Latest On Nathan Eovaldi
WEDNESDAY: Not so fast. Eovaldi came out of Boston’s bullpen Tuesday. Having only thrown six pitches, he will be available today, but will not get the start, Cora told reporters including Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com (via Twitter). Brian Johnson will instead take the ball to open today’s contest. Where things go from this point remains to be seen.
TUESDAY: After a short run as a reliever, the Red Sox are returning right-hander Nathan Eovaldi to a starting role. Eovaldi will start Wednesday and then spend the rest of the season in the Red Sox’s rotation, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports. He’ll only throw around 55 pitches Wednesday, according to manager Alex Cora (via Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe).
Eovaldi has been a starter for almost all of his career, but after he sat out from late April toward the end of July while recovering from elbow surgery, reliever-needy Boston planned to give him a shot as its closer. The decision came in part because the Red Sox weren’t sure if Eovaldi would have the time to build his arm up enough to go back to his typical job as a starter. Eovaldi did not acquit himself well out of the Red Sox’s bullpen, though, as he has allowed eight earned runs in 10 2/3 innings since coming off the injured list. The 29-year-old didn’t even rack up a save attempt, with the club instead using Brandon Workman as its closer.
The hard-throwing Eovaldi also had a tough time as a starter this year before going under the knife, which isn’t what the Red Sox envisioned when they splurged on him last winter. After coming over in a midsummer trade with the Rays and then establishing himself as one of the Red Sox’s many playoff heroes during their championship run in 2018, they re-signed him to a four-year, $67.5MM contract in free agency. Eovaldi has since logged a 6.25 ERA/5.74 FIP with 8.81 K/9 and 4.26 BB/9 across 31 2/3 innings. He’s one of many Boston pitchers who have gone through less-than-ideal seasons.
Thanks largely to the struggles of their pitching staff, the Red Sox are on track to begin their offseason far earlier than expected this year. The club’s 62-59, placing it a whopping 17 1/2 games behind the Yankees in the American League East and 8 1/2 back of a wild-card spot. Realistically, it’s time to start looking ahead to 2020, when Eovaldi, Chris Sale, the currently injured David Price and Eduardo Rodriguez figure to comprise 80 percent of the team’s rotation.
Who Else Could Hit Outright Waivers In August?
The Reds have made a pair of claims already, nabbing Kevin Gausman from the Braves and Freddy Galvis from the Blue Jays. While the Cincinnati organization still hasn’t manage to make a run into clear postseason contention, it’s in shouting distance and obviously wants to send a message to its fanbase. With a marginal place in the standings, the Reds also have waiver priority over all other contenders. (Current rules do not distinguish between league status, except in cases where two teams with the same record each put in a claim.) The claims are relatively low-cost since there’s not much time left in the regular season (around $4MM in total) and both players can be controlled for 2020 (Gausman via arbitration, Galvis via club option). It’s also possible the Reds could pass along the contracts via the waiver wire later this month.
[RELATED: So, What Can Teams Do In August?]
It stands to reason that players in similar positions will be exposed to waivers as well. Those likeliest to hit the wire — beyond younger, fringe 40-man members — are arbitration-eligible players who are obvious non-tender candidates and impending free agents who no longer fit onto their current club. Gausman and Kyle Barraclough, whom the Giants recently claimed from the Nationals, represent recent examples of the first group. In such cases, teams stand to save a nice chunk of money if another team places a claim; if not, they only lose a player whose days in the organization were clearly numbered. Certain veterans on expiring contracts may also be allowed to leave, even if their non-contending current team would happily pay their salary down the stretch, in order to generate goodwill in pursuing future free agents. (That possibility explains why we’ve listed, say, Hunter Pence as a conceivable waiver candidate.)
It should be noted that players with guaranteed salaries beyond the 2019 season aren’t as likely to be waived in this manner. There’s little incentive for the Mariners to waive Dee Gordon, for instance. He’s owed more than $16MM and would surely go unclaimed as a result. At that point, he’d reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency, leaving the Mariners on the hook for the entirety of his contract. At best, Seattle would save the prorated league minimum if Gordon signed with another team. It makes more sense to hold him and try to move him in the offseason or even next year.
