently a top contender for the Cy Young in the National League with a 6-0 record through 9 starts, 50 innings, a 1.98 ERA/2.47 FIP, and zero home runs allowed.

A worrying drop in velocity hit a season low in his last start on Saturday, as illustrated here by PitcherList.com (via Twitter), averaging just 91.7 mph after being as high as 94.1 mph for his first two starts of the year . The injury listed is a left-side muscle spasm of the lumbar spine, aka back spasms. The Braves are obviously hopeful that some rest and treatment can get him back on the hill.

In the meantime, Hamels is on the comeback trail, and he could be activated as soon as next Monday, per Baseball America’s Gabe Burns (via Twitter). For now, Wright will return from their alternate training site in Lawrenceville to re-join the rotation. The Braves will hope for better results this time around for the 24-year-old, who was hit with a 7.20 ERA/6.48 FIP while going 0-3 in 4 starts earlier this season – though The Athletic’s David O’Brien reports that Wright is just up for a spot start. Still, Wright is highly regarded, their 4th ranked prospect by Fangraphs, Baseball America, and MLB.com.

The 27-year-old Webb could provide boost to Atlanta’s right-side relief corps. Webb has yet to appear in 2020, but he put up a 1.39 ERA in 39 games in 2019 – his first big league experience. The 6’2″ right-hander brings a 95 mph heater buttressed by a curveball and 86 mph change that generated a 40% Whiff% in 2019.

Culberson, 31, only appeared in 9 games this season going 1 for 7 with a double and RBI. The utlilty man has mostly been used as a pinch-runner this season. Culberson had some big hits for the 2019 Braves, but he took a Fernando Rodney fastball to the cheek on a bunt attempt in Washington which broke his cheekbone and ended his season. Culberson hasn’t seen regular playing time since the injury.

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