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Poll: What Should The Braves Do With Ozzie Albies?

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It’s been a tough season all around in Atlanta. The club has lost four of its top five starters (Chris Sale, Reynaldo Lopez, Spencer Schwellenbach, and AJ Smith-Shawver) to the injured list so far, with Spencer Strider having spent time on the shelf earlier in the year as well. The offense has produced well below expectations despite brilliant performances from Ronald Acuna Jr. and the club’s catching tandem, as well as the ever-steady production of Matt Olson at first base. The bullpen, typically anchored by Raisel Iglesias, has looked uncharacteristically shaky. For all the things that have gone wrong this year, perhaps none have been as frustrating for the club as the struggles of Ozzie Albies.

Albies, 28, is a three-time All-Star who entered the 2025 season with a career 108 wRC+ and more than 20 career WAR according to both FanGraphs and Baseball Reference. He has not looked at all like himself this season. Across 90 games and 383 plate appearances, he’s slashed just .223/.292/.315 (72 wRC+). His expected numbers (.291 xwOBA) are stronger than his actual production (.274 wOBA), but both figures are well below par this season. That’s come in spite of a strikeout rate (15.4%) that’s lower than his career norms and a walk rate (8.1%) that’s actually the highest of his career.

With his plate discipline numbers looking better than ever, the culprit behind Albies’ lack of productivity is clear: power. The infielder has just six home runs this year and 19 extra-base hits total. His .092 ISO (slugging minus average) is the seventh-lowest figure in baseball and trails even contact-oriented bats like Nico Hoerner and Bryson Stott. It’s not impossible to be a productive bat with that level of power; Hoerner has a 104 wRC+ with an ISO just two points higher than Albies, while J.P. Crawford has an identical ISO and a wRC+ of 128. It’s a profile that requires even better plate discipline numbers than Albies has, however. Crawford’s production is boosted by an excellent 13.3% walk rate, while Hoerner strikes out at a microscopic 6.7% clip.

Aside from that, both hitters also carry BABIPs over .300. Albies sits at just .251 this season. That’s very low and should be expected to come up at least a little bit, but the switch-hitter has a BABIP of just .289 for his career and has posted a figure over .300 in a full season just once before, in the 2019 season. Rather than better fortune on batted balls, Albies’ previous production came by way of 25-to-30 homer thump when healthy. Unfortunately, that power has disappeared. Albies hit just 10 homers in 99 games last year, and that might’ve looked like an anomaly at the time, but this year’s lack of pop now makes it look like the start of a new normal.

If Albies can’t turn things around soon, how should the Braves approach their second baseman? He’s proven capable of being a star when at his best, so the idea of trading him at such a low point in his value would be difficult to swallow. Declining his $7MM club option for 2026 seems like it should be off the table entirely, particularly given the $4MM buyout that effectively makes it a $3MM decision.

At the same time, Atlanta has just three more seasons of team control over Acuna, and 2026 will be Sale’s final year before he reaches free agency unless he agrees to another extension. The Braves have been clear that they don’t plan to sell much this summer, if they do at all. But the offseason will see players like Iglesias and Marcell Ozuna depart for free agency, necessitating a reconstruction of the roster anyway. Could seeing about an upgrade at second base be a sensible part of that offseason retool?

With so many of Atlanta’s most important pieces nearing the open market in the next few years, it can be argued that the Braves would be better served trying to find more certain production at the keystone by targeting a player like Gleyber Torres in free agency. The flip side of that, of course, is that Albies’ contract is exceptionally cost-effective. Torres’ $15MM salary with the Tigers this year is already more than double Albies’ salary for next season if his option is picked up, and Torres appears ticketed for a much bigger payday in his return to free agency this winter. Rolling the dice on Albies could be easier to stomach if other pieces of the Braves’ current core like Michael Harris II and Jurickson Profar can put up big numbers in the second half and assuage concerns over another season where the team is mired in an offensive malaise.

