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Anthony Alford

Anthony Alford Signs With KBO’s KT Wiz

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Last night, the KT Wiz of the Korea Baseball Organization announced agreement on a contract with outfielder Anthony Alford. It’s a $577K deal for the Jet Sports Management client (h/t to Dan Kurtz of MyKBO).

A former third-round pick of the Blue Jays, Alford blossomed into one of the sport’s top outfield prospects in pro ball. The Mississippi native drew plaudits from evaluators for his combination of power and athleticism, and he posted excellent numbers during his time in the low minors. Alford appeared among Baseball America’s top 100 prospects each year from 2016-18 and reached the big leagues in 2017, but he never carved out a permanent role.

Injuries played a significant part in that, as Alford has spent time on the injured list in each of the past six years. A 2017 hamate fracture in his left hand and a fractured right elbow in 2020 have proven the most significant maladies, but he has also had IL stints for hamstring and back issues. When healthy, he’s struggled to make contact against higher-level arms.

Alford has tallied 240 MLB plate appearances between the Jays and Pirates, hitting .209/.275/.368 with a 37.9% strikeout rate. He has popped eight home runs and swiped 11 bases in that limited time, flashing the kind of power-speed impact that had garnered attention. Yet his swing-and-miss concerns have led the Pirates to outright him off their 40-man roster in each of the past two seasons.

Following his most recent outright, Alford elected free agency and signed a minor league deal with the Guardians. He appeared in eight games with their top affiliate in Columbus but has been granted his release to pursue the opportunity with the Wiz. He’ll presumably lock in a loftier salary for the remainder of the season than he’d been receiving in Columbus. Still just 27 years old (28 in July), Alford would no doubt draw interest from affiliated teams down the line if he stays healthy and performs well.

The defending KBO champions, the Wiz have started this season just 20-25. They’ve now signed a pair of former major leaguers during the season in an effort to change their fortunes, adding Alford a week after landing left-hander Wes Benjamin.

KBO teams are limited to carrying three foreign-born players on their roster, so the Wiz released former Diamondbacks outfielder Henry Ramos in a corresponding move. Ramos, who played in 18 games with Arizona last season, hit .250/.304/.417 across 80 plate appearances with the Wiz. Kurtz notes that he hasn’t played since late April after fracturing a toe on his right foot.

Guardians Sign Anthony Alford To Minor League Contract

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The Guardians are in agreement with outfielder Anthony Alford on a minor league deal, tweets GuardsInsider. The 27-year-old elected free agency over the weekend after being outrighted for the second time by the Pirates.

Alford was a second-round pick of the Blue Jays back in 2012. An excellent athlete with a rare combination of raw power and speed, he developed into a top prospect after posting strong numbers in the low minors. Baseball America slotted him among the game’s 100 best minor league talents entering both the 2016 and 2017 seasons, pegging him as the Jays’ most promising prospect during the first of those years.

Unfortunately, Alford has yet to produce the kind of numbers evaluators believed he’d be capable of. That’s in large part due to injuries, as he’s missed some time in each season since 2016 (including a two-week IL stint last month because of a right wrist sprain). A 2017 hamate fracture in his left hand and a fractured right elbow in 2020 have proven the most significant maladies, but Alford has also had IL stints for hamstring and back issues during his career.

When he has been on the field, the right-handed hitter has run into his share of strikeout issues. Alford has fanned in 37.9% of his 240 MLB plate appearances, resulting in a meager .209/.275/.368 line. He also has an alarming 29.2% strikeout percentage in parts of five seasons at Triple-A, where he’s a career .262/.349/.427 hitter. Between injuries and swing-and-miss concerns, he’s only played in 102 MLB games despite suiting up at the highest level in each of the past six years.

The Guardians have frequently been plagued by a lack of outfield depth in recent seasons. That hasn’t been a problem thus far in 2022, with Steven Kwan, Myles Straw and Josh Naylor off to excellent starts (and Oscar Mercado playing alright as well). Still, there’s little harm in taking a flier on a fairly young player who was once very highly-regarded and can cover all three outfield spots. Alford will head to Triple-A Columbus as non-roster depth.

