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A.J. Pierzynski To Retire?

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SUNDAY: The Braves have placed Pierzynski on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right hamstring, per a team announcement. Based on Saturday’s retirement rumblings, it’s possible he has played his last game.

SATURDAY, 10:52pm: In yet another twist, Pierzynski has left the door for retirement open, telling reporters, “I don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t know what tomorrow’s going to bring, but if that’s it, then it was fun” (Twitter link via O’Brien).

10:37pm: False alarm: Pierzynski is not retiring, reports O’Brien (Twitter link). Starter Julio Teheran handed out cigars to celebrate the recent birth of his son.

10:03pm: Braves catcher A.J. Pierzynski has decided to retire, according to David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link). Pierzynski was hugging teammates and handing out cigars after the Braves’ win over the Mets on Saturday, per O’Brien.

The polarizing Pierzynski, 39, played for seven teams in parts of 18 major league campaigns. His final season didn’t go well, as he batted just .219/.243/.304 in 259 plate appearances, but he was a quality contributor as recently as last year. In his first of two years in Atlanta, Pierzynski slashed .300/.339/.430 over 436 trips to the plate, leading the club to re-sign him last offseason to a one-year deal with a $3MM base salary.

Before joining the Braves, Pierzynski divided an unproductive 2014 between St. Louis and Boston. He previously played for the Rangers, White Sox, Giants and Twins, and will be best remembered for his time in Chicago. During his tenure with the White Sox from 2005-12, Pierzynski helped the club to a World Series title in his first year in Chicago, caught a no-hitter from Mark Buehrle and Philip Humber’s perfect game, played in no fewer than 128 games in each individual season, and earned his second and final career All-Star nod in 2006. That year, Pierzynski drew the ire of Cubs catcher Michael Barrett, who punched Pierzynski after a home plate collision and incited a brawl between the teams during a May matchup.

The year before he arrived in Chicago, Pierzynski spent 2004 in San Francisco, which acquired him in one of the most lopsided trades in recent memory. To land Pierzynski, the Giants sent southpaw Francisco Liriano, all-time great closer Joe Nathan and right-hander Boof Bonser to the Twins. While the Twins reaped the rewards of that return for several years, Pierzynski disappointed in San Francisco and then signed as a free agent with the White Sox.

Pierzynski, whom the Twins selected in the third round of the 1994 draft, hit .280/.318/.420 with 188 home runs in 7,813 career trips to the plate and was worth in the neighborhood of 23.0 WAR, according to both FanGraphs and Baseball-Reference – the latter of which lists his career earnings as upward of $61MM. MLBTR congratulates Pierzynski on a fine career.

AL Notes: Shoemaker, Tigers, Red Sox

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Angels right-hander Matt Shoemaker was admitted to an Anaheim-area hospital Saturday to check for swelling in his brain, Austin Laymance of MLB.com was among those to report. Shoemaker underwent surgery last Sunday on a small skull fracture and a hematoma to stop the bleeding on his brain after taking a 105 mph line drive off the head. The CT scan Shoemaker had Saturday came back negative, fortunately, though he did stay at the hospital overnight for observation.

More from the American League:

  • Tigers righty Jordan Zimmermann returned Saturday from a month-plus absence stemming from a neck strain, but the 30-year-old put up a disastrous showing in an 11-3 loss to Baltimore. Zimmermann allowed six earned runs on four hits, including three home runs, and three walks in an inning of work. After the game, manager Brad Ausmus wasn’t willing to commit to Zimmermann for another start, relays Katie Strang of ESPN.com. Fellow righty Michael Fulmer’s status complicates matters, though, as Evan Woodbery of MLive.com details. With the Tigers monitoring the AL Rookie of the Year front-runner’s workload, they might not be able to pull Zimmermann from their rotation. If Detroit elects to send Zimmermann to the bullpen and skip at least one Fulmer start, it could open the door for veteran Mike Pelfrey, but he has been out for over a month and isn’t stretched out. Whatever the Tigers ultimately decide, the production they have gotten from Zimmermann (4.94 ERA, 5.49 K/9 in 94 1/3 innings) clearly isn’t what they had in mind when they signed the ex-National to a five-year, $110MM deal in the offseason.
  • Manager John Farrell said Saturday that the first-place Red Sox are likely going to use elite infield prospect Yoan Moncada as a reserve for the rest of the season, writes Ian Browne of MLB.com. While Moncada has picked up five starts at third base since debuting Sept. 2, the 21-year-old has struck out 11 times and walked only once in 19 plate appearances. At the same time, fellow third baseman Travis Shaw has been swinging a hot bat, which doesn’t bode well for Moncada’s chances to garner playing time. “This is a great learning experience for Yoan,” Farrell said of Moncada. “I think while he got a boost of confidence by coming to the big leagues, you get challenged a little bit and you have to take a step back to rebuild that. Still, our primary goal is to win. Development in this situation does not take a front seat.”
  • Tigers third baseman Nick Castellanos, out DL since Aug. 6 after fracturing his left hand on a hit by pitch, hopes to return next week. “My goal is to be back before the 18th,” he stated (via Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press). Castellanos, who has been taking ground balls and hitting in cages, will take batting practice Monday. If that goes well, the Tigers will set up a simulated game, per Ausmus. At the time of his injury, Castellanos was in the midst of a career year, having hit .286/.331/.500 with 18 home runs in 432 plate appearances. Replacements Casey McGehee and Erick Aybar haven’t come close to matching those numbers for the Tigers, who are a game out of of a wild-card spot.