How do MLBTR readers think Atlanta’s front office should approach the situation they’ve found themselves in with Albies? Should they stick with him going forward due to his potential upside and cheap salary, or should they see what they can get on the trade market in hopes of replacing him with a steadier option? Have your say in the poll below:

Guardians Re-Sign Kolby Allard, Option Tim Herrin

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The Guardians announced that they have re-signed left-hander Kolby Allard to a minor league deal and selected him to the big league roster. He had just elected free agency yesterday. Fellow lefty Tim Herrin has been optioned to Triple-A Columbus in a corresponding active roster move. The 40-man roster had a couple of vacancies.

Allard was added to Cleveland’s roster in late April and spent a few months working as a long reliever. In 16 appearances, he logged 35 1/3 innings with a 2.55 earned run average. That ERA wasn’t sustainable. His 5.3% walk rate was strong but his 10.5% strikeout rate was tiny, the lowest in the majors this year among guys with at least 30 innings pitched. A 3.6% homer to fly ball rate helped him have an 80.9% strand rate. His 5.07 SIERA this year and his 5.59 career ERA suggested regression was likely.

The Guards designated him for assignment last week. He cleared waivers and, as mentioned, elected free agency. The Cleveland bullpen was heavily used in recent days. The played ten innings on Sunday and Tuesday, sandwiched around a regular nine-inning contest on Monday. Many of the pitchers in their bullpen pitched in two or even all three of those contests. Slade Cecconi starts tonight and Allard could perhaps pitch multiple innings in relief, sparing the bullpen from further exhaustion.

Herrin’s optional assignment is notable. Over the 2023 and 2024 seasons, he tossed 93 1/3 innings for Cleveland with a 2.99 ERA, 26.5% strikeout rate, 9.8% walk rate and 48% ground ball rate. He earned 17 holds in that time.

His results have backed up this year, more than his 3.99 ERA would suggest. His 21.2% strikeout rate is a few ticks below his prior work, as is his 40.3% ground ball rate. His walk rate, meanwhile, has shot up to 16.7%. If it weren’t for a .257 batting average on balls in play and an 80.4% strand rate, he would have allowed even more runs, with his 5.04 SIERA perhaps pointing to his true level of performance this year.

That seems to have put a big dent in his standing with the Guards. As mentioned, the club’s bullpen was heavily taxed in the past few days, with some guys pitching three games in a row. Meanwhile, Herrin hasn’t pitched since Saturday and is now being sent down despite being the freshest arm in the bunch. He’ll try to get back on track in Columbus and earn his way back to the big leagues.

Photo courtesy of Steven Bisig, Imagn Images

Angels Select Carson Fulmer

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The Angels announced today that they have selected the contract of right-hander Carson Fulmer. To open an active roster spot, left-hander Sam Aldegheri has been optioned to Double-A Rocket City. Righty Hunter Strickland has been transferred to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man spot.

Fulmer, 31, will be making his season debut when he gets into a game. He pitched for the Angels in 2023 and 2024, tossing 96 2/3 innings with an earned run average of 4.00. He struck out 20.8% of batters faced, gave out walks at a 10.5% clip and got grounders on 42.3% of balls in play.

He was outrighted off the roster at the end of the season and elected free agency. He signed a minor league deal with the Pirates and started the year in the Triple-A rotation. He didn’t have much success there, with a 5.34 ERA through six starts. He was then moved to the bullpen and tossed 14 innings with a 3.21 ERA. He was released by the Pirates and returned to the Angels on a minor league deal just over a month ago. Since then, he has tossed 11 2/3 Triple-A innings with a 1.54 ERA, giving him a combined 3.98 ERA on the year overall.

