Mets To Sign Cody Asche
The Mets have struck a minor-league deal with infielder/outfielder Cody Asche, per MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo (via Twitter). He’ll head to Triple-A Las Vegas.
Asche, who spent camp with the Royals, landed with the Yankees via trade at the start of April. But he was released recently by the Yanks after a brutal start to the Triple-A season. Asche put up a .169/.258/.237 slash with 21 strikeouts in 66 trips to the plate with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
A veteran of five MLB campaigns, the former Phillies third baseman and outfielder appeared only briefly in the majors last year with the White Sox. He carries a lifetime .234/.293/.376 bating line in 1,349 trips tot he plate in the majors.
MLBTR Chat Transcript: Harvey, Phils, Cubs, More
Click here to read a transcript of today’s chat with host Jeff Todd.
Braves Claim Phil Gosselin From Reds
The Braves announced this afternoon that they’ve claimed infielder Phil Gosselin off waivers from the Reds and assigned him to Triple-A Gwinnett. Atlanta had open space on its 40-man roster, so there’s no corresponding move necessary with Gosselin’s claim.
This will mark Gosselin’s second stint with the Atlanta organization, as the Braves were the club to initially select him out of the University of Virginia in the fifth round of the 2010 draft. Gosselin went on to make his Major League debut for the Braves three years later, and in parts of three seasons with Atlanta, he slashed .282/.321/.345 through 185 trips to the plate.
Since being traded to the Braves in the deal that saw Atlanta effectively purchase pitching prospect Touki Toussaint from the D-backs by absorbing the remainder of Bronson Arroyo‘s contract, Gosselin has spent time in Arizona, Pittsburgh, Texas and Cincinnati. All told, he’s a lifetime .263/.314/.361 hitter that’ll provide the Braves with some depth at second base, shortstop and third base while playing at the Triple-A level.
Ichiro Suzuki Moves To Front Office Role, Will Not Continue Playing In 2018
The Mariners announced today that future Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki has is moving to a front office role where he’ll serve as a special assistant to the chairman, effective immediately. While the Mariners’ release does not formally declare that Ichiro is retiring, the new role precludes him from returning to the active roster in 2018, per the team. The Mariners have selected the contract of right-handed reliever Erik Goeddel from Triple-A Tacoma to take Ichiro’s spot on the 40-man and 25-man rosters.
“We want to make sure we capture all of the value that Ichiro brings to this team off the field,” Marines general manager Jerry Dipoto said in a press release announcing the news. “This new role is a way to accomplish that. While it will evolve over time, the key is that Ichiro’s presence in our clubhouse and with our players and staff improves our opportunity to win games. That is our number-one priority and Ichiro’s number-one priority.”
The plan for the current season appears to be that Ichiro will remain with the MLB club, but will not be on the roster. As MLB.com’s Greg Johns explains things (in a tweet), Ichiro will “continue doing everything he’s doing now (taking BP, mentoring, working with teammates, advising, etc.),” but won’t be utilized in a playing capacity. But that’s not to say the arrangement will continue in that precise form past the current season.
Dipoto goes on to add that the Mariners hope to retain Ichiro in some capacity into the 2019 season and beyond, noting that the remainder of the current season will “inform the team and Ichiro on his best fit” with the organization moving forward. However, Ichiro’s agent, John Boggs, tells Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic that his client is not yet retiring as a player (Twitter link).
“He is not retiring,” says Boggs. “He’s taking on a different role for 2018, and 2019 has yet to evolve.” Asked by Rosenthal if Ichiro could potentially return to make an appearance next year, when the Mariners and A’s will kick off the 2019 season in Tokyo, Boggs replied: “There is always that possibility. … The future has yet to be determined.”
Though Ichiro clearly remains open to continuing his playing career, it nonetheless seems possible that this could mark the end of the road for one of the game’s most beloved figures. The 44-year-old debuted with the Mariners back in 2001 and promptly won both Rookie of the Year and MVP honors, kickstarting what will unequivocally go down as one of the greatest careers of this generation or any other. In parts of 18 Major League seasons, Ichiro batted .311/.355/.402 with a whopping 3,089 hits, including 362 doubles, 96 triples and 117 home runs. He went 509-for-626 in career stolen-base attempts (81.3 percent success), scored 1420 runs and 780 RBIs despite roughly 80 percent of his MLB plate appearances coming out of the leadoff spot.
