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Minor MLB Transactions: 6/11/16

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Here are today’s minor moves from around the league.

  • The Dodgers have released outfielder Jose Tabata, MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick tweets. Tabata was hitting .240/.340/.333 for Triple-A Oklahoma City. Acquired last year for Michael Morse in an exchange of bad contracts, Tabata never played in the big leagues for the Dodgers. The former top Yankees and Pirates prospect is still owed the remainder of his $4.5MM 2016 salary from the long-term deal he signed with the Pirates in 2011, plus a $250K buyout on his 2017 option.
  • The Rangers have acquired righty reliever Justin De Fratus from the Mariners, MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan tweets. The deal completes last month’s Patrick Kivlehan trade, tweets MLB.com’s Greg Johns. The 28-year-old De Fratus was pitching for Triple-A Tacoma, where he’d posted a 3.21 ERA, 5.8 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 in 28 innings. He has a 4.08 ERA, 7.9 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 in five big-league seasons, all of them spent with the Phillies.
  • Veteran outfielder Will Venable is now a free agent after opting out of his minor league deal with the Phillies, Chris Cotillo of SB Nation tweets. Venable has had a disappointing season thus far for Triple-A Lehigh Valley, batting .205/.304/.307 in 149 plate appearances. He hit .244/.320/.350 with the Padres and Rangers in 2015, then was released by the Indians near the end of Spring Training before being picked up by Philadelphia.
  • The Athletics have announced that they’ve selected the contract of righty Daniel Mengden, who will start today against the Reds. Mengden, an Astros draftee who headed to Oakland in the Scott Kazmir trade last July, had compiled a 1.19 ERA, 8.8 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 68 1/3 innings this season split between Double-A and Triple-A. MLB.com rates Mengden as the Athletics’ 14th-best prospect, noting his “old-timey delivery and exaggerated windup,” which creates deception but also could ultimately result in a move to the bullpen. To clear space for Mengden on the 40-man roster, the Athletics transferred Mark Canha (hip) to the 60-day DL.

Phillies Notes: Eflin, Joseph, Howard, Draft

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Starting pitching prospect Zach Eflin will make his MLB debut in a start against the Blue Jays on Tuesday, CSNPhilly.com’s Jim Salisbury writes. He takes the place of Vincent Velasquez, who’s headed to the DL with a biceps injury that is not expected to be serious. The 22-year-old Eflin was in the midst of a fine season at Triple-A Lehigh Valley, with a 2.90 ERA, 7.2 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9. MLB.com lists Eflin as the Phillies’ 13th-best prospect, praising his low-90s sinker and ability to get ground balls. As MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki notes (on Twitter), the timing of Eflin’s promotion coincides with the White Sox’ decision to designate Jimmy Rollins for assignment. The Phillies acquired Eflin from the Dodgers (along with another minor leaguer, Tom Windle) for Rollins in 2014. Here’s more from Philadelphia.

  • Tommy Joseph hit two homers in the Phillies’ loss last night to the Nationals, celebrating manager Pete Mackanin’s official decision to make him the team’s first baseman ahead of Ryan Howard, Salisbury writes. “I can’t say enough about Tommy Joseph,” Mackanin said. “I talked to Ryan today and told him, ‘I’ve got to go with Tommy Joseph right now.’ I can’t sit Tommy Joseph. I can’t justify not playing the guy.” Mackanin added that he would look for opportunities for Howard to pinch-hit and spot start. Joseph now has seven home runs in his first 69 plate appearances with the Phillies. Howard’s decline has been amply chronicled, but this season has been his worst ever, with a .150/.213/.346 line in 169 plate appearances. The Phillies still owe him the remainder of his $25MM 2016 salary, plus a $10MM buyout on his 2017 option.
  • The Phillies had the best Friday of any team in the draft, MLB.com’s Jim Callis writes. With the first pick of Day Two, they grabbed Cole Stobbe, a Trevor Story-like shortstop who Callis thinks was the best position player who was signable and who made it through Day One. Callis also lists the Giants, Indians, Cardinals and Athletics as teams who did well on Day Two.

Phillies Select Mickey Moniak With First Overall Pick

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The Phillies have made it official, taking high school outfielder Mickey Moniak with the first overall selection of the 2016 draft. That makes him the first draft choice of GM Matt Klentak.

Philadelphia had been connected with several other players in recent months, including southpaws Jason Groome and A.J. Puk. But the rebuilding organization ended up going with the youngster out of Carlsbad, California, as had seemed increasingly likely in recent weeks. He is currently committed to play at UCLA.