There ought to be demand on the claiming side. Plenty of needs remain unmet even on competitive rosters. It’s notable that the Nats and Braves saved money with their above-cited waiver placements; that could leave some addition free cash to utilize in adding other players. Some clear non-contenders will even work the wire, as the Blue Jays did with Zack Godley. It would seem there’s nothing to stop teams from discussing their intentions in advance — “hey, we’d claim him if you cut him loose” — to assuage any concerns about a player going unclaimed, which could perhaps even open the door to a surprising late-month claim or two.
With that in mind, it’s worth taking a look around the league to see which other players could land on waivers, focusing on contract status and other factors. Rebuilding and/or clearly non-contending clubs will obviously be contemplating ways to save some cash with moves of this nature. Some players on contending teams may be candidates to be cut loose regardless of their organization’s place in the standings — hence, the prior moves on Gausman and Barraclough — but we’ll focus here on organizations with sub-.500 records.
Just because a player lands on the list doesn’t mean we think it’s especially likely he’ll move by way of waivers; it just indicates we can see a path to such an outcome. Without further ado (teams listed by inverse order of record):
Tigers: Jordy Mercer, Gordon Beckham, Edwin Jackson
Orioles: Jace Peterson, Jonathan Villar
Royals: Billy Hamilton, Mike Montgomery
Marlins: Curtis Granderson, Neil Walker, Starlin Castro, Martin Prado, Adam Conley
Mariners: Cory Gearrin, Anthony Bass
Blue Jays: Zack Godley, Neil Ramirez, Justin Smoak
Pirates: Francisco Liriano, Melky Cabrera
Rockies: Chris Iannetta (DFA limbo), Chad Bettis
White Sox: Ivan Nova, Welington Castillo, Jon Jay, Yolmer Sanchez
Padres: Craig Stammen, Ian Kinsler
Reds: Jose Iglesias, Freddy Galvis, Alex Wood, Kevin Gausman, Jared Hughes
Angels: Justin Bour, Trevor Cahill
Rangers: Hunter Pence, Logan Forsythe, Delino DeShields, Shawn Kelley, David Carpenter
Additional Possibilities: Adeiny Hechavarria (Mets; DFA limbo), Addison Russell (Cubs), Travis Shaw (Brewers), Michael Taylor (Nationals), Michael Wacha (Cardinals)
(It’s possible that the win/loss outcomes over the next two weeks will push some other organizations to consider dropping short-term veterans, but we won’t guess here as to how that’ll shake out. The players on contending teams just listed could be pushed out due to performance/roster considerations, regardless of their teams’ place in the standings.)
Jeff McNeil To Undergo MRI On Hamstring
Mets outfielder/infielder Jeff McNeil departed the team’s loss to the Braves on Tuesday with an apparent left hamstring injury, per Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News. He’ll undergo an MRI on Wednesday, Tim Healey of Newsday tweets.
McNeil already spent time on the injured list earlier in the season with a hamstring strain, which shelved him for 12 days. The 27-year-old has otherwise enjoyed a dream season, having slashed .332/.400/.529 (148 wRC+) with 15 home runs in 442 plate appearances. Along with serving as one of the majors’ premier hitters, McNeil has been a versatile defender for the Mets. He has appeared in 79 games in the corner outfield, 26 at second base and 16 at third.
The presence of McNeil is an obvious reason the Mets have saved their season over the past several weeks. Despite Tuesday’s defeat, the former bottom feeders find themselves 61-58 and a manageable two games out of a wild-card spot. At least on paper, losing McNeil would damage their chances to rally for a playoff berth. He’d also be the second keystone option to hit the IL recently for the Mets, who are without starter Robinson Cano because of a torn hamstring. However, the club does still have Joe Panik – whom it signed last week – to handle second and Todd Frazier to man third. It’s in less capable hands in the corner outfield, where Dominic Smith and Brandon Nimmo are currently on the IL.
The McNeil-less Mets would likely have to give more outfield playing time to the light-hitting Juan Lagares (who did have a 4-for-4 night Tuesday) as a complement to Michael Conforto and J.D. Davis. New York also has Aaron Altherr at the major league level, but he has endured a nightmarish season, with Dilson Herrera, Rajai Davis and Gregor Blanco among veteran possibilities in the minors. Alternatively, promoting infielder Ruben Tejada could be in the cards, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network.
