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The Opener: Phillies, Red Sox, MLBTR Chat

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With just three weeks until the trade deadline, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. Phillies getting healthy:

The Phillies are expecting to welcome slugger Kyle Schwarber back from the injured list today, and he might be joined by veteran superstar Bryce Harper. The duo were both placed on the injured list late last month due to a groin strain and hamstring strain, respectively, though both issues were described as very mild. Per reporting over the weekend, Schwarber has been running at 100% intensity for several days now while Harper had been running “either at or close to 100% intensity.”

The return of Schwarber and potentially Harper figures to transform a Phillies lineup that has dealt with not only those losses but also the loss of catcher J.T. Realmuto in recent weeks. Schwarber has enjoyed a strong season that’s become typical of him during his time with the Phillies, slashing .250/.373/.447 with 17 home runs in 367 trips to the plate this year. Harper has been even better at the plate, turning in a massive .303/.399/.582 line with 20 homers in 336 plate appearances.

2. Red Sox 40-man move incoming?

The Red Sox optioned left-hander Cam Booser to Triple-A following last night’s game, per a team announcement. Chris Cotillo of MassLive reported last night that Booser’s departure is likely to lead to the Red Sox selecting the contract of right-hander Trey Wingenter today. Wingenter, 30, was acquired by the Red Sox in trade with the Tigers over the weekend in exchange for minor league reliever CJ Weins.

Wingenter, who’s pitched in parts of three big league seasons, has struggled to a 5.28 ERA in the majors despite a much stronger 3.82 FIP. He’s posted strong strikeout numbers but also an elevated walk rate. The deal was reportedly prompted by Wingenter triggering an assignment clause in his minor league contract, meaning the Red Sox would have to add the righty to their 40-man roster shortly after the trade. That’s now expected to happen today, and the Sox will need to clear a 40-man spot for Wingenter.

3. MLBTR Chat Today:

We’re now just three weeks from the July 30 trade deadline, and the earliest trades of the summer are now starting to take place, with Aaron Civale, Austin Slater, and Alex Young now having changed uniforms. If you have any questions about the upcoming deadline or your team’s direction with the All-Star break just over the horizon, MLBTR’s Steve Adams will host a chat with readers at 1pm CT. You can click here to ask a question in advance, and that same link will allow you to join in on the chat once it begins or read the transcript after it is completed.

Report: “Growing Belief” That Marlins Will Trade Jazz Chisholm Jr.

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The Marlins announced their status as deadline sellers more than two months ago with their surprising early trade of Luis Arraez, and with the trade deadline now just 22 days away, their activity on that front should pick back up. While much of the focus has been on closer Tanner Scott, who’s a free agent at season’s end, Craig Mish of SportsGrid and the Miami Herald reports that there’s a “growing belief” Jazz Chisholm Jr. will also be traded. Mish lists the Mariners as  a “club to watch” if Chisholm is moved and also suggests the Pirates and Royals could join the bidding.

Chisholm, 26, is enjoying a solid season at the plate, hitting .255/.326/.407 (105 wRC+) with ten homers and 17 steals (albeit in 25 tries). He’s struggled with strikeouts on the past, and while his 24.9% rate is still worse than average, it’s a notable improvement over the 29.2% clip he registered in the four prior seasons. He’s paired those improved contact skills with a career-best 8.8% walk rate.

There’s little doubting Chisholm’s raw tools and star-caliber upside. He’s averaged 26 homers and 32 steals per 162 games played in his career. However, he’s never topped 124 games in a season and has only reached 400 plate appearances once to this point in his major league career. Injuries have frequently hobbled Chisholm and caused him to miss significant time. Since establishing himself as a regular in 2021, Chisholm has missed time due to a shoulder injury, a back strain (which required a 60-day IL stint), turf toe and an oblique strain.

Chisholm is earning an affordable $2.625MM this season and is controlled for two more years following the current campaign. He’s been the Marlins’ primary center fielder over the past two seasons, though that move was borne out of necessity. Miami has been unable to develop a center fielder and has come up empty in its long-running attempts to acquire a controllable option at the position. Chisholm, a natural shortstop who slid over to second base early in his career, moved to center field last year and has drawn mixed reviews from most public defensive metrics. He was a plus defender in just over 1300 innings at second base before the move to the outfield.