Moniak doesn’t wow with off-the-charts physical prowess, but ESPN.com’s Keith Law says he “appears to have the best hit tool in the high school class.” Baseball America and MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis join Law in rating Moniak the fifth-best overall talent in the draft.

While some question whether he’ll ever develop significant power to match his 6’2 frame, the evaluators agree that Moniak ought to be capable of manning center field in the long run, with his good wheels aiding him both in the field and on the basepaths. The 18-year-old draws universal praise for his instincts on the field as well as his work ethic.

It seems likely that the Phils are angling to preserve some of their spending power with the choice. That’s not to say that Moniak isn’t a top talent — by all accounts he is. Rather, somewhat like the Astros did in going with Carlos Correa over Byron Buxton back in 2012, the idea would be to take a more affordable player with hopes of adding yet more talent later in the draft. (Lance McCullers, Rio Ruiz, Brett Phillips, and Preston Tucker were among the other early-round choices that year by Houston.)

Philadelphia has $9.015MM to put towards signing Moniak, but it can allocate any savings to other selections. The club’s total pool adds up to just over $13.4MM, ranking second to the Reds — who just top their National League foes thanks to landing the first overall competitive balance Round A selection.

NL East Notes: Braves, Draft, Johnson, Mets, Bourjos

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Multiple draft outlets have noted the possibility that the Braves could cut a deal with high school right-hander Ian Anderson at No. 3 overall in tonight’s draft with an eye toward over-spending on the No. 40 selection. ESPN’s Keith Law noted as much in this morning’s final mock draft (subscription required and recommended), and Eric Longenhagen or ESPN and Fangraphs tweets that the team could do so with an eye on getting former No. 1 overall candidate Jason Groome at No. 40, though their willingness to do so is dependent on who comes off the board with the first and second selections. D1Baseball.com’s Frankie Piliere tweeted earlier today that Groome’s asking price is extremely high and connected him to the Braves while adding that he’s in a somewhat of a “freefall” as a result of his price tag. Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com wrote in today’s draft buzz column wrote that Groome has floated an asking price of $4MM, which could cause some teams to shy away from him. Notably, the MLB.com pair also adds that Groome has now committed to Chipola Junior College in Florida after having previously been committed to Vanderbilt. In doing so, Groome would allow himself to be eligible for next year’s draft if he elects not to sign.

More from the NL East…

  • The Mets could have promoted either Dilson Herrera or T.J. Rivera to the Majors instead of swinging yesterday’s trade for utilityman Kelly Johnson, writes Newsday’s Marc Carig, but assistant GM John Ricco explained that the club wasn’t interested in asking a player to make a notable position switch, as it would’ve had to do with either Rivera, Herrera or Neil Walker (who would move off of second base if Herrera were to slide into his natural position at the MLB level). Skipper Terry Collins lauded the front office for bringing back Johnson, whom he described as an excellent clubhouse presence and a veteran that has been through the rigors of a postseason chase before. Ricco added that while the team waited out some injuries last season, New York’s aspirations of winning it all in 2016 prompted earlier action. Johnson and James Loney, the two players acquired recently, aren’t exactly impact players that would push a team over the edge, of course, but adding role players to plug gaps on the roster in June as opposed to July can indeed make a difference in a tight division race.
  • The Post’s Ken Davidoff was also on hand to talk to Ricco and Collins about the Mets’ acquisition of Johnson, with Ricco stating that the enhanced play of the 2016 Nationals (as compared to last season’s squad) didn’t prompt earlier action. Collins, meanwhile, noted that the addition of a player in an early trade is important in sending a message to the clubhouse that the front office is committed to winning in the current season. Per Collins, last season’s acquisition of Johnson and Juan Uribe “completely” changed the clubhouse atmosphere. Davidoff adds that striking early allows the Mets to reassess later in the summer if Johnson isn’t able to right the ship at the plate.
  • While the Mets are clearly in the need for infield help, as evidenced by the Johnson trade, Carig checked in with a team source in regards to recently released Dodgers infielder Alex Guerrero and was told that the 29-year-old is not on the Mets’ radar at this time (Twitter link).
  • The Phillies have informed Peter Bourjos that he is now a bench player, as Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Manager Pete Mackanin called the situation “unfortunate” and noted that Bourjos “has got to make a drastic change in his approach offensively.” Mackanin stressed that he “loves” Bourjos’ defensive work, but the 29-year-old’s .195/.226/.282 batting line and near-28 percent strikeout rate aren’t cutting it in the lineup. In his place, extra at-bats figure to be given to Rule 5 pick Tyler Goeddel, Cody Asche and Jimmy Paredes, writes Gelb, though he notes that the Phils are also hopeful of seeing names like Nick Williams and Roman Quinn impact the outfield alignment later in the season. For Bourjos, the loss of a starting job with free agency so close around the corner is disheartening, though his defensive prowess should land him an opportunity elsewhere this coming winter.