MLBTR Originals

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MLBTR’s original features from the past week:

  • Zach Links was among the reporters who joined the Mets’ conference call after they signed Tim Tebow to a minor league deal Thursday. Both Tebow and Mets general manager Sandy Alderson spoke about the former NFL quarterback’s new career.
  • Jeff Todd examined the free agent stock of Cardinals first baseman/outfielder Brandon Moss, who has bounced back from a rough 2015 to serve as an important part of the Redbirds’ lineup in a contract year.
  • Steve Adams highlighted eight former top prospects who rejoined their major league teams this month and are now looking to make their respective marks in the season’s final weeks.
  • Before Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw returned Friday from his two-plus-month absence, I polled readers on whether the three-time Cy Young winner deserves serious consideration for the award this year.
  • Steve surveyed readers on the future of Twins third baseman Trevor Plouffe, who could be a non-tender or trade candidate during the upcoming offseason.

Dave Roberts On Rich Hill’s Near-Perfect Game

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The Dodgers’ Rich Hill was six outs away from throwing a perfect game against the Marlins on Saturday, but manager Dave Roberts made the difficult decision to pull him after only 89 pitches. On the heels of Hill’s departure, Marlins outfielder Jeff Francoeur ended the Dodgers’ perfect game bid with an eighth-inning single off Joe Blanton.

Roberts explained why he made the move afterward, revealing that there were signs of the nagging blister on Hill’s left index finger returning, tweets Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times. Hill, who struck out nine and could have tossed the 24th perfect game in major league history, countered Roberts by telling reporters that his finger felt fine (Twitter link via Ken Gurnick of MLB.com).

“I feel sick to my stomach,” said Roberts, who was on the verge of tears, per McCullough (Twitter links). “I’m going to lose sleep tonight. And I probably should.” 

The Dodgers logged a 5-0 win to improve to 80-61 – good for a 4 1/2-game lead in the National League West. However, Roberts added that this particular victory feels like a loss (Twitter link via McCullough). This isn’t the first time Roberts has elected to stop one of his pitchers from a chance at making history, though his call to remove right-hander Ross Stripling from a no-hitter in his April 8 major league debut against the Giants wasn’t nearly as controversial. Stripling had already thrown 100 pitches through 7 1/3 innings, and Roberts said it was a “no-brainer” to take the rookie out of what was a tight game.

Hill, meanwhile, has cruised all year, having compiled a 1.80 ERA, 10.42 K/9 and 2.84 BB/9 in 95 innings, but injuries have robbed him of enjoying a full campaign. While the blister issue has bothered the 36-year-old journeyman since mid-July, that didn’t stop the Dodgers from trading a haul to the Athletics for him and outfielder Josh Reddick before the Aug. 1 non-waiver trade deadline. LA has reaped the rewards when Hill has pitched, as he has spun 19 scoreless innings with 20 strikeouts and two walks in three starts. Ideally for the Dodgers, Hill will serve as an integral component of a playoff rotation in October, and their World Series hopes unsurprisingly factored into Roberts’ move to pull him.

“Nothing in my opinion is worth compromising our opportunity to win a championship,” offered Roberts (Twitter link via Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register).

In addition to trying to help the Dodgers win a title, a healthy Hill could pitch his way into a rich contract during the upcoming offseason. Despite his age, limited track record and durability questions, Hill will likely cash in as arguably the best starter in a weak free agent market. Hill was toiling in the independent Atlantic League a summer ago, but he has performed like an ace since a four-start stretch with the Red Sox last September.

Giants Attempted To Acquire Wade Davis

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The Giants aggressively pursued Royals closer Wade Davis in advance of the Aug. 1 non-waiver trade deadline, reports Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter). Davis’ name came up in many pre-deadline rumors, but the chances of the Royals parting with him evaporated when the right-hander landed on the disabled list with a flexor strain July 31.

