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Rays Acquire Jeremy Hazelbaker From Diamondbacks

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The Rays have acquired outfielder Jeremy Hazelbaker from the Diamondbacks in exchange for cash, the teams announced. To clear a spot on the 40-man roster, Tampa Bay has transferred right-hander Jose De Leon to the 60-day disabled list.

Hazelbaker, whom the D-backs designated for assignment late last week, will head to Triple-A Durham. De Leon underwent Tommy John surgery during Spring Training, so he’ll be out for the entirety of the 2018 season.

The 30-year-old Hazelbaker will give the Rays some depth across the board in the outfield, as he’s plenty experienced in center and in both outfield corners. The left-handed-hitting Hazelbaker was the talk of MLB two years ago when he broke camp with the Cardinals and posted an absurd .317/.357/.683 slash in the month of April. However, he cooled off considerably over the remainder of the season and was ultimately waived by St. Louis and claimed by Arizona.

Last year with the D-backs, Hazelbaker logged 61 plate appearances and again posted some eye-popping numbers, hitting .346/.443/.577 with two doubles, two homers and two triples. In all, Hazelbaker is a .258/.327/.500 hitter in in 285 MLB plate appearances, and he owns a .277/.336/.452 slash in parts of seven Triple-A seasons.

Rangers Grant Trevor Plouffe His Release

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Veteran infielder Trevor Plouffe, who’d been with the Rangers’ Triple-A affiliate, asked for and was granted his release by the organization, the team told reporters (Twitter link via MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan).

Plouffe, 31, opened the Triple-A season by going 3-for-11 with a homer, a double and six walks in 17 plate appearances — good for a .273/.529/.636 slash in that tiny four-game sample. The longtime Twins third baseman struggled in Spring Training with the Rangers and agreed to head to their Triple-A affiliate in Round Rock to open the season, though clearly his stay there will be short-lived.

A former first-round pick of the Twins (20th overall, 2004), Plouffe was a bit of a late bloomer but eventually rose to the Majors and claimed Minnesota’s starting third base job as a 26-year-old back in 2012. From 2012-16, Plouffe hit .250/.311/.423 and averaged 17 homers and 124 games played per season with the Twins. While his glovework at the hot corner was initially questionable, he eventually posted solid UZR and DRS marks with the Twins in 2014-15. His 2016 season — Plouffe’s last as a Twin — was marred by a series of intercostal and oblique injuries that limited him to 84 games.

Plouffe split the 2017 season between the A’s and Rays, struggling at each stop and hitting just .198/.272/.318 in a combined 313 plate appearances. Given that showing and his injury-plagued 2016 season, it seems likely that Plouffe will need to find another minor league opportunity elsewhere — perhaps one with a clearer path to the Majors than he had in Texas, where Adrian Beltre and Joey Gallo are locked in at the infield corners. At his best, Plouffe has been a thorn in the side of left-handed pitching (.263/.346/.469 during that ’12-’16 stretch) who is capable of handing either corner infield slot.

Mat Latos Signs With CanAm League’s New Jersey Jackals

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Veteran right-hander Mat Latos has signed a deal with the New Jersey Jackals of the independent Canadian-American Association, the Jackals announced today.

Latos, 30, tossed just 15 innings in the Majors last season, all with the Blue Jays, and notched a 3.81 ERA in an additional 28 innings with Toronto’s Triple-A affiliate in Buffalo. The former Padres/Reds hurler was a rising star early in his career, pitching to a 3.27 ERA in 799 innings between San Diego and Cincinnati from 2010-13 before injuries began to derail him.

Latos underwent knee surgery in February 2014, and while he returned that summer to toss 102 1/3 innings of 3.25 ERA ball for the Reds, he experienced a rapid decline in the subsequent seasons. An offseason trade to the Marlins was followed by a half season of pedestrian work with the Marlins and a pair of uninspiring stints with both L.A. clubs following the 2015 non-waiver deadline. Latos has had brief stints with the White Sox, Nationals and Jays since that time, but his overall body of work dating back to 2015 is unsightly: a 5.05 ERA, 6.8 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 201 1/3 innings at the big league level.

Alex Gordon Placed On DL With Labral Tear In Left Hip

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The Royals announced that they’ve placed left fielder Alex Gordon on the 10-day disabled list with a labral tear in his left hip. Recently claimed outfielder Abraham Almonte has been recalled from Triple-A Omaha to take his place. Kansas City didn’t provide an immediate timeline within its announcement, though manager Ned Yost suggests that the injury may not be as bad as it sounds (Twitter link via Rustin Dodd of The Athletic). Yost said that Gordon will be re-evaluated in five days and could return as soon as two weeks down the road in a best-case scenario.

Gordon, 34, inked a franchise record four-year, $72MM contract with the Royals in the 2015-16 offseason. At the time, the left fielder had made three consecutive All-Star teams and been one of the key factors in the Royals’ return to prominence in the American League Central. From 2011-15, Gordon slashed .281/.359/.450 (121 OPS+) and took home four Gold Glove Awards. Baseball-Reference pegged his efforts at 27.2 wins above replacement in that five-year peak, while Fangraphs credited him with 24 WAR.

However, Gordon’s production immediately went south in the first season of a four-year contract that has transformed from a cause for celebration among Royals fans to an albatross deal for the franchise. Since Opening Day 2016, Gordon has posted a woeful .213/.300/.343 slash in 1071 plate appearances, missing time along the way with a fractured right wrist (in May 2016). He’s still owed $20MM in 2018 and 2019, plus a $4MM buyout of a mutual option for the 2020 season.