All three of the potential teams listed in Mish’s report stand as clear fits in a theoretical Chisholm deal. Royals general manager J.J. Picollo has been open about his desire to add a bat capable of playing both the infield and the outfield — a need Chisholm would fill nicely. The Royals have fairly even platoon splits as a team, but the bulk of the team is right-handed — including Kansas City’s two best hitters, Bobby Witt Jr. and Salvador Perez. First baseman Vinnie Pasquantino and second baseman Michael Massey (who’s been limited to just 142 plate appearances due to injury) are the only left-handed bats on the roster who have turned in average or better production, by measure of wRC+.

The Pirates, meanwhile, have received sub-par offensive production from second base this season. Since being called up, former first-round pick Nick Gonzales has delivered roughly league-average offense (.269/.307/.414, 99 wRC+), but he’s been more productive against lefties than righties. Pittsburgh outfielders are also hitting just .227/.299/.352 as a collective unit this season. Chisholm could provide an offensive boost in either role or potentially split his time between the two positions based on matchups.

Both the outfield and second base have been weaknesses for the AL West-leading Mariners as well. The hope in Seattle was that the offseason acquisition of Jorge Polanco would have solidified second base, but the switch-hitter’s steady offensive output unexpectedly cratered this season; in 214 plate appearances, the former Twins infielder has slashed just .189/.280/.284 with a career-worst 33.6% strikeout rate. Their outfielders have combined for a .230/.285/.365 batting line.

With two and a half seasons of club control remaining, an affordable salary and another productive season highlighted by his typical blend of speed and power, Chisholm should come with a relatively steep cost of acquisition. Mish notes that a deal in the offseason is possible as well, if the Marlins don’t get an offer to their liking in the next three weeks, and suggests that even some current non-contenders could look into a deal for Chisholm (both now and in the offseason) as they look toward the 2025 campaign and beyond.

Mariners Outright Seby Zavala

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The Mariners announced that catcher Seby Zavala went unclaimed on waivers. He was outrighted back to Triple-A Tacoma. Zavala has the right to elect free agency because he has been outrighted multiple times in his career, though he accepted his previous assignment to Tacoma a couple weeks ago.

Zavala spent the majority of the season as the backup catcher behind Cal Raleigh. Seattle has given Mitch Garver more time behind the dish in recent weeks, pushing Zavala off the roster as they try to find more offense. The M’s briefly brought him back up last week while Garver was day-to-day with a wrist issue.

The 30-year-old Zavala is a .205/.271/.342 hitter in 557 big league plate appearances. Most of that time came with the White Sox before brief stints with the D-Backs and Mariners over the last couple years. Raleigh and Garver are the only catchers on the 40-man roster. Assuming he sticks in the organization, Zavala would probably be the next man up if either of Seattle’s big league backstops suffer an injury.

Latest On Marlins’ Bullpen Trade Candidates

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The Marlins should trade a handful of veteran players over the next three weeks. While center fielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. might be the team’s most interesting candidate, the Fish are also a lock to move at least one reliever.

Closer Tanner Scott, who is on his way to his first All-Star Game next week, has looked likely to move essentially since the Marlins started their season on a nine-game losing streak. The Dodgers, Yankees, Phillies and Orioles were all linked to the hard-throwing lefty last month. Scott is a viable target for any team with postseason aspirations, though, and Craig Mish of the Miami Herald writes that roughly a dozen clubs have expressed interest.

Scott got off to a rather shaky start to the season. After walking seven of the 34 hitters he faced during Spring Training, he handed out 13 free passes in 12 2/3 innings through the end of April. While Scott worked around the walks to turn in a 2.84 ERA in the season’s first month, he’d likely have been in for regression if he didn’t dial in his command.