The Halos got blown out by the Rangers yesterday, eventually losing 13-1. Starter José Soriano only lasted four innings. Aldegheri came in and soaked up another two frames, but it took him 64 pitches to get those six outs. He likely wasn’t going to be available for a few days, so the Angels have brought up Fulmer as a fresh arm. Fulmer is out of options and would need to be removed from the 40-man roster if they want to bump him off the active roster at any point.

As for Strickland, he hit the 15-day IL a couple of days ago due to right shoulder inflammation. This transfer means he is ineligible to return until early September. He tells Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com that he has a significant strain but it won’t require surgery and he hopes to be back in September.

Photo courtesy of Denny Medley, Imagn Images

Michael Kopech Undergoes Surgery On Torn Meniscus

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5:00pm: Kopech underwent surgery to address a torn meniscus in his right knee, per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register. The righty is expected to be able to return before the end of the season.

11:55am: The Dodgers announced today that right-hander Tyler Glasnow has been reinstated from the 60-day injured list, a move that was reported a few days ago. Righty Alexis Díaz was optioned to the minors to open an active roster spot and righty Michael Kopech was transferred to the 60-day IL to open a 40-man spot.

It’s a bit of a worrisome development for Kopech. He was only placed on the 15-day IL on July 1st, retroactive to June 28th, due to right knee inflammation. At that time, both the pitcher himself and manager Dave Roberts downplayed the severity. “I think we’re all hopeful it will be on the shorter end of it,” Roberts said last week, per Alden González of ESPN.

Either that comment wasn’t fully candid or something has changed since then, as this transfer now means that Kopech is ineligible to return until late August. The Dodgers haven’t yet provided any specific information about how long they expect Kopech to be out but the transfer provides at least a best-case scenario.

That’s an unfortunate development for both Kopech and the Dodgers. He also started the season on the IL due to a shoulder impingement and missed more than two months. He was healthy long enough to give the Dodgers seven shutout innings before going back on the IL again.

For the Dodgers, it’s yet another in a long line of injuries. They’ve been moving players on and off the IL all throughout the year, particularly on the pitching side. Even with Glasnow coming off the shelf today, they still have 11 arms on the IL. The bullpen is without Kopech, Evan Phillips, Blake Treinen, Brusdar Graterol and Michael Grove. Phillips and Grove had major surgeries and won’t be coming back this year.

If Kopech can return in August or September, then he could still be a part of the club’s bullpen down the stretch and into the postseason. Regardless, the Dodgers figure to add some arms prior to the deadline. All contending clubs look for bullpen additions at this time of year and the Dodgers should be even more motivated by their mounting injuries.

For Kopech personally, he’s an impending free agent. He could still return and go into the open market with some juice, but it’s been a less than ideal platform season so far. He previously struggled to establish himself as a starter with the White Sox, partially due to injuries, but a recent bullpen move seemed to be a good transition for him.

He tossed 43 2/3 innings out of Chicago’s bullpen last year. The 4.74 ERA wasn’t great, nor was the 12.6% walk rate, but he struck out 30.9% of batters faced. He reached another level after getting traded to the Dodgers, tossing 24 innings with a 1.13 ERA. His 33% strikeout rate and 11.4% walk rate were both slight improvements, though he also benefited from a .167 batting average on balls in play and 90.9% strand rate. Nonetheless, he played a key role in the playoffs, tossing nine innings with three earned runs allowed as the Dodgers went on to win it all.

Another full season as a relief weapon would have positioned him for a nice market this winter. Now, however, it’s possible the ongoing health problems will tamp down his earning power. As mentioned, he seemingly still has time to get healthy and finish strong but his injury history list continues to run long. He missed the 2019 season due to Tommy John surgery and has since spent time on the IL due to a strained left hamstring, left knee strain, right shoulder inflammation and right knee inflammation. He managed to avoid the IL last year while working as a reliever but now has been bit by the injury bug a few times here in 2025.

Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images

Trevor Williams To Undergo UCL Surgery

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Nationals right-hander Trevor Williams told members of the media today that he has a partial tear of his ulnar collateral ligament and will undergo surgery. He is expecting it to be internal brace surgery, though a full Tommy John procedure is still a possibility. He will therefore miss the remainder of this season and possibly all of 2026 as well. He’s already on the 60-day injured list. Spencer Nusbaum of The Washington Post was among those to pass the news along.

Williams, 33, made his most recent start on Wednesday of last week. The first game of a doubleheader against the Tigers, Williams had a less-than-ideal experience. He struggled in the top of the first but, with a long day ahead, the Nats left him out there to take a beating. Pitchers usually aren’t allowed to throw more than 3o to 40 pitches in a single inning but the Nats let Williams throw 54 in that frame, as he eventually got out of it with six runs having scored. He tossed two more innings after that.

Two days later, he was placed on the 15-day IL with an elbow sprain. Yesterday, he was transferred to the 60-day IL, which indicated the Nats didn’t expect him back for a few months. With the news of this surgery, he’ll be out much longer than that. The timelines for an internal brace procedure can be a bit shorter than with a full Tommy John, though it’s still usually about a year.

Williams has been part of Washington’s rotation since 2023. He signed a two-year, $13MM deal ahead of that 2023 season. The first campaign in Washington didn’t go especially well, as he posted a 5.55 earned run average over his 31 starts.

Last year, he showed significant improvement, though in a smaller sample size. He missed a few months with a flexor strain, limiting him to just 13 starts, but with a 2.03 ERA. There was surely some good luck in there, as his .267 batting average on balls in play and 80.2% strand rate were both to the fortunate side. Part of the reason he was able to strand so many runners is that only 4.2% of his fly balls left the yard, a massive drop from his 17% rate in 2023. But on the other hand, his 22.7% strikeout rate, 6.9% walk rate and 45.4% ground ball rate were all strong figures. His 2.79 FIP and 3.96 SIERA suggested he could post good numbers even with some regression in the luck department.

The Nats decided to bring him back to serve as a veteran back-end guy, an understandable move for a rebuilding club with lots of inexperienced starters. They gave him another two-year deal, with the $14MM guarantee amounting to a slight pay bump compared to his prior deal. Unfortunately, his luck turned far in the other direction this year. In 17 starts, he posted a 6.21 ERA here in 2025. His strikeout rate dropped to 17.4% and his grounder rate to 33%, but he still only walked 5.6% of opponents. His .347 BABIP and 61.6% strand rate both swung far to the unlucky side. His 4.08 FIP and 4.46 SIERA suggested some correction over the rest of the season may have been likely but that won’t happen now.

Williams will spend the rest of this year on the shelf and will start next year on the IL as well. Depending on his surgery and rehab, he could work his way into the mix during the 2026 season. Whether there’s a rotation spot for him there will depend upon what the Nats do this winter.

For now, they have a rotation consisting of MacKenzie Gore, Michael Soroka, Mitchell Parker, Jake Irvin and Shinnosuke Ogasawara. Soroka is on a one-year deal and likely to be dealt this month. Gore has been the subject of some trade speculation since the Nats are struggling to come out of their rebuild and he’s only controlled for two more seasons after this one, but there hasn’t been any real suggestion the Nats want to make such a move. Parker and Irvin are serviceable back-end guys. Ogasawara only has one major league start so far, which didn’t go especially well.

Josiah Gray had UCL surgery last summer and could perhaps be back in the mix later this year. Cade Cavalli is in Triple-A and could be back in the majors at some point. Prospects like Travis Sykora or Jarlin Susana could get into the mix down the line but both are currently injured and neither has reached the Triple-A level yet.

If the Nats want to accelerate the end of their rebuild, spending some money to bolster this rotation group would be a sensible plan for this winter. However, the future is currently murky, with manager Dave Martinez and president of baseball operations Mike Rizzo having just been fired a few days ago.