Injury Notes: Beltre, Darvish, Velasquez

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A few injury situations from around the game that warrant monitoring…

  • Adrian Beltre was pulled from the Rangers game tonight in the seventh inning after grabbing his left hamstring while attempting to run out a ground-ball. Per Gerry Fraley of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link), the initial word is that he was lifted with tightness in his hamstring — the same hamstring that cost him 37 games of the 2015 campaign. Beltre will be evaluated tomorrow, and it’s unlikely there will be any definitive word on his status until then. If he’s required to miss a notable period of time, the Rangers have a third base option waiting in the wings at Triple-A in the form of Joey Gallo. Alternatively, Jurickson Profar could see some time at the hot corner as well.
  • The news for Rangers fans doesn’t necessarily improve, as Yu Darvish also departed the game prematurely due to what was termed tightness in his right shoulder. Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes that Darvish’s removal after just 76 pitches — he’d been a pitch limit of 95 — was a precaution, and an exam from team physician Dr. Keith Meister revealed no immediately apparent issues. There’s no word that Darvish, who only just returned from 2015 Tommy John surgery, will miss a start, but I’d imagine the Rangers will be cautious when dealing with any right arm troubles for their freshly mended ace.
  • Phillies right-hander Vincent Velasquez, who left today’s game after throwing just two pitches (both clocked around 86-87 mph), could undergo an MRI tomorrow, manager Pete Mackanin told reporters, including MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki. Velasquez told the media that he’s “not concerned at all,” though he also conceded that he thought, “Something’s wrong,” to himself after seeing the readings from the radar gun. Velasquez’s fastball has averaged 94 mph this season, so a dip of seven to eight miles in velocity is clearly troublesome. For the time being, the Phillies are calling the injury a biceps strain, though further testing will shed light on the matter. Zolecki writes that the “smart bet” is on Velasquez missing some time, and he adds that southpaw Brett Oberholtzer and Triple-A righties Zach Eflin and David Buchanan are options to step into the rotation. Eflin would require a 40-man move, but it’s worth noting that the Phils did scratch him from his scheduled start at Triple-A Lehigh Valley tonight, as Greg Joyce of the Lehigh Valley Express-Times tweeted earlier this afternoon.

NL Notes: Velasquez, Fernandez, Posey, Peralta, Masterson

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Phillies righty Vincent Velasquez was pulled from his start today after just two pitches — neither of which clocked in over 87 mph, per Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter links). That’s an ominous sign for Velasquez, who just turned 24 yesterday. He has shown both immense promise and some inconsistency, but overall has looked like an important piece of the organization’s future by throwing 61 1/3 innings of 3.67 ERA ball with 10.7 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9. The team is calling it right biceps soreness for now, as MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki tweets, but that doesn’t necessarily reduce any concern. It’s too early for a full assessment, of course, but the fact that the former Tommy John patient has a problem in the elbow area is troubling.

Here’s some other news form the National League:

  • The Marlins are “pessimistic” about their chances of inking ace Jose Fernandez to a long-term pact, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. He has been at peak form since returning from his Tommy John surgery, especially of late, and the club appears to think he wouldn’t bite at the $25MM AAV put on future free agent seasons in Stephen Strasburg’s recent extension.
  • Superstar Giants catcher Buster Posey is dealing with an irritate nerve in his right thumb, but he suggests it’s an injury that can be managed (video link via KNBR). Posey, 29, is hitting well below his career rate over his first 212 plate appearances, though he’s still humming along at a productive /.257/.316/.450 clip.
  • Cardinals infielder Jhonny Peralta sees his move to third base as more than just a temporary switch, as Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. Soon to turn 34, Peralta says that he could find a home at the hot corner. “I know I am getting older and you have Diaz being younger,” he said, “so third base might be my future. I have a future there. Hopefully, I’ll play it as well as I need to play it. It could be my fit.” As Goold notes, the front-loaded structure of Peralta’s contract leaves the team on the hook for just $10MM next year. Peralta will hit the open market again thereafter. He has maintained his offensive production since signing with St. Louis, posting a .269/.336/.429 batting line over 1,272 plate appearances.
  • Pirates GM Neal Huntington says that the organization has seen some promising signs from veteran righty Justin Masterson, MLB.com’s Adam Berry reports, though there’s still work to be done. “You still see the life in the fastball,” said Huntington, “but it’s not the mid-90s power-sink that Justin had when he was so successful. We’re still working to get him back … to get the mechanics to where he’s comfortable with them and build the arm strength. We’re still in that phase.”