To his credit, Scott has taken a step forward in that regard. He has walked 10 of 93 opponents (10.8%) going back to May 1. It’s still not pristine control, but it’s significantly better than the 21.3% walk percentage he’d posted through the season’s first few weeks. Strike-throwing is Scott’s only real question mark. He has some of the best raw stuff in the sport, pairing a 97 MPH heater with a wipeout slider. Opponents have only managed 18 hits over 38 innings. They’re hitting .142/.273/.205 across 154 plate appearances.

While this is the first year in which Scott is headed to the Midsummer Classic, he was arguably even better in 2023. Scott pitched to a 2.31 ERA with a 33.9% strikeout rate and a career-best 7.8% walk percentage over 78 innings last year. Over two and a half seasons in South Florida, he owns a 2.82 earned run average while striking out 31.5% of opposing hitters. He has picked up 45 saves and finished 89 games while working as Miami’s closer for the majority of that stretch.

There’s little reason for the Marlins to hang onto Scott past the deadline. He’s headed to free agency for the first time in his career a few months from now. He’ll be entering his age-30 campaign and should have a case for a three- or four-year deal. A rebuilding Miami team isn’t likely to bring him back. Scott is playing this season on a $5.7MM arbitration salary, a little over $2.5MM of which is still owed.

As the lone rental in the bullpen, Scott should be the top priority for president of baseball operations Peter Bendix and his staff. Yet the front office is probably open to discussing their more controllable relievers as well. Mish writes that other teams have shown particular interest in left-hander Andrew Nardi, whom the Marlins control for another four seasons. Mish also lists right-handers Calvin Faucher and Declan Cronin as potential trade candidates, though it’s not clear how strong interest is in those cases.

Nardi is probably the most appealing of that group. His pedestrian 4.72 ERA belies excellent strikeout and walk numbers. The 25-year-old southpaw has fanned 29% of batters faced against a 7.6% walk rate. He’s inducing swinging strikes at a lofty 14.4% clip. Nardi has been plagued by a .337 average on balls in play this season but posted a 2.67 ERA across 57 1/3 frames last year. There should be significant interest, although Mish suggests the Marlins may wind up holding onto Nardi to plug him into the ninth inning next year.

Faucher and Cronin were low-cost offseason acquisitions. The former came over from the Rays alongside Vidal Bruján in one of Bendix’s first trades. Faucher has a 3.55 ERA while striking out nearly a quarter of opponents through 33 innings. Cronin, claimed off waivers from the Astros in February, has a 3.35 ERA with solid peripherals over 43 frames. The 26-year-old righty has average strikeout and walk numbers while running a massive 55.7% ground-ball percentage.

Rangers Select Daniel Robert

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The Rangers selected reliever Daniel Robert onto the MLB roster for tonight’s matchup with the Angels. Texas optioned Grant Anderson to Triple-A Round Rock to clear a spot in the bullpen. In order to open space on the 40-man roster, the Rangers designated lefty Antoine Kelly for assignment.

Robert gets his first big league call a few weeks shy of his 30th birthday. Texas drafted him in 2017 as a 21st-round pick out of Auburn. Robert has pitched parts of three seasons (including all of 2024) in Round Rock. After struggling in his first two seasons there, he has posted excellent numbers across 25 appearances this year.

Through 30 2/3 innings, Robert carries a 2.35 earned run average. He has punched out more than 35% of batters faced while walking only 6.1% of opponents. It’s a massive improvement over last season, when he fanned 26.4% of hitters with a near-12% walk percentage. Robert has fanned 12 without issuing a walk in his most recent 10 2/3 frames.

His promotion bumps Kelly off the roster. The 24-year-old is a former second-round pick of the Brewers who runs his fastball into the high 90s. Milwaukee traded him to Texas at the 2022 deadline in the Matt Bush deal. Texas added Kelly to the 40-man roster to keep him out of last winter’s Rule 5 draft, but things haven’t gone well this season.

Kelly has walked 21 of the 91 hitters he’s faced in Round Rock. That’s clearly not viable and resulted in a 9.39 ERA. That pushed him back to Double-A last week and now off the roster entirely. The Rangers have five days to trade the 6’5″ lefty or put him on waivers. Kelly pitched to a 1.95 ERA with a 32% strikeout rate in Double-A last season. He still has a full slate of options and could find some interest on the waiver wire, this year’s control woes notwithstanding.