Photos courtesy of David Frerker and Geoff Burke, Imagn Images

Pirates Release Tanner Rainey

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The Pirates have released right-hander Tanner Rainey, per the MiLB.com transaction log. He’d been in Pittsburgh’s bullpen earlier this season but had more recently been pitching in Triple-A Indianapolis after being designated for assignment, passed through waivers and re-signed on a new minor league contract.

Rainey’s time with the Pirates’ big league club earlier this year didn’t go well. He pitched in 11 games but lasted only 7 2/3 innings while serving up nine runs on seven hits, six walks and a hit batter. He fanned nine of 37 opponents (24.3%). His fastball, which averaged 97 mph as recently as 2022 with the Nationals, sat at 95 mph.

Since being passed through waivers and heading back to Indy, however, Rainey has been outstanding. He’s pitched in eight games and tallied eight shutout frames with nine strikeouts against five walks. It seems odd that he’d be released on the heels of a run like that, but minor league deals for veterans of this nature often contain opt-out dates, upward mobility clauses and language granting the player the right to pursue foreign opportunities. Any of those could be at play with regard to Rainey, who now has a 3.18 ERA, 28.2% strikeout rate and 12.2% walk rate in 17 innings at the Triple-A level this season.

The 32-year-old Rainey was a hard-throwing, at times dominant late-inning arm with the Nationals from 2019-23. Command issues have plagued him throughout his big league tenure, but prior to undergoing Tommy John surgery late in the 2022 season, he sat 97 mph with his heater and fanned nearly one-third of his opponents. Since returning from injury, however, has a 5.43 ERA in 59 2/3 big league innings.

Red Sox Reinstate Masataka Yoshida, Transfer Nick Burdi To 60-Day IL

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The Red Sox announced today that they have reinstated outfielder/designated hitter Masataka Yoshida from the 60-day injured list. To open an active roster spot, infielder/outfielder Nate Eaton has been optioned to Triple-A Worcester. Right-hander Nick Burdi was transferred to the 60-day IL to open a 40-man spot.

Yoshida will be making his season debut in today’s game, serving as the designated hitter and batting sixth. He underwent shoulder surgery in October of last year and has been on the injured list until today. He was healthy enough to hit a long time ago but struggled to get his shoulder to a place where he could throw at full strength. That made him unable to play the field and essentially unrosterable. The Sox signed Alex Bregman in the winter and put him at third base, bumping Rafael Devers into the designated hitter spot on an everyday basis.

Much has changed since then. The DH move upset Devers and he was further rankled when Triston Casas got injured and the Sox asked him to learn first base. The relationship soured enough that the Sox flipped him to the Giants in a stunning deal.

That opened the DH spot, and Yoshida is now capable of playing the field, but the Sox still have quite a glut in the outfield. Today, Yoshida is in the DH spot with Roman Anthony in left, Jarren Duran in center and Wilyer Abreu in right. That leaves Ceddanne Rafaela on the bench, in addition to Rob Refsnyder. Yoshida has done some first base drills but isn’t considered much more than an emergency option there.

For now, manager Álex Cora will seemingly take turns benching guys from that mix, with Rafaela getting the first taste of that. Perhaps that can work for the short term but it’s an inelegant mix for the long term. Due to this cluster, there have been plenty of trade rumors surrounding players like Yoshida, Duran and Abreu, as observers speculate about the possibility of the Sox flipping one of them for some pitching.

Duran and Abreu are both strong players in their 20s, with Duran having three years of club control after this one and Abreu four. Yoshida, almost 32 years old, is seemingly less a key piece of the club’s future but his trade value wouldn’t be terribly high at the moment. He is making $18MM annually through the 2027 season. In his major league career, he’s been a poor fielder while his offense has been decent but not astounding. He currently sports a .285/.343/.433 batting line and 113 wRC+. As mentioned, he’s been on the IL all year until today.

