Phillies Select Casey Fien’s Contract
The Phillies have announced the addition of reliever Casey Fien to their 25- and 40-man rosters. Fien will take the place of fellow reliever Joely Rodriguez, whose designation for assignment is now official.
Philadelphia acquired the 33-year-old Fien in a cash trade with Seattle last month, which came after the Mariners outrighted him. The right-hander signed a $1MM deal with the Mariners over the winter and then posted disastrous results in six innings with the club, allowing 10 earned runs on nine hits and four walks, with six strikeouts. Fien also struggled in the majors last year across 39 1/3 innings with the Twins and Dodgers, combining for a 5.49 ERA despite logging 8.0 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9.
Unlike 2012-15, when he pitched to a 3.54 ERA over 223 2/3 innings with the Twins, home runs have been problematic lately for Fien. He gave up homers on 24.5 percent of fly balls last year and has yielded them at a 50 percent rate during his small sample of big league work this season. That could be an issue in the Phillies’ hitter-friendly confines, but there’s little harm in giving Fien an opportunity to reestablish himself in the majors. The 21-36 Phillies are already out of the playoff race, after all, and their bullpen has produced the majors’ seventh-worst ERA (4.74). Fien, for his part, fared well with their Triple-A affiliate before his promotion, throwing nine homer-less innings of two-run ball and adding 11 strikeouts against two walks.
Phillies Designate Joely Rodriguez For Assignment
The Phillies have designated southpaw Joely Rodriguez for assignment, CSNPhilly.com’s Jim Salisbury reports (Twitter link).
Originally acquired from the Pirates in the Antonio Bastardo trade, Rodriguez made his big league debut last season and pitched 27 innings out of the Phillies’ bullpen this year, posting a 6.33 ERA and barely more strikeouts (18) than walks (15). The lefty also allowed four homers in his brief time on the hill this season.
Ranked by Baseball America as the 23rd-best prospect in Philadelphia’s system prior to the season, Rodriguez is the curious combination of a hard-thrower who doesn’t generate many strikeouts. The 2017 Baseball Prospect Handbook describes Rodriguez as the owner of a 94-96 mph fastball that “can touch 98 with sink to help him get grounders.” These groundball tendencies have been on display even in his brief big league tenure, as Rodriguez has a 58.5% grounder rate over his 36 career innings. Over 647 1/3 frames in the minors, Rodriguez has a 4.24 ERA, 1.91 K/BB rate and just a 5.6 K/9.
Adam Morgan is the only left-handed remaining in the Phillies’ bullpen, so Triple-A southpaws Cesar Ramos and Hoby Milner stand out as the most obvious candidates to be called up as Rodriguez’s replacement on the 25-man roster. Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets that the new player will likely not be on the 40-man roster (Ramos and Milner both fit this bill) and the Phillies won’t name the new player until Thursday.
NL East Notes: Garrett, S-Rod, Quinn
It was on this day in 1966 that the Mets drafted catcher Steve Chilcott with the first overall pick of the amateur draft. A catcher out of Antelope Valley High School in Lancaster, California, Chilcott’s seven-year pro career was plagued by injuries and he never reached the big leagues. Brien Taylor is the only other 1-1 selection to retire without ever making it to the Show; three more recent selections (Mark Appel, Brady Aiken and Mickey Moniak) are still in the minors and yet to receive their first taste of MLB action. The Chilcott pick doubly hurt the Mets since they took him ahead of a somewhat prominent player who was picked second overall by the A’s — Mr. October himself, Reggie Jackson.
Here’s the latest from around the NL East…
- Marlins left-handed pitching prospect Braxton Garrett has a partial UCL tear in his throwing elbow and may need Tommy John surgery, Andre C. Fernandez of the Miami Herald reports. Garrett, who turns 20 in August, was selected seventh overall by the Fish in the 2016 amateur draft. He was ranked as a consensus top-100 prospect (42nd by ESPN’s Keith Law, 43rd by MLB.com, 71st by Baseball Prospectus, 76th by Baseball America) prior to the season and was considered easily the best minor leaguer within a thin Miami farm system. As Fernandez notes, Garrett would be the second top Marlins pitching prospect (after Tyler Kolek) to require Tommy John surgery within the last 14 months.
- Sean Rodriguez has resumed some baseball activities and is working hard towards a return before the season is over, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes. Rodriguez and his family were in a horrific car accident in January that injured his two sons, required his wife to undergo wrist surgery amidst several other serious injuries, and seemingly ended Rodriguez’s season before it started due to shoulder surgery. Now, Braves manager Brian Snitker thinks Rodriguez could potentially be back as soon as August. The utilityman signed a two-year, $11MM contract with Atlanta last November and has been a constant presence at in the team’s clubhouse, working out with team trainers and his fellow players.