Anthony Alford Elects Free Agency

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Outfielder Anthony Alford has elected to become a free agent rather than accepting the Pirates’ outright assignment to Triple-A, John Dreker of the Pirates Prospects site reports (Twitter link).  Pittsburgh designated Alford for assignment last week, and he cleared DFA waivers yesterday without being claimed.

Since this isn’t the first time Alford has been outrighted off a team’s 40-man roster, he had the option of deciding whether to accept the Pirates’ assignment, or entering the open market in search of another opportunity elsewhere.  While it’s possible Alford could end up re-signing with the Bucs, his decision to test free agency likely ends his tenure in Pittsburgh after less than two years.

The Pirates acquired Alford via waiver claim in August 2020, taking him off the Blue Jays’ roster after Toronto had also designated the outfielder.  The Jays made Alford a third-round pick in the 2012 draft, and he drew three years’ worth of top-100 prospect attention from multiple pundits as he continued to move up the ladder in the Toronto farm system.  However, injuries also curtailed his progress, and ultimately limited Alford to only 46 Major League games in a Blue Jays uniform from 2017-20.

The outfielder got only slightly more of a look with the Pirates, playing 56 games and receiving 165 plate appearances in a Pittsburgh uniform over the last three seasons.  Alford’s .235/.309/.423 slash line in that span was only slightly below (97 OPS+) league-average production, but it also wasn’t enough for the Pirates to keep him around ahead of younger players.

Now 27 years old, Alford will move on to see if the third time is the charm with his baseball career.  Speculatively, the Braves could be a potential fit given how president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos was the Blue Jays’ GM when Toronto initially drafted Alford.  Any number of other clubs could also be willing to take a flier on a former top prospect, and try to translate Alford’s obvious athletic ability into consistent success on the field.

Quick Hits: Musgrove, Alford, Kreidler, Arenado

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The Padres and Joe Musgrove remain far apart in their potential extension talks. The latest offer from San Diego was reportedly in the ballpark of an eight-year deal with an $11MM AAV, per The Athletic’s Dennis Lin and Ken Rosenthal. The length of the deal is somewhat surprising for the 29-year-old Musgrove, though the overall value is probably south of what the righty is seeking. Musgrove was arguably the Friars’ most reliable starter last season, tossing 181 1/3 innings with a 3.18 ERA/3.70 FIP, 27.1% strikeout rate, 7.2% walk rate, and 43.5% groundball rate. He is a free agent at the end of the year.

  • Outfielder Anthony Alford has cleared waivers and joined the Pirates Triple-A affiliate in Indianapolis, per Jason Mackey of PG Sports Now (via Twitter). Alford has appeared in the Majors in each season going back to 2017, including this one. The 27-year-old went 1-4 in two games. He made 148 plate appearances last season, a career high, slashing .233/.311/.406, good for a 93 wRC+. Alford’s ability to man all three outfield spots could be a factor in finding his way back to the bigs, either for the Pirates or elsewhere later in the season.
  • Tigers prospect Ryan Kreidler suffered a right hand fracture that will knock the Triple-A infielder out indefinitely, per Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press. The 24-year-old had yet to make his Major League debut, though with a .246/.346/.462 line through 78 plate appearances in Triple-A, he was on his way.
  • Nolan Arenado was able to cut his suspension from two games down to one, per The Athletic’s Katie Woo (via Twitter). He will serve the suspension today, per MLB.com’s John Denton (via Twitter). The Cardinals third baseman was suspended for his part in a bench-clearing brawl with the Mets. The tiff was sparked by a high-and-tight fastball on Arenado from Yoan Lopez.