Put it all together and it’s a tricky calculus for the Sox. Moving Yoshida is likely preferable for the long term but he would bring back less in a trade than some of their other players. With just a few weeks until the trade deadline, perhaps they will field some interesting calls from other clubs.

As for Burdi, he landed on the 15-day IL in early June due to a right foot contusion. He started a minor league rehab assignment a few weeks ago but only made two appearances. That was due to a hip issue, according to Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald. Injuries have been a persistent problem for Burdi. He has appeared in six different major league seasons, debuting back in 2018, but he has just 30 1/3 big league innings under his belt.

Photo courtesy of Nathan Ray Seebeck, Imagn Images

Mariners Outright Jacob Hurtubise

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The Mariners announced that outfielder Jacob Hurtubise has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Tacoma. There wasn’t any previous indication he had been removed from the 40-man, so Seattle’s count drops to 39.

Hurtubise, 27, hasn’t yet appeared in a major league game with the Mariners. He was claimed off waivers from the Reds a few weeks ago and kept on optional assignment. Since then, he has hit .150/.269/.150 in ten Triple-A games. On the heels of that cold stretch, it seems the M’s decided it would be a good time to pass him through waivers and open a roster spot, which turned out to be correct.

Since Hurtubise has less than three years of big league service time and this is his first outright assignment, he does not have the right to elect free agency. The Mariners will therefore get to keep him as non-roster depth.

He has a small amount of major league experience but without success thus far. He currently sports a .167/.291/.212 batting line in 83 plate appearances with the Reds. But he has hit more in the minors, with some speed to boot. He had 715 plate appearances on the farm over 2023 and 2024 with a .306/.443/.437 batting line. His 15.1% walk rate was almost as high as his 15.7% strikeout rate. Overall, that production translated to a 138 wRC+. He also swiped 62 bags in 72 tries over those seasons.

This year has been a struggle but Hurtubise will try to get back in good form and earn his way back onto the roster. For the Mariners, they are surely happy to be able to hold onto a talented player while opening a roster spot for a future move.

Photo courtesy of Katie Stratman, Imagn Images

Marlins Claim Tyler Zuber, Designate Nick Nastrini

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1:47pm: The Marlins announced that Zuber has indeed been claimed off waivers from the Mets. Miami designated right-hander Nick Nastrini for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster.

The 25-year-old Nastrini was claimed off waivers from the White Sox eight days ago. He’s started one game in Jacksonville since that claim, pitching two innings and allowing a a pair of runs in a concerning manner; Nastrini didn’t allow a hit in that appearance but issued four walks and plunked three batters.

Once a well-regarded prospect in the Dodgers and White Sox systems, Nastrini pitched poorly in 35 2/3 big league innings during last year’s debut with the White Sox. He also struggled to a 5.29 ERA in 85 Triple-A frames and has been knocked around for a 7.58 earned run average in 46 1/3 Triple-A innings so far in 2025. Nastrini has long drawn praise for a pair of quality breaking balls that give him strong bat-missing abilities, but command has been persistently cited as a weakness in scouting reports — and that’s played out so far both in Triple-A and in the majors.

The Marlins will have five days to place Nastrini back on waivers or trade him to another club. He’s in his second of three minor league option years.

1:35pm: The Marlins claimed right-handed reliever Tyler Zuber off waivers from the Mets, reports Kevin Barral of Fish On First. He’s been optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville. The Mets designated Zuber for assignment over the weekend. Miami has yet to formally announce the waiver claim, which will require the team to open a spot on the 40-man roster.

Zuber, 30, pitched in only one game with the Mets, allowing a pair of runs in two innings. He’s appeared in parts of four big league seasons between New York, Kansas City and Tampa Bay, working to a combined 5.27 ERA with a 25.2% strikeout rate and a 15.9% walk rate.