Reds Recall Rece Hinds For MLB Debut, Outright Levi Jordan

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The Reds made a handful of moves before tonight’s series opener with the Rockies. Cincinnati recalled outfield prospect Rece Hinds in his first MLB promotion. They also brought up righty reliever Yosver Zulueta from Triple-A Louisville. In corresponding moves, the Reds optioned right-hander Graham Ashcraft and placed outfielder Stuart Fairchild on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to July 7) with a spinal disc injury.

Hinds is in the starting lineup tonight in right field. He’ll hit eighth and likely take his first big league at-bat against Colorado starter Ryan Feltner. The righty-hitting corner outfielder has been on Cincinnati’s 40-man roster since the start of last offseason. The Reds selected his contract to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. He has been on optional assignment to Louisville all year.

Initially drafted as a third base prospect, Hinds was a second-round pick out of high school back in 2019. Evaluators have long been intrigued by the massive raw power he packs into a 6’4″ frame, but Hinds’ stock has dipped since he entered pro ball because of longstanding contact questions. The 23-year-old has punched out in nearly 35% of his plate appearances over parts of five minor league campaigns.

Strikeouts have again been a concern this season. Hinds has fanned at an untenable 38.4% clip through 328 trips to the plate in Louisville. While he has connected on 13 home runs, his .216/.290/.409 slash line in Triple-A is below average. The Reds remain intrigued by Hinds’ pure power potential, but it’s fair to expect a lot of swing-and-miss in his initial look at MLB pitching.

Cincinnati has tried to find a reliable righty-hitting outfielder to take some at-bats from lefties Jake Fraley and Will Benson. Fairchild has teed off on lefties at a .308/.388/.473 clip over 103 plate appearances, but he hasn’t produced at all against right-handed pitching (.127/.188/.203 in 86 PAs). He’s now out for an indeterminate amount of time, perhaps contributing to the decision to bring in Austin Slater in a late-night trade with the Giants. (Fraley is also currently away from the team tending to a family matter.)

On the pitching side, Zulueta steps into the bullpen and pushes Ashcraft back to Triple-A. It’s the second time this season that the Reds optioned the righty, who opened the year in the rotation. Ashcraft started three times since being recalled on June 26, allowing 10 runs in 15 innings. The Reds could soon welcome Nick Lodolo back from his stint on the 15-day injured list. Manager David Bell told reporters that rookie right-hander Carson Spiers will hold his rotation spot behind Lodolo, Hunter Greene, Andrew Abbott and Frankie Montas (X link via Charlie Goldsmith of the Cincinnati Enquirer).

In other Reds news, Cincinnati announced that utilityman Levi Jordan went unclaimed on waivers. He was outrighted back to Louisville. The Reds designated Jordan for assignment last week when they called up Edwin Ríos. A former 29th-round draftee, Jordan earned an MLB call in late June and appeared in seven contests. He picked up his first hit, a double off Daulton Jefferies, over 10 at-bats. He’s hitting .302/.384/.443 on the year in Triple-A.

Angels Designate Miguel Sano For Assignment

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The Angeles announced they’ve designated infielder Miguel Sanó for assignment. The move opens active and 40-man roster space for Anthony Rendon, who is back from the 60-day injured list.

Sanó made a return to professional baseball this year after sitting out the 2023 season. He signed a minor league deal with the Angels in January and hit four homers in 23 Spring Training contests. That was enough to nab a spot on the Opening Day roster in a backup role. Sanó got a bit of run as a designated hitter through the season’s first couple weeks before a left knee injury sent him to the injured list.

The veteran slugger was out of action for nearly two months. The Halos reinstated him from the IL on June 25 but have only gotten him into seven games over the past few weeks. Sanó only has one hit since his activation and carries a .205/.295/.313 batting line over 95 plate appearances. Opponents have punched him out 36 times (a 37.9% rate), continuing the career-long struggle Sanó has had in making consistent contact.