Orioles Designate Nestor Cortes

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The Orioles have designated lefty Nestor Cortes for assignment, per a club announcement. The team promoted righty Yefry Ramirez to take his place on the active roster.

Cortes was taken from the Yankees in the 2017 Rule 5 draft. If he clears waivers, he’ll be offered back to the New York organization for a $50K sum, which the Yankees will all but assuredly pay. Regardless, the O’s have opened an additional 40-man spot for the time being.

The 23-year-old Cortes was one of two Rule 5 picks the O’s made back in December and one of three players with Rule 5 restrictions to crack the Opening Day roster. Baltimore also selected Pedro Araujo out of the Cubs organization, and outfielder Anthony Santander still comes with Rule 5 status for the first 44 days of the 2018 season after spending the bulk of the 2017 season on the disabled list.

Cortes appeared in four games for the Orioles and was tagged for four runs on 10 hits and four walks with three strikeouts through 4 2/3 innings of relief. Last year with the Yankees, he logged an impressive 2.06 ERA in 104 total innings between Class-A Advanced, Double-A and Triple-A, while averaging a strikeout per inning and just 2.8 walks per nine frames.

Yankees Designate Jace Peterson, Select Shane Robinson

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The Yankees have designated utilityman Jace Peterson for assignment, per a club announcement. His roster spot will go to outfielder Shane Robinson, whose contract was selected, as Joel Sherman of the New York Post first reported on Twitter.

Peterson, 27, helped fill out the Yankees roster as injuries interfered with the club’s plans. But the former Braves infielder never seemed likely to hang on all season long. The Yankees seem pleased to utilize Ronald Torreyes as a reserve in the infield and obviously have other ideas for the outfield mix.

By adding Robinson, the Yanks will add another center field-capable player to the roster while awaiting the returns of Aaron Hicks and Jacoby Ellsbury. While Robinson has never hit much and surely won’t start now that he’s 33 years of age, he has plenty of experience coming off the bench and lining up at any of the three outfield positions.

Mets Promote Corey Oswalt, Option Brandon Nimmo

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The Mets announced a move today to add a fresh arm to their roster. The organization called up righty Corey Oswalt and cleared an opening with the somewhat surprising decision to option outfielder Brandon Nimmo.

Oswalt earned his way onto the 40-man roster with a good effort in 2017. The 2012 seventh-rounder worked to a 2.28 ERA in 134 1/3 innings at the Double-A level, recording 8.0 K/9 against 2.7 BB/9.

Whatever his future may hold as a starter, Oswalt will begin his MLB career by providing some depth in the bullpen. With Zach Wheeler set to be activated soon, though, Oswalt’s stay may not last long.

What’s most interesting about this move, perhaps, is the fact that Nimmo is the player who’ll end up being sent down. The 25-year-old impressed in 2017, in camp, and in the first several games of the current season. But he was pushed out of a clear role with the return of Michael Conforto.

With Conforto and Jay Bruce also representing lefty outfield bats, Yoenis Cespedes taking everyday time in left, and Juan Lagares functioning as a righty-hitting fourth outielder there just wasn’t a strong need for Nimmo. He’ll get regular action at Triple-A while awaiting another opportunity to stake a claim to a more permanent job at the game’s highest level.

Reds Designate Yovani Gallardo

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The Reds announced today that they have designated veteran righty Yovani Gallardo for assignment. His roster spot will go to fellow right-hander Tanner Rainey, whose contract was selected.

Gallardo, 32, spent camp with the division-rival Brewers but was cut loose before the start of the season. He joined the Cincinnati organization shortly thereafter on a deal that reported came with a $750K salary. It’s not clear, though, whether some or all of that sum is guaranteed.

Though it’s still quite early, Gallardo is off to a brutal start. He has allowed eight earned runs on eight hits and four walks while logging 2 1/3 innings. The veteran has had trouble finding the zone and been hammered when he has. That follows some rather distinct struggles over the past two campaigns, as Gallardo carries a 5.57 ERA in his past 248 2/3 innings.

Still, it stands to reason that another team will come calling on Gallardo, though he’ll surely have to spend some time in the minors before another MLB chance opens. From 2009 through 2015, after all, he averaged 191 innings of 3.69 ERA annually. While it’s no longer reasonable to anticipate anything close to that kind of productivity, Gallardo could end up being seen as a handy depth option to have around.

As for Rainey, the 2015 second-rounder could make for an interesting addition to the MLB relief unit. He has a big arm and took off after moving to a full-time relief role in 2017. Splitting the season between the High-A and Double-A levels, Rainey compiled a 3.19 ERA with 15.1 K/9 and 4.8 BB/9.

Cubs Select Contract Of Efren Navarro

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The Cubs have selected the contract of outfielder/first baseman Efren Navarro, per a club announcement. He’ll take the roster spot just vacated by Anthony Rizzo, who’s headed for what the team hopes to be a brief DL stint.

Navarro, who’ll soon turn 32, has seen action in five MLB campaigns. But his next trip to the plate will only be his 350th at the game’s highest level. Navarro carries a career .243/.306/.334 batting line.

Unsurprisingly, the results have been better in the upper minors. Navarro has maintained a .303/.370/.427 slash through nearly 3,500 plate appearances over eight seasons at Triple-A.

Clearly, Navarro is going to need some good fortune — and a good showing — to carve out a sustainable role at the major-league level with the Cubs. Barring any intervening changes in the health situations of other players, he’ll likely end up being bumped from the roster upon Rizzo’s return to action.

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