Zuber has also pitched in parts of four Triple-A seasons but carries an ERA north of 5.00 there as well. Command issues have dogged him, particularly in the upper minors, but he’s regularly shown an ability to miss bats — both in terms of his raw strikeout rate and his typically above-average swinging-strike rates. He’s in his final minor league option year, so the Marlins can shuttle him back and forth between Jacksonville and Miami without needing to expose Zuber to waivers.

While he’s typically been a three-pitch reliever in the past, Zuber has added a changeup to his repertoire in Triple-A this year and tossed the pitch at an 11% clip. He’s still leaning primarily on a four-seamer that’s averaging 93.8 mph, a slider in the 82-83 mph range and a cutter in the low 90s, but the addition of a changeup gives him another offering with which to experiment while he tries to work his way back to the big league level with his new club.

Brewers Acquire Steward Berroa

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Prior to facing each other on the field today, the Brewers and Dodgers have lined up on a trade, per Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. Outfielder Steward Berroa, who was recently designated for assignment by the Dodgers, head to the Brewers in exchange for cash. The Brewers have placed him on the minor league injured list due to right shoulder bursitis. Right-hander Elvin Rodríguez has been designated for assignment to open a 40-man roster spot.

It’s the second DFA trade of the year for Berroa. He spent many years as a prospect in the Blue Jays’ system and got to make his major league debut with that club last year. He got squeezed off the roster in May and flipped to the Dodgers for cash. Now the same sequence of events gets him moved from the Dodgers to the Brewers.

Berroa, 26, has a decent floor as a speedy outfielder. He’s generally been good for about 50 steals per year in the minors, give or take, while playing all three outfield positions. His work at the plate has been a bit more questionable, but with some positive signs. Over the 2021 to 2023 seasons, he produced a combined .241/.350/.391 line and 108 wRC+ on the farm. His 13.7% walk rate was good but he also struck out 25.3% of the time.

Last year, he seemed to take a bit of a step forward. He got his strikeout rate down to 23.7% while still drawing walks at a healthy 11.7% clip. He produced a .281/.371/.454 line and 120 wRC+ in 79 Triple-A games. He also got up to the majors, chipping in for a Toronto team that was floundering last year. He walked at a 17.8% rate but was also punched out 31.1% of the time, leading to a .189/.333/.216 slash while he stole six bases in eight tries.

This year, he got out to an awful start in the Jays’ system. He bounced back tremendously with the Dodgers, but with a huge help from a .403 batting average on balls in play. Put together, he has a .270/.358/.345 line and 90 wRC+ at Triple-A this year with 20 steals. He last played on June 19th, presumably due to the shoulder issue that landed him on the IL today.

Berroa can still be optioned for the rest of this this year and one additional season, so he’ll give the Brewers some extra outfield depth. At worse, he can be a fourth outfielder, doing some pinch-running and defensive replacement work. The bat has been mercurial but could also potentially be useful, depending on how things swing.

In order to add that outfield depth, the Brewers are potentially losing Rodríguez. The Brewers signed him in January after he spent 2024 in Japan, posting a 1.80 earned run average over there. He hasn’t been anywhere close to that successful for Milwaukee this year. He has thrown 18 2/3 big league innings with an ERA of 8.68. His 20.2% strikeout rate and 8.3% walk rate are decent figures but he has allowed seven home runs in that small amount of time. He’s also tossed 29 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level with a 4.25 ERA.

He’ll now head into DFA limbo, which can last as long as a week. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so Milwaukee could take five days to explore trade interest. As a player with a previous career outright, he would have the right to reject an outright assignment if he clears waivers.

However, since he has less than five years of major league service time, he would have to forfeit his remaining salary commitments in order to exercise that right. His contract is a split deal which pays him $900K in the majors and $300K in the minors. The minimum salary at the Triple-A level is just above $35K, barely a tenth of what Rodríguez would make. That would presumably makes it unlikely he would elect free agency.

Photo courtesy of Kim Klement Neitzel, Imagn Images

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