NL Notes: Taillon, Masterson, Bryant, Phillies, McCarthy

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Jameson Taillon’s much-anticipated Major League debut will come tomorrow, as the Pirates announced earlier today, but GM Neal Huntington implied that the young right-hander’s promotion may be rather short-lived in nature. Via Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (Twitter link), Huntington said: “This may be a spot start for Jameson. A lot of that decision will be beyond his control.” Taillon has utterly dominated Triple-A Indianapolis this season, posting a 2.04 ERA with a 61-to-6 K/BB ratio in 61 2/3 innings, spanning 10 starts. One has to imagine that innings are a concern for the Pirates when it comes to Taillon, as injuries prevented the former No. 2 overall pick from pitching in both 2014 and 2015.

Here’s the latest from the National League:

  • Right-hander Justin Masterson will take Taillon’s spot on the roster at Indianapolis, tweets the team’s media communications coordinator, Ryan Sheets. Masterson sat down recently with Charlie Wilmoth of MLBTR and SB Nation’s Bucs Dugout to discuss his rehab from shoulder surgery, his decision to sign with the Pirates and the long-term talks he had with Cleveland prior to hitting the open market in the 2014-15 offseason. Masterson acknowledged that his shoulder hasn’t been in great shape for quite some time and implied that it could’ve derailed an agreement in Cleveland even if one had been reached. He also praised the Pirates organization as an appealing landing spot and added that the location of the club’s Triple-A affiliate, in Indianapolis where he makes his home, was alluring as well.
  • Service time considerations played an oft-noted role in the promotional timeline of young Cubs star Kris Bryant, leading to a still-pending grievance. As Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports, though, Bryant calls the matter a thing of the past. While the actual grievance proceeding has yet to reach a hearing, with all involved seemingly waiting for the new CBA to be negotiated, Bryant says it “never even crossed [his] mind” entering the season. “For me it’s just important to continue to go out there and do what I do, so that I can help the team in any way possible in where we’re at today,” Bryant said. “It’s just important for me to not even worry about it right now because it takes away from so much of what we have going this year. And that was last year’s news.”
  • Phillies manager Pete Mackanin says that he’s nearing a resolution of the team’s first-base situation, as Corey Seidman of CSNPhilly.com reports. It seems quite possible that Tommy Joseph will receive the official designation as the starting first bagger, which is essentially the way things have been trending anyway. That would put Ryan Howard in a tenuous position, though it’s not at all clear whether Philadelphia has any intentions of cutting him loose. The 24-year-old Joseph is off to a nice .311/.313/.590 start over his first 64 MLB plate appearances, while the 36-year-old Howard is mired in a .150/.210/.333 opening to the year. In years past, we’ve talked about the former star slugger as a possible trade chip who might allow the Phillies to save some cash. Now, however, it seems he’ll either finish out the season in a limited role or end up hunting for another team on the open market.
  • Dodgers right-hander Brandon McCarthy will begin a minor league rehab assignment within a week, manager Dave Roberts told reporters, including Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link). McCarthy had Tommy John surgery just weeks into the first season of a four-year, $48MM contract with the Dodgers and has been rehabbing since undergoing the operation late last April. A return to health would be a nice boost to a Dodgers rotation that has been ravaged by injuries, though he’ll of course need some time to build up innings in the minors. As for another of the Dodgers’ injured starters, Hyun-jin Ryu, Roberts said the team still doesn’t know when the left-hander will appear in a game at any level. Shoulder problems have sidelined Ryu for much of the past two years.