That, of course, only covers Ichiro’s career in North America. Prior to coming to the United States, Ichiro had already achieved legendary status in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, where he debuted as an 18-year-old and went on to spend nine seasons starring for the Orix Blue Wave. Ichiro batted .353/.421/.522 in 4098 NPB plate appearances, tallying 1278 hits in establishing himself as one of the most gifted players on the planet and a generational talent that is nearly peerless.
Ichiro’s accolades are virtually limitless. Before even coming to Major League Baseball, he’d racked up seven NPB All-Star appearances, three Pacific League MVP Awards, seven Pacific League batting titles and seven Gold Glove Awards. His achievements in MLB closely mirror that mountain of hardware, as in addition to Rookie of the Year and MVP honors in 2001, Ichiro made 10 MLB All-Star Games, won 10 Gold Gloves, collected three Silver Slugger Awards and won a pair of American League batting titles as well.
Ultimately, while the 2018 season may not have been as productive as either team or player would’ve hoped, it’s still all too fitting that Ichiro received an opportunity to once again don a Mariners jersey and to receive a hero’s welcome upon being introduced at Safeco Field on Opening Day. And whether Ichiro plays another game in MLB or NPB again — he did have interest from multiple Japanese clubs this offseason — he’s already ensured that Hall of Fame enshrinement awaits him on two different continents.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Hyun-Jin Ryu Out Until Second Half; Walker Buehler Joining Dodgers’ Rotation
12:37pm: The diagnosis is brutal for the Dodgers, as Roberts revealed to reporters that Ryu won’t return before the All-Star break (Twitter links via Pedro Moura of The Athletic). The injury sounds rather gruesome. Roberts explained that a muscle in Ryu’s groin tore completely off the bone.
Ryu will be replaced in the rotation by top prospect Walker Buehler (Twitter link via Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times). J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group adds that Buehler is on an innings limit, however, so he although he will nominally be the team’s fifth starter, he may not technically start every fifth day.
12:12pm: The Dodgers announced that they’ve placed left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu on the 10-day disabled list with a left groin strain and optioned infielder Breyvic Valera to Triple-A on Thursday. In a pair of corresponding moves, utilityman Tim Locastro and right-hander Yimi Garcia have been recalled from Triple-A.
The press release didn’t include any sort of timetable for Ryu’s return, though manager Dave Roberts said after last night’s game that the strain was a “pretty good” one and called the injury a “big loss” for the team, which doesn’t exactly exude optimism regarding a minimal DL stay for Ryu. Roberts is hardly exaggerating when he calls any absence for Ryu significant, as the 31-year-old has dominated opposing lineups in 2018, working to a 2.12 ERA with 10.9 K/9, 3.0 BB/9, 0.9 HR/9 and 56.7 percent ground-ball rate in 29 2/3 innings.
Garcia, 27, will give the Dodgers the potential for a quality boost to the relief corps in what will be his first MLB action since undergoing Tommy John surgery back in 2016. Garcia possesses a 3.12 ERA with 9.7 K/9, 1.4 BB/9, 1.2 HR/9 and a 30.6 percent grounder rate in 75 innings at the Major League level and looked to be an emerging key cog in the L.A. bullpen before incurring his torn ligament. So far in Triple-A, he’s allowed three runs in 7 2/3 innings of work and picked up seven strikeouts without issuing a walk.
Locastro, 25, has experience at both middle-infield slots and in the outfield corners. He has just one MLB plate appearance under his belt but was off to a fast start in Triple-A, hitting .342/.448/.507 there. Valera, 26, has similarly impressive Triple-A numbers this season and was hitless in four MLB plate appearances. Locastro, though, has more recent experience at shortstop, so it seems he’s viewed as the better option to help provide depth in Corey Seager‘s absence for the time being.