Acquiring Davis undoubtedly would have been costly for San Francisco, though there’s no word on whether any of its trade chips intrigued Kansas City enough to make a deal possible. To cite one report, the Royals were seeking premier pitching prospect Lucas Giolito from the Nationals in return for the lights-out reliever.

A healthy Davis likely would have helped the Giants’ playoff odds – which have been shrinking throughout the season’s second half – more than deadline pickup Will Smith has. In dealing pitching prospect Phil Bickford and catcher Andrew Susac to Milwaukee, the Giants paid a hefty price for Smith, who has since yielded six earned runs on 11 hits in 9 2/3 innings. However, the left-hander has impressed with 12 strikeouts against four walks and hasn’t allowed a run in the seven innings he has amassed since Aug. 18.

The Giants’ team-wide woes began well before the deadline. Since going 57-33 prior to the All-Star break, the club has recorded a dreadful 18-32 mark. At 75-65, the Giants are now in second place by four games in the National League West, a division they once led comfortably, and hold a tenuous grip on a wild-card spot. It hasn’t helped matters that San Francisco’s bullpen has been without its best option, Derek Law, since late August because of an elbow strain. Law should return next week, and it’s possible he’ll emerge as the Giants’ closer down the stretch. Santiago Casilla held that role until manager Bruce Bochy took it away from him Friday.

Looking ahead to the offseason, the Giants and Royals could once again resume talks centering on Davis, who returned from the DL on Sept. 2. Kansas City would have to be willing to listen, of course, and the reigning World Series champions could eschew moving him in favor of taking another run at a championship in 2017. The Royals are unlikely to make the playoffs this year and will face questions on whether to shop Davis, among several other veterans on soon-to-expire contracts, in the offseason. Davis has a $10.5MM club option for next season, the final year of his deal.

Seung-hwan Oh’s 2017 Option Vests

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Cardinals closer Seung-hwan Oh finished his 30th game of the year Friday, meaning his club option for 2017 has vested, reports Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). Oh will make $2.75MM, a slight raise over his current salary of $2.5MM, next season.

Oh, 34, emigrated from the Japan Central League over the winter and has ended up as one of the biggest steals of the offseason this year. After dominating in both his homeland, Korea, and Japan, Oh has emerged as an elite-level bullpen option for playoff-contending St. Louis. The right-hander ranks fourth among relievers in innings (72 1/3), 12th in strikeouts per nine frames (12.07) and 13th in ERA (1.87). Oh has also done well limiting walks (2.24 per nine), which has contributed to his eighth-place ranking in K-BB percentage (27.9).

The brilliance of Oh has been especially timely for a Cardinals team whose previous closer, Trevor Rosenthal, has endured the worst season of his young career. Rosenthal was among the majors’ top late-game aces from 2012-15, but inflated walk and home run rates have led to a 5.13 ERA over 33 1/3 innings this year. Oh took over the ninth inning from Rosenthal at the outset of July and has since converted 17 of 19 save opportunities. Rosenthal, meanwhile, has been on the disabled list since late July with rotator cuff inflammation, but he could return as early as Monday, according to Rick Hummel of the Post-Dispatch.

Scott Kazmir Has Thoracic Spine Inflammation; Return Questionable

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SATURDAY: Kazmir has been diagnosed with thoracic spine inflammation, tweets Plunkett, who adds that there’s no timetable for his return.

FRIDAY: Kazmir will undergo a bone scan in the “thoracic region,” Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register was among those to report (links to Twitter). While results aren’t yet known, skipper Dave Roberts suggested that the lefty will require a “shutdown period” of “a couple weeks.” With less than a month left in the season, it seems uncertain at this point whether Kazmir will be able to return in 2016.

The Dodgers are set to turn to De Leon and Urias for starts early next week, Plunkett further tweets.

WEDNESDAY: Dodgers left-hander Scott Kazmir exited his rehab start with Triple-A Oklahoma City tonight after experiencing a recurrence of the same neck pain and ribcage pain that initially landed him on the disabled list, reports J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group. The 32-year-old is traveling back to Los Angeles to be reevaluated, he adds.

Kazmir faced just seven hitters, per Hoornstra, walking a pair of batters and hitting another pair. Had the rehab outing gone well, Kazmir would have been on track to rejoin the rotation early next week, but it’s now possible that top prospect Jose De Leon, who delivered a quality start and struck out nine in his MLB debut last week, could get another turn in the rotation.