AL Health Notes: Cole, Indians, A’s, Rays, Tigers
The Astros made right-handed ace Gerrit Cole a late scratch from his start against the White Sox on Tuesday because of right hamstring discomfort, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic was among those to report. The severity of the injury isn’t known, but it’s worth keeping an eye on considering Cole’s importance to the Astros and his status as the game’s best pending free agent. As of now, the 28-year-old workhorse is on pace for his third consecutive 200-inning season. He has given Houston 156 2/3 frames of 2.87 ERA/3.11 FIP ball with 12.98 K/9 and 2.24 BB/9 in 2019.
- Indians righty Carlos Carrasco has been battling leukemia, which has kept him out of action since May 30, but he’s champing at the bit to return, Mandy Bell of MLB.com explains. Carrasco, who fielded grounders off the mound at Progressive Field on Tuesday, is hoping to throw to hitters Friday. Manager Terry Francona wasn’t prepared to state whether that’ll happen, saying: “That’s still to be determined. I mean, the idea that he wants to, I think is terrific. But there’s got to be some sign-off from the medical people. But the fact he feels he’s ready to do that is tremendous.” Meanwhile, fellow key righty Corey Kluber was effective over four innings during a rehab start at the Double-A level Tuesday, Bell tweets. Afterward, Kluber called it “the last big step” in his rehab (via SportsTime Ohio). The two-time Cy Young winner has been out since fracturing his right forearm May 1, but the Indians have nonetheless gone 72-47. With a half-game lead in the AL Central, they have the inside track on a fourth straight division title.
- Athletics southpaw Sean Manaea enjoyed an encouraging rehab start with Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday, Ron Kroichick of the San Francisco Chronicle details. Manaea, out since last September after undergoing shoulder surgery, fired 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball and totaled 10 strikeouts. He and fellow rehabbing lefty Jesus Luzardo seem that much closer to giving playoff-contending Oakland a couple much-needed pitching reinforcements. Luzardo, also out all season (because of shoulder and lat troubles), will start for Las Vegas on Thursday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com tweets.
- Rays infielders Brandon Lowe and Joey Wendle are moving toward rehab assignments, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. Lowe went to the IL on July 4 with a right shin contusion, while Wendle has been down since the end of last month with a wrist issue. The 25-year-old Lowe had been a serious candidate for the AL’s top rookie honors prior to his injury, as he slashed .276/.339/.523 with 16 home runs and 2.5 fWAR in 307 plate appearances.
- Tigers lefty Blaine Hardy has undergone a season-ending platelet-rich plasma injection, Chris McCosky of the Detroit News reports. Hardy amassed 44 1/3 innings out of the Tigers’ bullpen this season and recorded a 4.47 ERA/5.72 FIP with 5.89 K/9, 2.64 BB/9 and a 48.5 percent groundball rate.
Minor MLB Transactions: 8/13/19
The latest minor moves from around baseball…
- The Pirates have reinstated right-hander Rookie Davis from the 60-day injured list and optioned him to Triple-A Indianapolis, the team announced. Davis had been out since early June with hand and forearm injuries. The 26-year-old has given up eight earned runs on 12 hits and eight walks (with 10 strikeouts) in 10 2/3 major league innings this season.
- The Athletics have released righty Jake Buchanan, according to Kegan Lowe of Baseball America. The 29-year-old, who joined the Athletics on a minors pact last winter, struggled to a 6.16 ERA with 6.4 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 99 1/3 innings with their Triple-A affiliate this season. The former Astro, Cub and Red last appeared in the majors in 2017.
- More from Lowe, who reports the Mets recently released southpaw P.J. Conlon. The Belfast-born Conlon had been with the Mets since they used a 13th-round pick on him in 2015. Conlon, 25, threw 7 2/3 innings with the Mets in 2018 but spent far more time in Triple-A ball, where he put up a 6.71 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 across 122 frames in the Mets organization.
- The Tigers announced that they’ve re-signed righty Sandy Baez to a minor league contract. The club released the 25-year-old last Friday. He has recorded a 5.59 ERA with 7.8 K/9 against 4.2 BB/9 over 116 innings with the Tigers’ Double-A team.