 

Pirates Select Beau Sulser, Designate Anthony Alford

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The Pirates have announced that they have selected the contract of right-handed pitcher Beau Sulser. To make room for Sulser on the 40-man roster, outfielder Anthony Alford was designated for assignment. (Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette had the news of Sulser’s promotion before the official announcement.)

Sulser, the younger brother of Marlins hurler Cole Sulser, was a 10th round selection of the Pirates in 2017. He’s never gotten a ton of attention from prospect evaluators but has shown well so far in this young season. He got his first taste of Triple-A in 2019, making 24 starts and a pair of relief appearances, putting up a 5.65 ERA in 122 2/3 innings. This year, however, he’s made three starts, logging 12 2/3 innings with a 2.13 ERA. His 26.9% strikeout rate on the young season is greatly improved over the 18.1% rate he had at Triple-A in 2019. He’s also dropped his walk rate from 9.4% to 3.8%. Based on those improved results, the Bucs want to see how he fares against big league hitters. Sulser will turn 28 next month.

Alford, on the other hand, is a former top prospect, getting as high as #25 on Baseball America’s Top 100 list in 2016. Unfortunately, injuries have largely kept him from getting into a good rhythm over the years. He’s appeared in each MLB season from 2017 to 2022 but his career high for games in a season is 49, which he set last year. He was designated for assignment in April last year, clearing waivers and being outrighted to the minors. He showed enough promise to earn his roster spot back and finished well. However, yet another injury, a right wrist sprain, put him back on the injured list to start this season. He was activated and got into two games before being sent into DFA limbo for a second time.

Players who have previously been outrighted in their careers have the ability to reject an outright assignment and declare free agency. If Alford were to clear waivers again, he could opt to see if there are any other opportunities available to him. He’s still only 27 years old and has that prospect pedigree attached to his name, which could potentially lead to some interest, despite the length injury history.

Pirates Place Bryse Wilson, Anthony Alford On IL

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The Pirates placed Bryse Wilson and Anthony Alford on the IL today, per a team announcement. Ben Gamel has come off the IL to take one of the roster spots, with the other going to Dillon Peters, who was recalled from Triple-A. Mike Persak of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette spoke to Pirates general manager Ben Cherington, who said that Alford is dealing with back spasms, while Wilson’s IL placement is mostly about rest from fatigue.

Wilson, the 23-year-old righty, was just recently acquired from Atlanta in the Richard Rodriguez trade. In 48 2/3 innings this year between the two clubs, he has an ERA of 5.55. His strikeout rate is well below average, at 14.5%, but he has a decent walk rate of 7%. The Pirates can afford to be cautious with his workload, given that they’re nowhere near competing for the postseason. Their .359 winning percentage is better than only three teams in the majors.

For Alford, this is another frustrating hurdle in a challenging season. He struggled out of the gate and was designated for assignment by Pittsburgh in April. However, after being assigned to the minors, he completely turned things around and was nothing short of magnificent. His line through 226 plate appearances at Triple-A this year was .307/.420/.593, producing a wRC+ of 167. This performance forced Pittsburgh to give him another shot at the big leagues, which they did August 7th. Now, after just five games since having his contract selected, he will have to go on the shelf for at least 10 days.

For Peters, this will be his first time in the majors since coming to the Pirates from the Angels in July. He had been designated for assignment when the Angels signed Adam Eaton, heading to Pittsburgh in exchange for cash considerations. The 28-year-old lefty has logged 53 1/3 innings at Triple-A this year, between the two organizations, with an ERA of 3.71, a strikeout rate of 27.8% and a walk rate of 8.4%.

Pirates Designate Erik Gonzalez, Select Anthony Alford

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4:03PM: The Pirates have also released outfielder Dustin Fowler.  Pittsburgh acquired Fowler in a trade with the A’s during the winter, and the outfielder posted a .434 OPS in 46 PA, marking Fowler’s first bit of big league action since the 2018 season.  Fowler was outrighted to Triple-A in April and has since battled injuries for much of the season.