Rendon’s return should push Luis Guillorme back into a glove-first utility role. Guillorme and Keston Hiura will serve as infield depth behind Nolan Schanuel, Brandon Drury, Zach Neto and Rendon. Manager Ron Washington has Rendon at the hot corner and atop the lineup tonight against the Rangers and Jon Gray. It’ll be the veteran infielder’s first game action since he suffered a partially torn left hamstring on April 20.

The Halos have five days to trade Sanó or put him on waivers. He’s not likely to draw any trade interest and could decline an assignment to the minor leagues, so he’ll very likely be released this week.

Diamondbacks Select Yilber Diaz

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July 8: Arizona officially selected Diaz’s contract on Monday afternoon. The D-Backs optioned lefty reliever Joe Jacques to Triple-A in a corresponding active roster move. They already had a vacancy on the 40-man roster after releasing Tucker Barnhart, so that is now at capacity.

July 5: The Diamondbacks are “likely” to promote pitching prospect Yilber Diaz for his MLB debut next week, according to Steve Gilbert of MLB.com. The right-hander would get the ball to start Monday night’s series opener against the Braves. Diaz is not on the 40-man roster, but the Diamondbacks currently have an open spot on the 40-man, so they would not need to make a corresponding move to select his contract.

Diaz made his professional debut for the D-backs organization in 2021. After pitching to a 4.17 ERA and 3.66 FIP in 14 starts at Double-A between 2023 and ’24, he earned a promotion to Triple-A this June. In four starts with the Reno Aces, he has a 3.27 ERA with 28 strikeouts in 22 innings of work. On the season, he has an impressive 33.2% strikeout rate in 15 outings between Double and Triple-A. The 23-year-old is averaging just over five innings per start.

Diaz is currently ranked as the #16 prospect in the Diamondbacks system, according to MLB Pipeline. Baseball America and Keith Law of the Athletic both had him at #15 on their preseason lists. Eric Longenhagen and Travis Ice of FanGraphs were a little higher on Diaz, ranking him #6 and expressing more faith in both of his breaking balls (a slider and curve) to be potential plus pitches. Ultimately, however, all four sources agreed that the righty’s future is most likely in the bullpen. He throws a mid-90s fastball that can touch the high-90s; if his velocity were to tick up out of the ’pen, he could be a flame-throwing relief weapon.

Yet, for now, Diaz remains a starting pitcher, and he will take on the biggest test of his starting career on Monday. The Braves offense has struggled for much of the season, especially against right-handed pitching. Regardless, they’re going to be a far tougher opponent than a Triple-A club, and Diaz has hardly even faced much Triple-A opposition.

Although the rookie might benefit from a bit more seasoning in the minors, the Diamondbacks are a little desperate for starting pitching after Jordan Montgomery landed on the injured list last week. Rookie Cristian Mena made his MLB debut in Montgomery’s place on Wednesday, but the results were poor. He lasted only three innings, giving up four earned runs on four hits, three walks, and two home runs. Mena struck out just two of the 15 batters he faced, and he has already been optioned back to Triple-A. The only other healthy starting pitcher on Arizona’s 40-man roster who isn’t already in the rotation is Tommy Henry, who has a 7.04 ERA in 38 1/3 MLB innings this season.

Braves Select Eddie Rosario

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Eddie Rosario is back with the Braves, as Atlanta selected the veteran outfielder onto the MLB roster. The Braves also recalled right-hander Bryce Elder from Triple-A Gwinnett to start tonight’s contest with the D-Backs. Reliever Dylan Lee and utilityman Luke Williams were optioned out in corresponding moves. The Braves designated outfielder J.P. Martínez for assignment to create a 40-man roster spot for Rosario — a move that was reported this morning.

It’ll be Rosario’s fourth straight season logging MLB action as a Brave. Atlanta’s decision to buy low on the veteran outfielder at the 2021 trade deadline is etched into franchise history. The generally streaky Rosario caught fire down the stretch and into October, winning NLCS MVP honors and helping the Braves to a World Series. Atlanta re-signed him to a two-year, $18MM free agent deal that offseason.

