Minor MLB Transactions: 6/2/18
The latest minor moves from around baseball:
- The Mariners have signed left-handed reliever Daniel Schlereth to a minor league deal, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times tweets. Schlereth spent the previous few weeks with the independent Long Island Ducks, who signed him May 10. Now 32, Schlereth was once a promising prospect, evidenced in part by the fact that the Diamondbacks chose him 26th overall in the 2008 draft. He made his Arizona debut a year later, though the club then traded him (and Max Scherzer) to Detroit in the ensuing offseason as part of a blockbuster deal that also included the Yankees. Schlereth stayed with the Tigers through 2012, the last time he saw major league action. In all, he has posted a 4.35 ERA with 8.81 K/9 and 5.9 BB/9 across 93 big league innings.
NL Injury Notes: Soroka, Hoskins, Bailey, Cards
A few injury updates from the National League:
- Right-hander Mike Soroka could return to the Braves’ rotation as early as June 16, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports. Soroka, who has been on the disabled list since May 14 with shoulder inflammation, made a successful rehab start Friday at the Single-A level and will throw two more – the first with Triple-A Gwinnett on Wednesday. The 20-year-old rookie began his major league career in impressive fashion prior to the injury, tossing 14 2/3 innings of 3.68 ERA ball with 9.2 K/9 and 2.45 BB/9 over three starts.
- Despite suffering a fractured jaw this past Monday, Phillies left fielder Rhys Hoskins told reporters (including Matt Breen of Philly.com) that it’s possible he’ll be able to return as early as June 9. Whether that happens will depend on the news Hoskins receives during his follow-up appointment with the Phillies’ oral surgeon next week, per Breen.
- The Reds have placed righty Homer Bailey on the DL, retroactive to May 30, with right knee inflammation, Jay Paris of MLB.com relays. Interim manager Jim Riggleman revealed that Bailey has been dealing with a knee issue “for about a month,” though the club doesn’t regard it as a serious injury. In any case, the DL placement continues a tough week for Bailey, whom the Reds demoted to a relief role on Wednesday. To this point, all 204 of Bailey’s MLB appearances have come as a starter. Unsurprisingly, then, Bailey’s “not thrilled” about shifting to the bullpen, according to Paris.
- Cardinals reliever Dominic Leone went on the DL on May 5 with a nerve issue in his right biceps. Nearly a month later, Leone has shown some improvement, but there’s still no timetable for his return, Joe Trezza of MLB.com writes. Leone’s injury is an unusual one, as Trezza details, and the righty noted that “I still have yet to receive a true diagnosis as to why it happened, and it might never come. Any other injury, you have a timetable.” That’s certainly a letdown for both Leone and St. Louis, which acquired him from Toronto as part of a trade for outfielder Randal Grichuk in the offseason. Leone was coming off an outstanding 2017 at the time, though he has only been able to chip in 13 innings of 4.15 ERA ball this year.
AL News & Rumors: Shields, Herrera, Red Sox, O’s, Rangers
White Sox right-hander James Shields is drawing interest from playoff contenders as the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline creeps closer, Bruce Levine of 670 The Score reports. The 36-year-old turned in his fourth straight quality start Saturday and has pitched to a 4.48 ERA/4.28 FIP with 6.01 K/9, 3.66 BB/9 and a 38.1 percent groundball rate in 76 1/3 innings this season. Shields is on a $21MM salary – though his previous team, San Diego, is paying $11MM of that – and has a $16MM club option for 2019. His employer is sure to decline that in favor of a $2MM buyout, as Levine notes.
More from around the American League…
- Boston’s among the teams keeping an eye on Royals closer Kelvin Herrera, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. If acquired, the 28-year-old would return to a setup role with the Red Sox, thanks to the presence of closer Craig Kimbrel, and would further bolster a late-game mix that also includes Joe Kelly and Matt Barnes. Herrera, who’s in his last year of team control and making $7.94MM, has allowed just two earned runs and hasn’t issued a walk in 22 2/3 innings this season.