3:18PM: The Pirates selected the contract of outfielder Anthony Alford from Triple-A.  In corresponding moves, Phillip Evans was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis, while utilityman Erik Gonzalez was designated for assignment (Gonzalez had been on the injured list, and was reinstated before being DFA’ed).

Gonzalez has been out of action since July 2 due to a left oblique strain, and he had been wrapping up a minor league rehab assignment in Triple-A.  Now, the 29-year-old could be potentially headed elsewhere after two-plus seasons with the Bucs.  Gonzalez has been utilized all over the diamond in his 174 games in a Pittsburgh uniform, but hasn’t hit much, batting only .236/.268/.324 over 578 plate appearances since the start of the 2019 season.

While Gonzalez could remain in the organization after clearing waivers, it seems likely that the rebuilding Pirates want to give more big league playing time to less-experienced players like Alford.  The former top prospect isn’t young (he just recently turned 27) but he has yet to earn a long look at the MLB level, appearing in each of the last five seasons but totaling only 62 games.

The Pirates claimed Alford off the Blue Jays roster in August 2020 but the change of scenery hasn’t unlocked anything for the outfielder, who has a .540 OPS in the small sample size of 42 PA with Pittsburgh.  At Triple-A, however, Alford has been red hot, hitting .307/.420/.593 with 14 home runs over 226 PA for Indianapolis.

Minor MLB Transactions: 4/25/21

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The latest minor moves from around baseball…

Latest Moves

  • The Pirates assigned Anthony Alford to their alternate training site after the outfielder cleared waivers.  Alford was designated for assignment earlier this week.  Claimed off waivers from the Blue Jays last August, Alford looked great in a five-game stint with Pittsburgh last season but got off to a rough start in 2021, posting a .325 OPS over his first 29 plate appearances.

Earlier Today

  • The Reds reinstated Vladimir Gutierrez from the restricted list and assigned the right-hander to their alternate training site.  Aristides Aquino (who underwent hamate surgery earlier this month) was moved to the 60-day injured list to open up a 40-man roster spot.  Gutierrez was the centerpiece of the Reds’ 2016-17 international signing class, though the righty hasn’t been overly impressive in 387 minor league innings, posting a 4.98 ERA and 21.34% strikeout rate.  Gutierrez was issued an 80-game PED suspension last June.

Pirates Claim Ka’ai Tom, Designate Anthony Alford For Assignment

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The Pirates have claimed outfielder Ka’ai Tom off waivers from the Athletics and designated fellow outfielder Anthony Alford for assignment in order to clear a spot on the roster, per a club announcement. Tom, the Athletics’ selection in this year’s Rule 5 Draft, was designated for assignment by Oakland earlier this week. He’ll maintain his Rule 5 designation with the Pirates, meaning he cannot be sent to the minors without first clearing waivers and being offered back to his original organization, the Indians.

Tom, 26, went just 1-for-16  in limited action with the A’s, but he forced his way onto their Opening Day roster with a huge spring showing: .310/.412/.552 with a homer, two doubles, a triple and four walks against eight strikeouts through 34 trips to the plate. His last minor league season was similarly encouraging, as he logged a combined .290/.380/.532 in 554 plate appearances between Double-A and Triple-A, adding 23 homers and five steals.

Tom has never rated as a top prospect, but he has a rock-solid track record spanning his entire minor league career and his days as a star at the University of Kentucky. Following the Rule 5 Draft in December, FanGraphs Eric Longenhagen wrote: “Tom is one of those prospects who makes me wonder, “Are we all idiots?” because he has a consistent track record of above-average offensive performance all the way from college through the upper minors, and yet because he’s a little guy without huge power he is consistently dismissed by scouts.”

The Bucs ought to be able to give Tom plenty of leash to show he has the chops to continue that strong performance in the big leagues. He started just four games with a win-now A’s club, but the Pirates aren’t expecting to win much of anything in 2021 and can afford to give him regular playing time if they choose. Alford and Dustin Fowler had been splitting time in center field for the Pirates, but neither has hit so far, leading to today’s roster shuffle.