The extension didn’t work out as hoped. He battled vision issues and slumped to a .212/.259/.328 batting line during the first season. Rosario bounced back somewhat to hit 21 home runs a year ago, though his .255/.305/.450 slash was average overall. Atlanta declined a $9MM option for the 2024 campaign, sending the 32-year-old back to the open market. Rosario lingered in free agency until Spring Training was underway. He eventually signed a minor league deal with the Nationals and locked in a $2MM salary when he made the team out of camp.

Rosario’s time in Washington was a disappointment. He got out to a dreadful first month, hitting .088 with just one homer through the end of April. The lefty-swinging outfielder connected on six longballs and five doubles in an impressive May before falling back into an extended slump. He hit .191/.200/.250 in June. The Nats pulled the plug last week, calling up top prospect James Wood and releasing Rosario after it became clear he wouldn’t play his way into being a valuable trade chip. Rosario finished his Washington tenure with a .183/.226/.329 slash across 235 plate appearances. He’s a .227/.275/.390 hitter over the past two and a half seasons.

That set the stage for another shot in Atlanta. The Braves inked Rosario to a minor league deal on Friday. After a trio of appearances for Gwinnett, he’s back in the MLB outfield. He could step into a left field platoon with the righty-swinging Ramón Laureano, who signed a minor league deal with Atlanta in May after being released by the Guardians. Laureano has been nursing a back issue for over a week, so Eli White (whose contract was just selected on Friday) started in left field for all three games of Atlanta’s weekend series with the Phillies.

Jarred Kelenic is playing every day in center field while Michael Harris II mends a hamstring strain. Adam Duvall is handling right field. The outfield is a clear weak point for the Braves since they lost Ronald Acuña Jr. to a season-ending ACL tear. It’s entirely unsurprising that they’re evaluating trade possibilities before the July 30 deadline. Rosario’s return stint with the Braves could be brief if president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos and his staff can land a more significant upgrade over the next few weeks.

For the time being, the Braves will take a low-cost roll of the dice on Rosario hitting a hot streak in a familiar setting. Atlanta will only pay him the prorated portion of the $740K league minimum for however long he’s on the roster. The Nats remain on the hook for the rest of his salary.

Mariners Activate Gregory Santos From 60-Day Injured List

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The Mariners are getting a big arm back in the bullpen, as they announced Monday that right-hander Gregory Santos has been reinstated from the 60-day injured list. Seattle already had an open 40-man spot to accommodate the move, and righty Emerson Hancock was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma to open a spot on the active 26-man roster.

Acquired from the White Sox in an offseason trade sending outfielder Zach DeLoach, righty Prelander Berroa and a Competitive Balance (Round B) draft pick back to Chicago, Santos has yet to throw a pitch with the Mariners. The right-hander suffered a lat strain in spring training an has spent the entire year to this point on the injured list. The 24-year-old tossed a pair of shutout innings during a minor league rehab stint, fanning two of his seven opponents without issuing a walk. That was sufficient for the Mariners to activate him.

Last year with the White Sox, Santos broke out with 66 1/3 innings of 3.39 ERA ball. For a pitcher who’d been designated for assignment by the Giants and flipped to the Sox for minor league righty Kade McClure, it was an unexpected development and one of the few bright spots in an otherwise awful 2023 campaign for the ChiSox. Santos fanned a roughly average 22.8% of his opponents, turned in an outstanding 5.9% walk rate and kept the ball on the ground at a very strong 52.5% clip — all while averaging 98.8 mph on his sinker.

In acquiring Santos, the Mariners hoped to be landing five years of a premium reliever to pair with standout closer Andres Munoz and flamethrowing setup stud Matt Brash. That plan hasn’t come to fruition. Brash won’t pitch this season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in early May. Santos will make his Mariners debut in the coming days. Munoz has been excellent (1.50 ERA, 30.3% strikeout rate, 14 saves), but the setup bridge to him has been handled by spring signee Ryne Stanek, 2023 deadline acquisition Trent Thornton and offseason signee Austin Voth. Santos might not jump right into the mix as the top setup option, but he should be pitching in high-leverage spots before terribly long, so long as he remains healthy.

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