- The Royals have signed righty Nick Howard to a minors contract, per Roster Roundup. Howard, the 19th overall pick of the Reds in 2014, hasn’t gotten past Double-A ball yet. The 26-year-old owns a 4.22 ERA with 5.9 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9 in 21 1/3 innings at that level.
East Notes: Scherzer, Stanton, Jays, Mets
A look around the majors’ East divisions…
- Nationals ace Max Scherzer came out of a 32-pitch sim game Tuesday feeling “really good,” Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com relays. If all goes well over the next few days, Scherzer could throw a bullpen session Thursday and then either make a rehab start or return to the Nationals’ rotation Sunday. The three-time Cy Young winner has started just twice for the team over the past month and a half – his most recent outing came on July 25 – because of back problems. Should he return this weekend, he’d be on a limited pitch count, according to manager Dave Martinez.
- Injured Yankees outfielder Giancarlo Stanton is “up to 75 or 85 percent,” according to manager Aaron Boone (via Bryan Hoch of MLB.com). It’s unclear how close Stanton is to returning, though. The former NL MVP has been on the shelf since late July with a knee injury, and he only took 38 plate appearances before then. Somehow, though, the Yankees have thrived this season with basically no contributions from Stanton. Just about every outfielder they’ve plugged in has succeeded, including formerly unspectacular-looking pickups Mike Tauchman and Cameron Maybin.
- The Blue Jays recalled first baseman Rowdy Tellez from Triple-A Buffalo on Tuesday. The 24-year-old forced his way back by mauling pitchers at the Triple-A level, where he slashed .366/.450/.688 with seven home runs in 109 plate appearances. Tellez wasn’t nearly that good this year in the majors before a mid-July demotion, as he hit .227/.280/.436 with 14 HRs over 286 PA. However, considering they’re looking toward the future, the rebuilding Blue Jays want to see if Tellez can continue his minor league brilliance in their uniform. His promotion could spell bad news for veteran first baseman Justin Smoak, who’s likely to lose playing time to Tellez, manager Charlie Montoyo said Tuesday (via Scott Mitchell of TSN). That doesn’t seem to bode well for the Toronto future of Smoak, a pending free agent.
- Mets righty Jacob Rhame has undergone ulnar nerve transposition surgery and will miss the rest of the season, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com tweets. The 26-year-old only threw 27 innings between the majors and minors this season, six of which came as a member of the Mets.
Padres Place Carl Edwards Jr. On Injured List
The Padres announced that they’ve placed right-handed reliever Carl Edwards Jr. on the injured list with a strained pitching shoulder. The club recalled lefty Robbie Erlin from Triple-A El Paso to take Edwards’ place.
San Diego just acquired Edwards from the Cubs at last month’s trade deadline. The Cubs deemed the once-outstanding Edwards expendable after a few disappointing months, and things haven’t improved since he changed uniforms. Edwards has given up six earned runs on four hits and four walks (with two strikeouts) in two appearances and 1 2/3 innings as a Padre.
Overall, the 27-year-old Edwards has pitched to an 8.47 ERA (5.75 FIP) with 10.06 K/9, 6.88 BB/9 and a paltry 24.4 percent groundball rate in 17 major league innings this season. A drop in velocity – his fastball’s down to 93.9 mph after clocking in from 94.5 to 95.2 between 2016-18 – hasn’t helped matters. That has helped contribute to a serious dip in swinging-strike rate for Edwards, who generated misses 15.4 percent of the time over the prior three seasons but has seen the number sink to 10.7 this year.
Along with his troubles preventing runs with two teams in 2019, Edwards has dealt with a minor league demotion and now a pair of IL stints. The Cubs put him on ice in mid-June with a left thoracic strain. In all, this has been a surprisingly awful season for a pitcher who came into the year with a lifetime 3.06 ERA/3.12 FIP, 12.28 K/9 against 4.92 BB/9, and a 40.4 percent groundball rate in 159 innings.
Yankees Release Dan Jennings
The Yankees recently released left-handed reliever Dan Jennings, according to Kegan Lowe of Baseball America. Jennings just joined the organization last month on a minor league contract.