NL East Notes: Turner, Phillies, Mets, Walker

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The Nationals optioned top prospect Trea Turner back to Triple-A Syracuse on Monday as the team activated Ryan Zimmerman from the paternity list, as MLB.com’s Jamal Collier writes. Manager Dusty Baker contends that “right now there’s no room” for Turner on the big league roster when everyone is healthy, though the struggles of Danny Espinosa certainly seem to create such a spot. Collier writes that the Nats value Espinosa’s glove over a potential offensive upgrade from Turner, though I personally can’t help but wonder how much longer the team will stick with Espinosa, who is hitting just .196/.291/.346 even after homering five times in his past 10 games. While the power surge is nice, Espinosa is hitting just .182 with a .250 OBP in that 10-game stretch, so his overall offensive contributions aren’t as impressive as the power would otherwise indicate. Nats shortstops, as a collective unit, are hitting a dismal .195/.261/.337 on the season. Turner, meanwhile, is batting .312/.365/.452 at Triple-A and went 3-for-3 with a walk and a double in his brief call-up this weekend. Espinosa’s glove is solid, to be sure, but he isn’t Andrelton Simmons on defense, and the Nats rank ninth in NL in runs scored.

More from the NL East…

  • The Phillies hosted a workout for potential No. 1 overall pick Kyle Lewis today, tweets Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. Lewis, a slugging outfielder out of Mercer University, is batting .395/.535/.731 with 20 homers, 11 doubles, two triples and more walks (66) than strikeouts (48) on the season. The 6’4″, 210-pound NCAA superstar spoke with MLBTR’s Chuck Wasserstrom back in late April as part of MLBTR’s Draft Prospect Q&A series. The Phillies have been linked to a number of names atop the draft, with Florida lefty A.J. Puk also being connected to them prominently in recent weeks.
  • Though the Mets currently have David Wright, Lucas Duda and Travis d’Arnaud on the disabled list, the team isn’t keen on parting with prospects or significantly adding to its $135MM payroll to bring in a bat from outside the organization via trade, reports Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News. Ackert spoke to two sources within the organization who “absolutely” expect Wright to return this season, and both said they don’t believe that Wright’s neck problem was caused by or even exacerbated by his spinal stenosis. The Mets will receive a 75 percent refund on Wright’s salary for each day he is on the disabled list beyond 60 days.
  • Mets second baseman Neil Walker spoke with Newsday’s Marc Carig about the trade that sent him from his hometown Pirates to New York. A native of Pittsburgh, Walker admitted that while he didn’t feel angry toward the Bucs, he did feel slighted: “I thought, ’Wow, they don’t want me around here anymore.’ … But when that got through, I was like this is an unbelievable opportunity. I just want to make sure I’m prepared to come here and help this team win.” Walker, as Carig writes, was underwhelmed by the Pirates’ attempts at signing him to a long-term deal. “It’s hard to say I feel like I deserve the Andrew McCutchen treatment because Andrew is a better player than I am, you know what I mean?” he said. Walker added that he didn’t feel disrespected but rather that the two sides simply could have had “a little bit more legitimate conversation” about the matter when it was time to talk. Of course, his new environs are treating him just fine; the free-agent-to-be is hitting an outstanding .279/.348/.505 with 13 homers thus far and is well-positioned to land a significant multiyear pact on the open market this winter.

NL East Notes: Prado, Mets, Wright, Phillies

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Here’s the latest from around the NL East…

  • The Marlins are undecided about trying to re-sign Martin Prado in the offseason since Derek Dietrich could become their third baseman of the future, the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson writes.  Dietrich entered today’s action with a .303/.392/.479 slash line over 166 PA while playing mostly second base in place of the suspended Dee Gordon.  The 26-year-old Dietrich is under team control through the 2020 season while Prado is a free agent this winter.  Prado is himself having a solid year from an average and OBP perspective and the Fish have long valued his clubhouse leadership skills, to the point of demanding a huge return in trade discussions last year.  It’s also worth noting that Dietrich has played only 49 games at third in his entire pro career, so he’s not exactly a seasoned option at the hot corner.
  • The Mets should be planning for life without David Wright, Newsday’s David Lennon writes, as it’s quite possible the veteran third baseman will miss the rest of the season recovering from a herniated disk in his neck.  Even the best-case scenarios have Wright not returning until late August at the earliest, so Lennon figures the Mets need to obtain another third baseman if Wilmer Flores isn’t able to step up as an everyday option.  Lennon notes that up to 75% of the roughly $81MM owed on Wright’s contract through the 2020 season could be recouped by insurance if Wright is too injured to play, which creates some financial leeway for the Mets.
  • The Mets are again struggling to score runs and may not have the prospect depth to correct the problem as they did at last year’s deadline, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes.  The Mets held onto their position player depth over the offseason to guard against another offensive slide, yet they’re still one of the league’s lowest-scoring teams.
  • The Phillies have a league-high spending pool (just under $5.62MM) for the upcoming July international signing period, and Baseball America’s Ben Badler reports that the club is planning to spread out its money on several players.  Badler profiles five young Venezuelan players the Phillies have been linked to in the July 2 class, including 16-year-old Francisco Morales, a 6’5″ right-hander whose fastball has already hit 96mph.  One scout tells Badler that Morales is “probably the No. 1 pitcher in the class.”
  • The Braves’ 23 homers is easily the lowest of any team in baseball, and Mark Bradley of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (subscription required) notes that the team also doesn’t have any burgeoning slugging prospects in the farm system.  This lack of power is why Bradley feels the Braves will keep Hector Olivera once his domestic violence suspension is up, as Olivera at least displayed some home run-hitting ability in Cuba (though not yet in his brief MLB career).