- Left-hander Zach Britton could return to the Orioles’ bullpen by June 15, manager Buck Showalter told Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com and other reporters Saturday. For now, Britton – who’s working back from the ruptured Achilles he suffered in December – will continue with his Triple-A rehab assignment. When he does get back to the majors, it seems Britton will be auditioning for other teams leading up to the deadline. Not only are the Orioles already well out of contention, but Britton’s not under contract past this season.
- The Rangers activated outfielder Carlos Tocci from the DL and optioned infielder Hanser Alberto to Triple-A on Saturday. Given that Tocci was a Rule 5 pick last winter, Texas had to decide whether to add him to its 25-man roster upon his activation or designate him for assignment. The 22-year-old will stick with the Rangers for the time being, even though his tenure with the team began poorly before he went to the DL on April 22 with a hip issue. The rookie has hit .080/.148/.080 over a small sample size of 28 PAs.
Giants Outright Gregor Blanco
The Giants have outrighted outfielder Gregor Blanco to Triple-A Sacramento, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area was among those to report. Blanco accepted the assignment and will report to Sacramento on Tuesday. His roster spot in San Francisco will go to fellow veteran outfielder Hunter Pence, whom the team activated from the disabled list.
The 34-year-old Blanco could have elected free agency after clearing waivers, but he’ll remain in the Giants organization as depth. Blanco’s in his second stint with the Giants, with whom he was a successful role player at times from 2012-16 – a stretch in which they won two championships.
After spending last season with the NL West rival Diamondbacks, Blanco returned to the Giants over the winter on a minor league pact. Blanco did enough in camp to win a season-opening spot in San Francisco, but he ended up struggling to a .242/.289/.350 line in 129 plate appearances before the club removed him from its 40-man roster.
Orioles Considering Hanley Ramirez
The Orioles have explored the possibility of signing free-agent first baseman Hanley Ramirez, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. General manager Dan Duquette confirmed Rosenthal’s report, telling Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that a Ramirez signing is “under consideration” (Twitter links).
There’s already familiarity between Duquette and Ramirez, as Rosenthal points out that the executive has signed the player in the past. When the Dominican-born Ramirez joined the Red Sox as an international free agent in 2000, Duquette was their GM. The 34-year-old Ramirez has since enjoyed an accomplished career with a few teams, though he’s now coming off a disappointing second stint with the Boston organization.
The Red Sox reunited with Ramirez on a four-year, $88MM contract prior to the 2015 season, but he didn’t see the pact through. After Ramirez slashed a so-so .260/.326/.450 in 1,798 plate appearances in his return to the Red Sox, they designated him for assignment last month and ate the remaining $15MM-plus on his deal when they officially released him Friday.
Ramirez is now free to sign anywhere, and while he’d seemingly make more sense on a contender than a bottom feeder, the O’s are the first known team with interest in him. Baltimore entered Saturday with the majors’ worst record (17-40), undoubtedly setting it up to sell in advance of the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. But signing Ramirez, whom the Orioles would only have to pay the prorated league minimum, could give them another deadline trade chip if he rebounds in their uniform.
Ramirez has hit .254/.313/.395 with six homers in 195 PAs this year, and even though those aren’t impressive numbers, they easily eclipse the horrid production Orioles first baseman Chris Davis has posted in 2018. Davis probably isn’t going anywhere, though, given that the Orioles still owe the once-elite slugger annual salaries of $23MM through the 2022 campaign. Elsewhere, the Orioles have three designated hitter types on their roster in the expensive Mark Trumbo, Pedro Alvarez and Danny Valencia, so it’s not exactly clear how much playing time Ramirez would accrue with them.
Angels Notes: Calhoun, Cozart, Shoemaker
A few notes from Anaheim…
- The Angels have placed right fielder Kole Calhoun on the 10-day disabled list (retroactive to Friday) with a right oblique strain, per a team announcement. In corresponding moves, the club recalled infielder Kaleb Cowart and outfielder Michael Hermosillo and optioned right-hander Jaime Barria to Triple-A. The loss of Calhoun may be a positive development for the Angels’ offense, as the normally respectable hitter has opened his age-30 campaign with a hideous .145/.195/.179 line in 185 plate appearances. As a result, Calhoun easily ranks last among qualified hitters in wRC+ (3, compared to a career 104 mark). To Calhoun’s credit, he hasn’t allowed his offensive woes to carry into the field. He ranks first among outfielders in Ultimate Zone Rating (6.2) and 11th in Defensive Runs Saved (seven).