The 32-year-old Jennings only threw 1 1/3 innings with the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate in Scranton, but his production was disastrous in that small sample. He yielded five earned runs on five hits, including three homers. Jennings was better with the Nationals earlier this season, though that isn’t saying much. He surrendered eight runs (seven earned) on eight hits and seven walks (nine strikeouts) across 4 2/3 frames in Washington, making him one of many relievers to struggle as members of the Nats this season.
Of course, it hasn’t always been so difficult for Jennings, who had been an eminently effective option with the Marlins, White Sox, Rays and Brewers from 2012-18. During that 343 2/3-inning span, Jennings recorded a stingy 2.96 ERA/3.83 FIP with 7.12 K/9, 3.93 BB/9 and a terrific 55.3 percent groundball rate. He’s only a year removed from posting a useful 64 1/3 frames in Milwaukee, where he managed a 3.22 ERA/4.09 FIP with 6.3 K/9 and 3.22 BB/9, and induced grounders at a 56.1 percent grounder clip. As has typically been the case, lefties had a tough time figuring out Jennings, who limited them to a measly .251 weighted on-base average as a Brewer. For whatever reason, though, Jennings hasn’t come close to replicating his past success this season.
Rockies Designate Chris Iannetta, Select Dom Nunez
5:08pm: The Rockies have designated Iannetta and selected Nunez, per a team announcement.
8:07am: The Rockies are preparing to make a change behind the dish, according to MLB.com’s Thomas Harding. Veteran catcher Chris Iannetta will be removed from the MLB roster — by what immediate mechanism isn’t yet clear — in favor of youngster Dom Nunez, whose contract will be selected.
The 36-year-old Iannetta has struggled with the bat since returning to the Rockies after six seasons away. He’s slashing .222/.311/.417 in 164 plate appearances this year, which translates to a meager 69 wRC+, and his strikeout rate has shot up to a career-worst 32.9%. Iannetta is also grading poorly in the pitch-framing department, an area where he has at times excelled.
It seems rather unlikely that a contender will see fit to claim Iannetta, who is owed the remainder of his $4MM salary along with a $750K buyout on a 2020 club option. (That option includes a vesting provision that is well out of reach and therefore not a factor.) That said, the veteran backstop is sure to draw interest from clubs in need of depth. It’s conceivable he could sign right onto a big-league roster if there’s a club that prefers him to its existing reserve catcher. Otherwise, he’ll likely be looking at minor-league deals.
Iannetta had already yielded the bulk of the action behind the dish to Tony Wolters, who’ll presumably continue to function as a regular. Now, the reserve job will go to Nunez, a former sixth-rounder. Nunez has found another offensive gear this season at Triple-A. Through 257 plate appearances, the 24-year-old is slashing .244/.362/.559 with a career-high 17 home runs. Even in the offensively charged PCL, that’s good for a 114 wRC+.
Rangers Select David Carpenter, Place Jesse Chavez On IL
The Rangers have selected right-hander David Carpenter from Triple-A Nashville and placed fellow righty Jesse Chavez on the 10-day injured list with a posterior impingement in his right elbow, the team announced. Carpenter’s addition puts the Rangers’ 40-man roster at capacity.
This is the second time this season the Rangers have selected Carpenter, whom they signed to a minor league contract over the winter. The Rangers brought Carpenter up at the end of May, only to designate him for assignment and then outright him within the next 10 days. The well-traveled 34-year-old has thrown just 2/3 of an inning in Texas this season. He has, however, registered a 1.82 ERA/3.95 FIP with 9.87 K/9, 3.12 BB/9 and a 46.0 percent groundball rate in 34 2/3 frames at the Triple-A level in 2019.
There’s no word on the severity of Chavez’s injury, but it can’t be reassuring to the Rangers to see a 35-year-old go down with an elbow problem. Chavez, whom the Rangers signed last offseason to a two-year, $8MM deal, has divided the year between their bullpen and rotation. Through 48 appearances (nine starts) and 78 innings, Chavez has pitched to a 4.85 ERA/4.41 FIP with 8.31 K/9, 2.54 BB/9 and a 41.5 percent grounder rate.