- Phillies outfield prospect Roman Quinn has a UCL injury in his left elbow, MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki reports (Twitter link). An MRI revealed the issue, and Quinn will visit Dr. James Andrews for a second opinion. While Quinn throws with his right arm, this still could be a significant setback for the 24-year-old, who made his MLB debut last year in 15 games with Philadelphia. Quinn, ranked as the 99th-best prospect in the game by MLB.com prior to the season, was expected to receive a longer look this summer as the Phillies continues their rebuilding process.
Rosenthal’s Latest: CBA, Cardinals, Marlins, Torres, Orioles
Here are highlights of the latest notes column from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- Some teams pursued free agents last winter with the idea that the new CBA would allow them to have 26-man rosters in 2017. That plan, along with a related move to reduce September roster expansion to 28 players, did not wind up in the CBA, but owners and the union are open-minded to the possibility of revising it next winter, although such a change to the current CBA would likely only take place along with the addition of pace-of-play rules.
- It would make sense for the Cardinals to discuss a trade with the Marlins involving outfielder Marcell Ozuna, Rosenthal writes. The Cardinals would get a middle-of-the-order hitter who is controllable through 2019. The Marlins, meanwhile, want to add prospects and it’s doubtful they can extend Ozuna, who is represented by Scott Boras. (Rosenthal recently reported that the Marlins would consider trading Ozuna.) Rosenthal also argues that the Marlins’ best path forward right now is to rebuild. Past attempts to win now have resulted in the team giving up too many small pieces of their future (including players like Andrew Heaney and Josh Naylor) in recent trades.
- Top Yankees infield prospect Gleyber Torres has limited experience in the high minors, but he might be promoted to replace Chase Headley (who’s batting just .228/.300/.348 over 203 plate appearances this season) at third base in the near future, since the first-place Yankees could see Torres as a better option than dealing prospects to acquire a veteran third baseman.
- Outfielder Howie Kendrick and reliever Pat Neshek have performed well for the Phillies this season and could provide the team with good trade value, perhaps along with Joaquin Benoit, once Benoit returns from a DL stint caused by a knee strain.
- A source tells Rosenthal the Orioles want lefty relief help, although he notes that Double-A lefty Tanner Scott could become an option at some point. Scott, a sixth-round pick in 2014, has a 1.64 ERA and 11.7 K/9 in 33 innings thus far this season, although he might need to work on his 6.0 BB/9 so far before making it to the Majors. The O’s currently have Donnie Hart and Richard Bleier pitching as lefties out of their bullpen; another lefty reliever, Zach Britton, is out for an extended period with a forearm strain, although he doesn’t pitch in a typical lefty role anyway.
Knocking Down The Door: Adams, Blackburn, Fisher, Meadows, Therrien
This week’s installation of “Knocking Down The Door” includes two highly-touted center field prospects, a reliever who had been doing his best Kenley Jansen impression in Double-A before a recent promotion to Triple-A, and a pair of starting pitchers who can’t be too far off from making their MLB debuts after dominating in their last outings.
Chance Adams, SP, New York Yankees (Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre)
If the Yankees, one of three teams in baseball to have only used five starting pitchers this season, need to dip into their farm system for rotation help, they appear to be in good shape with Chance Adams waiting in the wings.
The 22-year-old right-hander has risen up the ladder swiftly without much of a struggle in 220 2/3 minor league innings. After posting a 1.03 ERA in six Double-A starts to begin the season, he hasn’t slowed him down one bit since a promotion to Triple-A. He recently lowered his ERA to 1.57 after tossing one-hit ball over six shutout innings with two walks and a season-high 12 strikeouts in his fourth start with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
There doesn’t appear to be an immediate opening in the Yankees’ rotation, although Masahiro Tanaka‘s recent performance—21 earned runs and 30 hits over his last 17 2/3 innings—might be an indication that he’s not completely healthy and could use a stint on the disabled list.
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Paul Blackburn, SP, Oakland Athletics (Triple-A Nashville)
Acquired from the Mariners this past offseason for Danny Valencia, Blackburn has not wasted time in impressing his new organization. After not allowing a run in three of his last four starts, including seven shutout innings on Sunday, the 23-year-old has his ERA down to 3.26 with a 2.4 BB/9 and 6.7 K/9.
With Jharel Cotton‘s demotion to Triple-A last month lasting only two starts due to injuries to Kendall Graveman and Jesse Hahn, Blackburn’s emergence could afford the A’s the opportunity to get him back down to there to work on things for an extended period this time around.