Kazmir is in the first season of a three-year, $48MM contract with the Dodgers, and the year hasn’t gone as well as either he or the team would’ve liked. While he’s made 25 starts, Kazmir has averaged just over 5 1/3 innings per outing, totaling 135 1/3 innings this season and logging a lackluster 4.59 ERA. The sub-par performance is especially noteworthy, as it lessens the likelihood that Kazmir will exercise the opt-out clause in his contract this winter in search of a larger deal on the free agent market. Kazmir’s deal calls for him to earn $16MM in each of the next two seasons.

The Dodgers’ roster has been absolutely ravaged by injuries this season, and while they’ll get the most important piece of all back on Friday in the form of Clayton Kershaw, a number of other rotation options remain sidelined. Kazmir is joined on the shelf by Brett Anderson, Brandon McCarthy, Hyun-jin Ryu and Alex Wood at the moment. Rich Hill is back and has been terrific in two starts for them, though, and Kenta Maeda has been a solid rotation piece all season long. The Dodgers also have impressive rookies De Leon and  Julio Urias, as well as right-handers Bud Norris, Brock Stewart and Ross Stripling as rotation options as they look to expand their four-game NL West lead over the Giants.

Twins Place Trevor Plouffe On DL

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The Twins have placed third baseman Trevor Plouffe on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to Wednesday, with a left oblique strain, the team announced. It’s unknown if Plouffe will return this year, but given the limited amount of games left, the Twins’ last-place status, and the length of time it takes to recover from oblique injuries, a 2016 comeback seems unlikely.

If Plouffe’s season is over, it’s possible his tenure with the Twins is, too. As MLBTR’s Steve Adams wrote Wednesday, the Twins have a glut of other options in the infield and outfield, which could make Plouffe a non-tender or trade candidate during the offseason.

Plouffe, 30, has endured his worst season since he started garnering significant playing time in 2011, having batted .260/.303/.420 in 344 plate appearances and accounted for one of the majors’ worst fWAR totals (minus-0.4). Nevertheless, he’ll still receive a raise over this year’s $7.25MM salary in his first trip through arbitration during the winter. It’s conceivable neither Minnesota nor anyone else will want to pay Plouffe in the neighborhood of $8MM off such a poor season, which could lead the Twins to cut bait.

Regardless of what the future holds for Plouffe, this has been a year to forget for a player who had been a steady contributor in recent seasons. Aside from his subpar numbers and current oblique issue, he was on the shelf for nearly three weeks from April to May with an intercostal strain – something he’s also dealing with now – and missed time in July with a cracked rib.

D-backs’ Chris Herrmann To Undergo Season-Ending Surgery

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Diamondbacks catcher Chris Herrmann will undergo season-ending wrist surgery on Tuesday, reports FanRag Sports’ Jack Magruder (Twitter link). Herrmann broke two bones in his left wrist while attempting to steal on Friday.

Herrmann was an effective piece of the Diamondbacks’ offense in his first year with the club, though injuries weighed him down. Earlier this week, he returned from a hamstring issue that had sidelined him since the middle of July. Arizona acquired Herrmann from the Twins for minor league outfielder/first baseman Daniel Palka in November, and the 28-year-old unexpectedly slashed .284/.352/.493 with six home runs and four steals across 166 plate appearances. At the time the D-backs traded for Herrmann, he was a .181/.249/.280 hitter in 389 major league PAs. Fresh off his most productive season, he’ll be eligible for arbitration for the first time during the upcoming winter.

The rest-of-season outlook for one of Herrmann’s teammates, star center fielder A.J. Pollock, isn’t as bleak. Pollock, like Herrmann, left the Diamondbacks’ game Friday with an injury. In his case, it’s a groin strain. He’ll have to wait a week before starting rehab, per Steve Gilbert of MLB.com, but a return before year’s end is possible (Twitter link). Pollock had been out from the start of the season until late August thanks to a fractured elbow. Between his Aug. 26 activation and Friday, he batted .244/.326/.390 with two homers and four steals in 46 trips to the plate.

Rockies Release Brandon Barnes

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The Rockies have released outfielder Brandon Barnes, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets. They had outrighted him early last month after David Dahl’s arrival in the big leagues made him expendable.

Barnes would have been eligible for free agency following the season unless the Rockies had again added him to their 40-man roster, at which point he would have become eligible for arbitration. It’s little surprise, then, that they’re willing to part ways with him.

The 30-year-old Barnes has been useful in the past due to his ability to play solid defense at all three outfield positions, but his career seems to have hit a wall of late. He batted a meager .220/.250/.320 in 109 plate appearances this season, well below his career mark of .242/.289/.356. He also wasn’t terribly impressive in the good hitting environment of Triple-A Albuquerque, batting .282/.323/.416 in 255 plate appearances there this year.

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