- Third baseman Zack Cozart is dealing with a left forearm strain, per Avery Yang of MLB.com. Cozart underwent an MRI on Friday, though the results aren’t yet known. While Cozart doesn’t seem overly concerned about the injury, it has kept him off the field since May 29, and he’s not in the Angels’ lineup Saturday. Cozart, whom the Angels added on a three-year, $38MM contract in free agency, has begun his Halos tenure with a .232/.310/.395 line and five home runs in 216 trips to the plate.
- The forearm surgery righty Matt Shoemaker underwent earlier this week was to repair a split tendon, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times tweets. Shoemaker expects to resume throwing in six weeks, DiGiovanna adds, so it could be August before he factors in again in the majors – if he returns at all this season.
Giants Place Brandon Belt On DL
The Giants have placed first baseman Brandon Belt on the 10-day disabled list and activated infielder/outfielder Alen Hanson from the DL, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area was among those to report. Belt could miss around three weeks, according to manager Bruce Bochy (via Pavlovic).
Belt exited the Giants’ game Friday with appendicitis symptoms and subsequently underwent an appendectomy, so his DL placement doesn’t come as a surprise. Nevertheless, it’s a disappointing development for a San Francisco club that has gotten off to a 27-30 start. The Giants’ sub-.500 ways certainly aren’t the fault of Belt, who’s in the midst of a career season. The 30-year-old has slashed a tremendous .307/.403/.547 with 11 home runs in 226 plate appearances. His output has been 60 percent better than league average, according to FanGraphs’ wRC+ metric.
Hanson, 25, had been enjoying a terrific season before he went on the DL on May 14 with a hamstring strain. The offseason minor league signing opened 2018 with a .298/.346/.638 line and four home runs over just 52 PAs prior to landing on the shelf. Hanson saw action at second base and left field along the way, though he has also lined up at third base, shortstop and the other two outfield positions during his short major league career.
Poll: Relievers And The Arbitration Process
A few days back, T.J. Zuppe of The Athletic sat down with former ALCS MVP and current MLBPA player rep Andrew Miller for a chat about what he describes as the “science” aspect in the game of baseball across the past couple of years. Specifically, the two talked about the way pitcher usage is slowly morphing towards a landscape in which each individual matchup, and the leverage situation in each of them, has a much greater impact on when and how pitchers are used.
Perhaps the most notable aspect of their conversation is the subject of the arbitration process as it relates to relief pitchers. Miller describes the arbitration process as “a little bit behind”, which makes a lot of sense considering the fact that reliever raises take the saves stat into significant consideration. With reliever usage shifting the way it has been (the usage of Miller, Josh Hader and Sergio Romo are all good examples), the correlation between the best relievers and the relievers earning the most saves will continue to decrease.
One other item that Miller brought up is that perhaps stats like WPA will end up coming more into play as the arbitration process adapts (painfully slowly) to the way players are valued in free agency. Even that, however, could be problematic considering that Tampa Bay’s “openers” won’t work in particularly high leverage situations to begin the game (as Miller himself notes).
If the way relievers are rewarded during arbitration doesn’t already seem silly to you, consider the fact that, if both entered arbitration today, Arodys Vizcaino would be likely to earn a far larger raise than Josh Hader due to his accumulation of saves, or in essence, the fact that he’s been used in the ninth inning more frequently during his career. Hader, of course, is considered to be a far better relief pitcher based on nearly every statistical category typically used to evaluate reliever value.
One of the issues this creates, says Miller, is an incentive for pre-arb or arb-eligible players (and their agents) to push for use in certain innings, rather than accept the assignments they’re given during the game. Speaking from a hypothetical player’s point of view, Miller says, “If the only difference is the situation I’m pitching in, that’s worth $4 million, I want that $4 million. I’m going to go in there (and demand it).”