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Derek Fisher, OF, Houston Astros (Triple-A Fresno)
It’s clear that Fisher’s overall game needs some work—50 strikeouts in 53 games; caught stealing 10 times in 19 attempts—and the powerful Astros lineup doesn’t appear to need any help right now. But it’s hard to ignore the rest of his numbers (.338/.397/.606; 14 HR, 16 2B, 19 BB) and not wonder how much more firepower he could add to the bottom of the Astros’ lineup in place of left fielder Nori Aoki, who isn’t doing much out of the No. 9 spot (.624 OPS).
Prior to a hitless game on Sunday, the 23-year-old Fisher had been on a nine-game hitting streak in which he had a .486 batting average (18-for-37), four doubles and four homers. It would likely benefit him to continue working on his game down in Triple-A, but he could also learn on the job in a low-pressure environment while giving the Astros much more production than they’re currently getting out of left field.
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Austin Meadows, OF, Pittsburgh Pirates (Triple-A Indianapolis)
When the Pirates were in need of an outfielder in mid-April after the 80-game suspension of Starling Marte was announced, Meadows was in a deep slump and not deserving of his first MLB call-up. With Marte’s return still more than a month away, however, it’s not too late for the Pirates to get a look at their top prospect, who has turned things around and has the potential to give a struggling team a much-needed shot in the arm.
Since posting a .503 OPS with five walks and 20 strikeouts in April, the 22-year-old has hit .302 with two homers, 12 doubles, 11 walks, 20 strikeouts and six stolen bases over his last 31 games. Adam Frazier, who is currently getting most of the starts in left field, has been one of the few bright spots for the Pirates. His ability to play multiple positions, however, makes him valuable as a super-utility man, which will be his role if Meadows gets the call.
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Jesen Therrien, RP, Philadelphia Phillies (Triple-A Lehigh Valley)
Therrien is only one scoreless appearance into his first Triple-A stint, but if his numbers at Double-A are any indication—1.26 ERA, 28 2/3 innings, 14 hits, three walks, 39 strikeouts—the 24-year-old right-hander shouldn’t be far away from helping a beleaguered Phillies bullpen.
With Joaquin Benoit on the disabled list, Jeanmar Gomez demoted to the bottom of the depth chart and Edubray Ramos not having the impact the team was hoping for, the rebuilding Phillies could not only use some reinforcements, they could also start looking towards the future and finding out which young arms will be able to help them in 2018 and beyond.
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“Knocking Down the Door” is a weekly feature that identifies minor leaguers who are making a case for a big league promotion.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Minor MLB Transactions: 6/4/17
Sunday’s minor moves from around baseball…
- The Phillies optioned first baseman/outfielder Brock Stassi to Double-A, the club announced. The drop of two levels was due to a crowded Triple-A roster, and Phils manager Pete Mackanin told reporters (including MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki) that the team wants Stassi to get regular at-bats. Stassi, 27, made his big league debut this season, hitting .197/.290/.361 with one home run over 69 plate appearances and 35 games for Philadelphia.
Earlier today
- Tigers outfielder Tyler Collins will head to Triple-A after clearing waivers, per a team announcement. Detroit designated Collins for assignment last Sunday, and while a trade looked like a possibility then, nothing came to fruition. Before the Tigers jettisoned Collins from their 40- and 25-man rosters, the 26-year-old opened 2017 with a .200/.288/.338 batting line over 146 plate appearances.
- The Orioles have signed left-handed reliever Lucas Luetge to a minor league deal, tweets Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. Luetge, whom the Reds released Friday, threw 27 2/3 innings with their Triple-A affiliate this season and, despite a 9.76 K/9 and a 2.93 BB/9, posted a 4.55 ERA. The 30-year-old was in the majors from 2012-15 as a member of the Mariners, with whom he logged a 4.35 ERA, 7.48 K/9, 4.75 BB/9 and a 47.7 percent ground-ball rate in 89 innings. Along the way, Luetge held left-handed hitters to a .201/.286/.281 line.
- In other Orioles news, they’ve announced that southpaw Paul Fry has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A. Fry, whom Baltimore acquired from Seattle in mid-April for an international bonus pool slot, has struggled over 23 1/3 innings with the O’s Triple-A affiliate (6.56 ERA, 9.26 K/9, 5.79 BB/9).
- The Dodgers have inked outfielder Quincy Latimore to a minor league contract. The 28-year-old Latimore, a fourth-round pick of the Pirates in 2007, has spent time with five big league organizations (including Detroit this year), though he didn’t ascend past Double-A with any of them. At that level, Latimore has hit .247/.318/.421 with 81 home runs in 2,585 PAs.