D-backs To Select Kris Medlen’s Contract
The Diamondbacks announced Thursday that right-hander Kris Medlen will start for the club tomorrow against the Astros. Arizona stopped short of formally announcing that Medlen’s contract has been selected, though they’ll need to make that move after today’s game and, with it, also make a corresponding 40-man roster move. That could be accomplished simply by transferring Taijuan Walker from the 10-day DL to the 60-day DL in the wake of Walker’s season-ending Tommy John surgery.
[Related: Arizona Diamondbacks depth chart]
In addition to Walker’s season-ending injury, Arizona recently lost southpaw Robbie Ray to the disabled list for the foreseeable future due to a strained oblique muscle. With that pair out of the picture for now, the Snakes will rely on Zack Greinke, Patrick Corbin, Zack Godley and Matt Koch to complement the newly promoted Medlen in their rotation.
Once a rising star in the Braves’ rotation, it’s been a half decade since Medlen was an effective big league starter. The 32-year-old Medlen logged a 2.75 ERA in 445 innings with Atlanta from 2010-13, missing the bulk of the 2011 season in middle of that stretch while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He looked to have bounced back with strong 2012-13 performances, but Medlen again sustained a torn UCL prior to the 2014 season and was again forced to the sidelines for more than a year.
The Royals attempted to buy low on the talented righty following that injury, but Medlen managed just a 5.12 ERA in 82 2/3 innings over the life of a two-year deal in Kansas City. He spent the 2017 season back in the Braves organization but didn’t end up appearing at the Major League level.
Medlen has struggled through 18 innings with the D-backs’ top affiliate in 2018, pitching to a 6.00 ERA, albeit with a more encouraging 18-to-8 K/BB ratio in that time. At this point, it’d be a stretch to expect him to ever return to the promising form he showed prior to his second ligament surgery, though it’s certainly plausible that he could yet be a serviceable source of innings at the MLB level. Given that Ray should return from his injury at some point in June, it seems likely that Medlen and Koch will soon be vying for a single spot in Arizona’s mix of starters. Shelby Miller, too, is on the mend from Tommy John surgery, however, and could eventually pair with Ray to push both Koch and Medlen out of the starting picture at the big league level.
Diamondbacks Activate Steven Souza Jr.
The D-backs announced today that they’ve activated outfielder Steven Souza Jr. from the disabled list and optioned first baseman Christian Walker to Triple-A Reno. Souza will make his Diamondbacks debut today against the Dodgers, batting fifth and playing right field.
Arizona’s offseason acquisition of Souza came as somewhat of a surprise. After spending much of the offseason in pursuit of a reunion with J.D. Martinez, who ultimately signed with the Red Sox, the Snakes quickly shifted course and struck up a three-team deal with the Rays and Yankees that would net Souza, who figures to play a prominent role in the Arizona outfield for years to come.
Because Souza is controlled through the 2020 season, the D-backs had to pay a fairly steep price, shipping Anthony Banda, Sam McWilliams and Colin Pache to the Rays while also sending Brandon Drury to the Yankees. Arizona also picked up minor league righty Taylor Widener from the Yankees in the three-team swap.
While Souza won’t fully replace the production lost when Martinez signed elsewhere, the 29-year-old is coming off a plenty impressive season in his own right. Through a career-high 617 plate appearances with Tampa Bay in 2017, Souza slashed .239/.351/.459 with 30 homers, 21 doubles, a pair of triples and 16 stolen bases. He’s a considerably better baserunner and defender than Martinez as well, so he’ll contribute in a more all-around fashion than Martinez’s bat-first skill set allowed.
[Related: Arizona Diamondbacks depth chart]
Souza’s activation from the DL will likely push Jarrod Dyson into a reserve role. Center fielder A.J. Pollock and left fielder David Peralta don’t figure to see their playing time diminish much at all with the move, while Chris Owings could see more time in the infield now that Souza is in the fold.
Early Returns On Minor League Signings: Relievers
Over the past couple of days, Jeff Todd has highlighted some of the early returns on minor league signings from the offseason and Spring Training, as pertains to starting pitchers and position players. It’s obviously early to glean too much from such investments, and that’s all the more true when it comes to relief pitchers, most of whom have worked fewer than 15 innings thus far in the season. That said, there are still several minor pickups who have played a relatively sizable role through the season’s first five weeks.