He’s right, and the fact that the arbitration system incentivizes a structure that runs somewhat contrary to the most efficient use of a bullpen seems problematic. So we want to hear your thoughts. What would you like to see happen to the arbitration process as it relates to relievers? (Poll link for app users)
What Should Happen To The Arbitration Process?
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It should be completely overhauled; it's outdated and a prominent issue 54% (877)
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It should be altered slightly during the next CBA to fix these issues 30% (482)
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It should stay the same; it will catch up slowly as it always does 17% (273)
Total votes: 1,632
Dodgers Claim P.J. Conlon
The Dodgers have claimed left-hander P.J. Conlon off waivers from the Mets; the club announced the move. Conlon will be assigned to Triple-A Oklahoma City, and left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu has been transferred to the 60-day DL in order to make room on the 40-man roster.
Conlon hasn’t exactly impressed in his first taste of big league action; he’s allowed seven earned runs in his first two big league starts spanning just 5 2/3 innings. The Mets apparently didn’t need to see much more, as they designated him for assignment on Thursday in order to clear room to add a pair of right-handers to the roster. Juan Lagares was also transferred to the 60-day disabled list at that time.
Even in Triple-A last season, Conlon pitched to a whopping 6.58 ERA in 39 2/3 innings spanning eight starts. A mid-round pick of the Mets back in 2015, Conlon rocketed up the minor league ladder to make his MLB debut while spending no more than one year at each level of the minors. It’s almost curious that the Mets gave up on Conlon without ever giving him more than ten starts above the Double-A level, particularly given his serviceable results at Double-A in 2017.
The Dodgers have some rotation issues of their own, and Conlon could provide some decent minor-league depth. After all, they just learned they’ll be without fellow lefty Clayton Kershaw for another month (though obviously Conlon wouldn’t be much of a consolation prize in that regard).
Injury Notes: Belt, Indians, Molina, C. Martinez, DeJong
During the third inning of last night’s game, Giants first baseman Brandon Belt was forced to make an early exit due to appendicitis symptoms (h/t Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports). He was rushed to the hospital to be evaluated, and this morning posted a picture of himself on Twitter, still there. Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group reports that Belt had an appendectomy late last night and is expected to leave the hospital this afternoon. It’s worth noting that players have been able to return from such procedures in as little as two weeks, but that’s surely not much consolation for a San Francisco ballclub that’s seen a small army of players spend time on the DL already this season, including Madison Bumgarner, Johnny Cueto, Jeff Samardzija, Alen Hanson, Mac Williamson, Mark Melancon, Joe Panik and Hunter Pence. Belt’s absence will be one of the largest blows yet, considering his 160 wRC+ and .402 wOBA are practically carrying the team’s offense of late. We’ll continue to monitor this situation and wait for updates as to Belt’s status.
Other injury news from around baseball…
- The Indians have myriad outfielders close to returning from the DL, or, as MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian puts it, “Decision Day is Tuesday and there are only so many seats to be had in this game of musical chairs.” Only two short weeks ago, it would have seemed as though Greg Allen was ticketed for Triple-A upon Bradley Zimmer‘s return from the DL, but Allen’s fantastic play of late and defensive value may force the Tribe to make some difficult decisions when Lonnie Chisenhall and Brandon Guyer are activated. Michael Brantley is, of course, a lock to keep his spot, while Zimmer and Chisenhall seem likely to remain on the active roster as well. Rajai Davis, Melky Cabrera and Guyer have combined to post -1.1 fWAR on the season, and one has to wonder how Davis in particular will survive the roster crunch with Allen playing so well.
- Elsewhere on MLB.com, Joe Trezza reports that the Cardinals plan to have catcher Yadier Molina and right-hander Carlos Martinez back on Tuesday. Molina’s reportedly scheduled for a two-game rehab assignment, while Martinez already made one four-inning rehab start after missing three weeks with a a lat strain. On the other hand, Trezza tweets, shortstop Paul DeJong is a bit further away from a return. He’s been cleared to perform everyday activities with the hand that was broken in a hit-by-pitch incident on May 18th. However, he won’t start exercising the hand until next week, and won’t perform any baseball activities with it for about two weeks.