- The Red Sox have added right-hander Elih Villanueva on a minors pact. Villanueva threw three innings with the Marlins back in 2011, but the rest of his work has come at lower levels. The 30-year-old began the season with Lancaster of the independent Atlantic League, notching a 2.72 ERA, 7.9 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 36 1/3 frames. He hasn’t pitched for a major league team’s minor league affiliate since 2015, which he split between Baltimore’s Double-A and Triple-A clubs.
Reliever Notes: Jackson, Benoit, Smith
The Orioles and Edwin Jackson have agreed to extend his opt-out date to Monday, Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports (Twitter links). The veteran righty’s original opt-out date on his minor league deal was June 1, but Jackson will now have 24 hours after 11:59pm ET on Monday to decide on exercising his out clause. The O’s will then have 48 hours to either add Jackson to their Major League roster or release him. Though Jackson has spent the bulk of his 14-year MLB career as a starting pitcher, he has only started one of his 11 games for Triple-A Norfolk this season. Jackson has a 3.26 ERA in 19 1/3 IP, though with some rather middling peripherals (7.0 K/9, 4.7 BB/9). Pedro Alvarez also arranged a short extension his opt-out date, so it seems like the Orioles are still trying to buy themselves time to decide if or how some of their minor league veteran depth pieces can be retained.
Here’s some more on some bullpen arms…
- The Phillies have placed right-hander Joaquin Benoit on the 10-day DL (retroactive to June 1) with a left knee sprain, the team announced. Benoit has a 3.68 ERA over 22 innings for the Phils, though his advanced metrics (such as a .167 BABIP, 7.77 K/9 and 4.91 BB/9) indicate some good fortune. He had a short-lived stint at Philadelphia’s closer after Jeanmar Gomez‘s struggles and before Hector Neris ultimately took over the role. The veteran Benoit signed a one-year, $7.5MM deal with the Phillies last winter and projects as a trade candidate this summer, provided he makes a successful return from injury.
- Carson Smith is scheduled to throw a bullpen session this weekend and a live batting practice sometime this week in advance of a minor league rehab assignment, CSNNE.com’s Evan Drellich reports. As Smith tells Drellich, June was the target date for Smith’s return from his Tommy John surgery over a year ago, and the right-hander seems to be on track to finally make his Red Sox debut.
NL East Links: Kemp, Cespedes, Mets, Glover, Baker, Phillies
Matt Kemp has been such a boost to the Braves lineup that Mark Bradley of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution doesn’t see the team shopping Kemp as a deadline trade chip. Kemp is 32, is a limited defensive outfielder and has a hefty remaining salary owed through the 2019 season, yet Bradley feels the veteran has made himself a near-indispensable part of the roster. Kemp has been outstanding since joining the Braves last season, including a .345/.381/.608 slash line and 10 homers in 181 PA this year. Bradley also notes that Freddie Freeman‘s production improved with Kemp hitting behind him, which gives Kemp even more value.
Some notes from around the NL East…
- Mets GM Sandy Alderson said there wasn’t any new updates on Yoenis Cespedes‘ DL situation, which leads the New York Post’s Adam Rubin to doubt whether Cespedes will be able to return to action this week. Cespedes’ rehab stint for a hamstring injury was interrupted by some soreness in his long bothersome right quad muscle, and he has yet to resume full running, though he has been jogging. Alderson had previously said that Cespedes could potentially return for DH duty when the Mets are in Texas for an interleague series with the Rangers this week, though that timeline seems tenuous at this point.
- Also from Rubin, he reports that the Mets “aren’t likely” to go after relievers Bobby Parnell and Ernesto Frieri. The two right-handers recently opted out of minor league deals (Parnell with the Royals, Frieri with the Yankees) and are now free agents. Parnell, of course, has a notable history with the Mets, pitching for the club from 2008-15 and serving as the team’s closer in 2013.
- Though rookie Koda Glover has looked excellent as the Nationals‘ closer, Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post argues that the Nats should still pursue an experienced ninth-inning man before the trade deadline. Glover is still an unproven commodity with some durability questions and the Nationals’ bullpen is lacking in overall depth, plus Glover could still excel as a setup man down the stretch.
- The Nationals‘ pen is also one of many topics covered in a reader mailbag piece from Jorge Castillo and Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post, with Castillo feeling that the Nats will indeed obtain a reliever at the deadline. It may not necessarily be a big-name closer, however, given how Glover continues to perform over the next two months.