A look at some of the most oft-used arms (10+ innings pitched)…
- Fernando Salas & Jorge De La Rosa, Diamondbacks: Salas (17 1/3 innings) and De La Rosa (10 1/3 innings) have combined to yield just four runs through their 27 2/3 frames this season. Neither is missing many bats, and De La Rosa has issued as many walks as strikeouts (six), but it’s hard to argue with the bottom-line results they’ve delivered to date. Salas leads all minor league signees in terms of relief innings thrown thus far in the 2018 season.
- Hector Santiago, White Sox: Santiago tossed 16 innings of 3.38 ERA ball out of the Chicago ‘pen before shifting into a starting role and logging 4 2/3 frames in his first outing. In all, he has a 3.48 ERA in 20 2/3 innings of work with 20 strikeouts, though he’s also issued 10 walks and hit two batters. The control issues could come back to haunt the Sox, but he’s been a useful depth add so far in 2018.
- Tyler Clippard & John Axford, Blue Jays: Clippard (15 1/3 innings) and Axford (14 innings) have combined for 29 1/3 frames of sub-2.00 ERA ball, with each yielding just three runs on the season. Clippard has issued eight walks and has seen his extreme fly-ball tendencies become even more pronounced, which has caused fielding-independent metrics to forecast some regression. Axford boasts a 14-to-4 K/BB ratio and 52.6 percent ground-ball rate.
- Kevin Jepsen, Rangers: Jepsen has soaked up 14 innings for the Rangers, albeit with a pedestrian 4.50 ERA and as many walks (seven) as strikeouts. Texas has had plenty of injuries both in the rotation and the bullpen, so his spot seems safe for now.
- Dylan Floro, Reds: Through 11 2/3 innings, Floro has been dominant in the Cincinnati bullpen. He’s logged an impressive 11-to-2 K/BB ratio (one of those walks was intentional) and run up a sensational 66.7 percent ground-ball rate when allowing hitters to put the ball in play. Floro has quadrupled the frequency of his changeup, jumping from a 4.5 percent usage rate to more than 18 percent in 2018 (largely at the expense of his fastball), and the early results are obviously very promising.
- Drew Hutchison, Phillies: Hutchison has given the Phils 11 1/3 innings and a 3.18 ERA so far, with an 11-to-6 K/BB ratio and a grounder rate just north of 53 percent. The control could be better, but he’s been a solid enough pickup that can be counted upon for multiple innings of relief work. He also provides the club with some rotation depth after starting in Spring Training, though the longer he works in shorter relief stints the less likely he is to make any spot starts.
- Bruce Rondon, White Sox: Rondon has had a pair of nightmarish outings but is unscored upon in seven of nine relief appearances this year. He’s showing the velocity that tantalized the Tigers for so long (96.9 mph average fastball velocity) and an ability to miss bats (14 strikeouts, 16.3 percent swinging-strike rate), but control remains an issue (six walks, one hit batter, two wild pitches). His 5.06 ERA in 10 2/3 innings isn’t impressive, but he figures to get a longer look.
- Matt Belisle, Indians: The veteran Belisle finished out the 2017 on a strong run with the Twins but didn’t carry that over to his new gig with the Indians. In 10 2/3 innings, he allowed six runs before being designated for assignment yesterday. Belisle walked just one batter in his short time with Cleveland, though he also hit a pair of batters and whiffed just four hitters while averaging 89.8 mph on his fastball.
- Blaine Boyer, Royals: The 36-year-old had a nice run with four teams from 2014-17 after a two-year MLB hiatus, but he’s had a dismal start to his Royals tenure. In 10 innings, Boyer has surrendered 19 runs (15 earned) on 17 hits and eight walks with three strikeouts. He’s given up four homers as well.