Minor MLB Transactions: 6/4/16

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Here are today’s minor moves from around the game.

  • The Dodgers have outrighted James Ramsey to Triple-A Oklahoma after he cleared waivers, per a club announcement. Los Angeles designated the outfielder for assignment a week ago. The 26-year-old has slashed just .222/.285/.429 with five home runs in 138 minor league plate appearances this season.
  • Mets right-hander Jeff Walters cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A Las Vegas, the team announced. New York designated Walters for assignment earlier this week to make room for James Loney. Walters, 28, has a 9.27 ERA in 22 1/3 innings with Las Vegas this season.
  • Right-hander Nick Tepesch has requested and been granted his release from his minor league contract with the Rangers, according to the team’s executive vice president of communications, John Blake (Twitter link). Tepesch appeared in 42 games — 39 of them starts — for the Rangers from 2013-14, logging a 4.56 ERA with 5.4 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9 in 219 innings. The 27-year-old missed the 2015 season and underwent thoracic outlet syndrome surgery in August.
  • The White Sox have signed free agent catcher Janigson Villalobos to a minor league contract, the team announced. Villalobos, 19, is a native of Venezuela.

Earlier updates:

  • The Angels have announced that they’ve selected the contract of righty Deolis Guerra and placed fellow righty Nick Tropeano on the 15-day DL with right shoulder tightness. Guerra has been a fixture on the transactions lists recently — the Angels designated him for assignment and then outrighted him just this week. He’s allowed four runs in 5 1/3 innings in the big leagues this season. As for Tropeano, the Angels scratched him yesterday from his start today. Jhoulys Chacin will start in his place.
  • The Dodgers have released lefty reliever Joe Thatcher, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets. Thatcher had previously exercised an opt-out clause in his minor-league deal, opening a brief window in which the Dodgers could add him to their active roster or let him go, and it appears they’ve chosen the latter option. The 34-year-old pitched reasonably well with the Astros last season and had a 3.60 ERA, 12.6 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 15 innings with Triple-A Oklahoma City this year.
  • The White Sox have announced that they’ve selected the contract of outfielder Jason Coats from Triple-A Charlotte. He’ll take the 25-man roster spot of righty Tommy Kahnle, who was optioned last night; Kahnle himself had briefly taken the spot of corner outfielder Melky Cabrera, who was placed on the family emergency leave list yesterday. The 26-year-old Coats looked like a fringe prospect heading into the 2016 season, but he’s had a breakout year at Charlotte, batting .335/.399/.567 with 22 extra-base hits. He’s starting in left field and batting seventh for the Sox today against the Tigers.
  • The Pirates announced a variety of moves related to their bullpen — they’ve selected the contract of righty Curtis Partch, recalled lefty Cory Luebke from Triple-A Indianapolis, optioned righties Wilfredo Boscan and Rob Scahill to Indianapolis, and moved righty Ryan Vogelsong (facial fractures) to the 60-day DL. The moves provide the Bucs with fresh relief options after Boscan and Scahill each pitched multiple innings last night. The hard-throwing Partch last pitched in the big leagues in 2014 with the Reds. He’s gotten great results so far this season for Indianapolis, with a 1.30 ERA, 10.4 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 27 2/3 innings.
  • Utilityman Emmanuel Burriss has accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Lehigh Valley, the Phillies have announced. The Phillies designated Burriss for assignment on Wednesday after he struggled in brief duty in the big leagues this season.
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