- From that same mailbag item, Janes writes that there don’t appear to be any extension talks between Dusty Baker and the Nationals, though that could be a function of ownership’s stance against making lengthy commitments to managers. It seems that both sides want to continue the relationship and all signs point towards Baker returning in 2018 (assuming the Nats continue to win, of course), though Janes notes that the team will have to pay market price for Baker given the success the Nationals have enjoyed in his tenure.
- Despite the Phillies‘ struggles, GM Matt Klentak reiterated to MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki and other media that the team hasn’t altered its approach to promoting its top minor league position players. The likes of J.P. Crawford, Roman Quinn, Rhys Hoskins and others at Triple-A could provide the Phils with a boost or at least give the youngsters some experience at the big league level as part of the team’s overall rebuilding process. The Phillies aren’t going to promote their prospects, however, until there is a clear opportunity for regular playing time and until each player is fully prepared for the majors. “To expose players to the big league level before they’re ready isn’t doing them any favors, nor is it doing the organization any favors. We have to constantly balance that,” Klentak said.
NL East Notes: Fernandez, Phillies, Medlen, Braves
Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald details the efforts by Major League Baseball and the Marlins to set up a fund for the infant daughter of deceased star Jose Fernandez. As Jackson explains, the money appears to have flowed from an insurance company to the league, then on to the team and into a trust for her benefit. Those interested in the specifics should read the exhaustively reported piece.
Here’s more from the NL East:
- Phillies GM Matt Klentak sat down for an interesting chat with Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com, which you can watch or read about right here. It’s certainly worth a full look for Phils’ fans, as Klentak discusses the team’s woeful performance in May. He emphasized a need to remain patient and keep the focus on the future, but acknowledged the disappointment. As for two particularly important players, Klentak says the team wants to let them work things out at the major league level. There are “reasons to believe” that Maikel Franco will bust out of his slump, he says, and the organization is “committed to giving Maikel more time to get out of this.” And center fielder Odubel Herrera is still a valuable contributor in the field, Klentak notes, explaining that his struggles at the plate may be due to the fact that he is currently “not taking pitches as well as he used to.”
- Righty Kris Medlen is still working on a comeback attempt with the Braves, as David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes. Medlen has moved up to the Double-A level and says he feels good physically after dealing with a host of arm problems and redeveloping his mechanics to compensate. The 31-year-old has allowed six earned runs on 16 hits while striking out ten batters and issuing six walks over 15 2/3 total innings through three starts. He last turned in a full and productive MLB season back in 2013 with the Braves.
- Of more immediate concern to the Braves, the current big league club is struggling with its glovework, as O’Brien also reports. Even putting aside one horrific inning on Tuesday, Atlanta has allowed a ton of unearned runs. Metrics are split on the overall performance of the Braves fielders: UZR grades them rather well in spite of the miscues, while Defensive Runs Saved values the unit in the bottom ten leaguewide. Young shortstop Dansby Swanson has already racked up 11 errors, though both grading systems still see him as an average performer at short.
NL Notes: Franco, Capps, Stephenson, Gsellman
The Phillies have at least held internal discussions about giving third baseman Maikel Franco some time at Triple-A, manager Pete Mackanin told reporters including Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. Though nothing has been decided, and Mackanin was non-committal, that’s certainly a notable development. Franco, 24, has long been viewed as a building block for the Phils. But he took a step back last year after an excellent 2015 season, and currently owns a disappointing .209/.268/.349 slash through 190 plate appearances in the current campaign.
Here’s more from around the National League:
- It’s still not clear just when righty Carter Capps will make his Padres debut. As Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports on Twitter, skipper Andy Green indicated that the reliever “drew mixed reviews” for his work on the bump yesterday. He’s scheduled to throw against live hitters in another controlled scenario on Friday. Capps, who missed all of 2016 due to Tommy John surgery, has struggled in eight rehab appearances thus far.
- The Reds have optioned righty Robert Stephenson to Triple-A, C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets. He’ll be replaced by fellow right-hander Jackson Stephens. Things have not gone as hoped for the former first round draft pick. Through 24 2/3 innings in 13 appearances, he carries an 8.03 ERA. Stephenson has been knocked around for 33 hits (including seven long balls) while recording 27 strikeouts against 16 walks. It remains to be seen whether he’ll return to starting upon his return to the minors.
- With several starters nearing returns, the Mets may again have a bit of extra rotation depth. That will likely force righty Robert Gsellman to the pen — and possibly, into quite a prominent role there. As Kevin Kernan of the New York Post writes, some within the Mets organization believe Gsellman’s stuff and attitude make him a good fit for the closer’s role. Addison Reed is currently filling in for the injured Jeurys Familia in the ninth.