Certainly, there are other names that will become factors in due time. Jonny Venters‘ call to the Majors from the Rays after five years lost to multiple arm surgeries is a feel-good story for any baseball fan. Carlos Torres, Brooks Pounders, Matt Magill and Casey Lawrence are among the minor league signees who’ve recently emerged at the big league level, while recognizable veterans like Josh Edgin (Orioles), Xavier Cedeno (White Sox), Jeanmar Gomez (White Sox), Edward Mujica (Cardinals), Oliver Perez (Yankees) and Sean Burnett (Marlins) have thrown rather well in Triple-A to this point in the young season.
DeGrom Cleared Of Ligament Damage, Aims To Pitch Monday
May 3: Manager Mickey Callaway announced this morning that the MRI revealed no ligament damage in deGrom’s elbow, and he’ll attempt to make his next scheduled start on Monday (Periscope link).
May 2, 8:49pm: Manager Mickey Callaway told reporters after the game that deGrom incurred the injury while swinging in his third-inning at-bat (Twitter link via Tim Britton of The Athletic). He’s undergoing an MRI to further assess the damage.
7:48pm: Mets ace Jacob deGrom left Wednesday night’s start after four innings due to injury, which the Mets’ broadcast later revealed to be a hyperextended right elbow (via Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News). Certainly, there’ll be additional testing performed to determine the extent of the injury and the length of any potential absence for deGrom, though the initial diagnosis of any elbow-related issue isn’t especially encouraging for the Mets.
With tonight’s four shutout innings, deGrom had dropped his ERA to a sensational 1.87 to go along with a 54-to-11 K/BB ratio in 43 1/3 innings of work to open the season. He hasn’t been scored on since an April 16 start against the Nationals and had rattled off a streak of 18 1/3 scoreless frames prior to tonight’s injury.
Suffice it to say, an absence of any length would be a major hit to the Mets, who opened the season in dominant fashion but have seen their grip on the NL East division lead fade to just a half-game entering play Wednesday. Should deGrom require a trip to the disabled list, which seems likely but won’t be formally announced until post-game or even tomorrow morning, the Mets would have Noah Syndergaard, Zack Wheeler, Jason Vargas and Steven Matz as healthy rotation pieces.
Matt Harvey was recently moved to the ‘pen and could conceivably be viewed as an option to return to the rotation, though the Mets may want to see him continue to work in shorter stints and may not want to quickly change course on such a high-profile role change for the righty. Neither Seth Lugo nor Robert Gsellman is stretched out at present, having opened the season in the bullpen, though both obviously have plenty of experience starting at the MLB level. Right-handers Chris Flexen and Corey Oswalt are the team’s top two starting options on the 40-man roster in Triple-A.
Blue Jays Activate Josh Donaldson
The Blue Jays have activated Josh Donaldson from the 10-day disabled list and opened a roster spot by placing Justin Smoak on the paternity list, per Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi (Twitter link).
Donaldson, 32, hit the DL back on April 10 due to a shoulder issue that was impacting his ability to throw across the diamond. He played third base in a pair of minor league rehab games, however, and obviously showed well enough there that the Toronto organization felt comfortable bringing the 2015 AL MVP back to the big league roster for what figures to be regular work at his customary position.
Donaldson opened the season with a .239/.352/.457 slash and three homers through 55 plate appearances, and early reports indicated that the shoulder wasn’t really hampering his ability to swing the bat. He’ll look to improve upon that early pace as he aims to match the outrageous .302/.410/.698 line that he posted over his final 227 plate appearances last season, when he finished out the year as one of the hottest hitters in the game.
The manner in which Donaldson acquits himself both at the hot corner and at the plate will be critical, as he’s on the cusp of reaching free agency for the first time. If Donaldson can produce at anywhere near the torrid .285/.387/.559 clip he posted through his first three seasons in Toronto and handle throwing from third to first without issue, then April’s dead arm will likely be viewed as a mere blip on the radar.
A healthy Donaldson would have an easy case for a nine-figure deal even though he’ll play the 2019 season at age 33. If the shoulder troubles prove to be an ongoing issue throughout the ’18 season, however, there’s obvious potential for them to severely impact his earning power on the open market. Donaldson ranked fourth on the first edition of MLBTR’s monthly Free Agent Power Rankings, trailing only Bryce Harper, Manny Machado and Clayton Kershaw.