Alford, also 26, is a wildly gifted athlete and former two-sport star who didn’t fully commit to baseball until more than two years after he was drafted. He was one of the most touted talents in the 2012 draft but worked out a deal with the Blue Jays that allowed him to play football in college. He continued doing so until Sept. 2014, and in the years since that time he’s battled injuries — most notably wrist surgery and a torn hamstring. He’s still tallied just 117 plate appearances in the Majors since his 2017 big league debut.

Alford ranked among the game’s top 100 prospects from 2016-18 on virtually any publication of note, but his opportunities to this point have been limited. He was 2-for-24 with the Pirates this season, and he carries a career .150/.222/.262 batting line in the Majors. Pittsburgh will have a week to trade him or attempt to pass him through outright waivers. If he clears, the Pirates can keep him in the organization without dedicating a 40-man roster spot to him. He’d then presumably be in line for everyday reps with their Triple-A club once the season gets underway.

Pirates Notes: Frazier, Goodwin, Center Field, Oviedo

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Infielder Todd Frazier and outfielder Brian Goodwin both have May opt-out dates in their minor league contracts with the Pirates, tweets Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic. Frazier had a strong spring with Pittsburgh, slashing .250/.353/.643 with three homers and a pair of doubles in 34 plate appearances, but that wasn’t enough to convince the Bucs to put him on the active roster — nor was an early injury to third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes. Frazier briefly opted out of his contract with the team at the end of camp in order to search for a big league opportunity elsewhere, but he re-signed a new minor league arrangement with Pittsburgh just days later. Goodwin, meanwhile, hit .229/.317/.371 this spring after a disastrous cameo with the division-rival Reds in 2020. His struggles through 55 plate appearances in Cincinnati notwithstanding, however, Goodwin batted .258/.327/.469 in 567 plate appearances with the Angels from 2019-20 and is an overall .250/.317/.455 hitter in 1124 trips to the plate as a big leaguer. If neither veteran is in the Pirates’ plans by next month, it wouldn’t at all be surprising to see them latch on with a club that is struggling with injuries or underperformance at the infield corners or in the outfield.

A few more notes on the Buccos…

  • The Pirates bought low on former top prospects Anthony Alford and Dustin Fowler in center field, and the results to this point have been … uninspiring … to say the least. Fowler is 5-for-30 with a double, 13 strikeouts and just two walks in 34 plate appearances, while Alford is 1-for-20 with a staggering 15 punchouts in 24 trips. General manager Ben Cherington, however, told reporters this week that the club will be patient with the duo (link via MLB.com’s Jake Crouse). “We’ve got young players out there who are getting a chance to play at the Major League level for the first time with any level of consistency,” said the GM. Both Alford and Fowler were considered top 100 prospects not that long ago, but injuries and some crowded big league rosters have combined to prevent either from getting a lengthy look in the big leagues. Cherington noted that there is an “adjustment period” to be expected. That’s not to say that either has an unlimited leash, but it seems the club understandably wants more than a two-week look at a pair of 26-year-olds who can be controlled for five more years before turning things over to a short-term veteran such as Goodwin. That’s no doubt frustrating for Pirates fans who want to see a better on-field product in 2021, but for the time being it sounds like Fowler and Alford will continue to get their chances.
  • Cherington also expressed some patience with Rule 5 pick Luis Oviedo despite a recent drubbing at the hands of the hands of the Padres, who tagged him for five runs in 1 2/3 innings Monday (link via Mike Persak of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette). While acknowledging the dismal outing against San Diego, Cherington noted that it came after a weeklong layoff from pitching in a game and indicated that the club remains “really encouraged” by the manner in which Oviedo has begun the year. Most rebuilding clubs are willing to look beyond the bottom-line results when looking for positives with young Rule 5 picks such as Oviedo, who is pitching above A-ball for the first time in his career. If he continues to struggle to this extent, the Pirates will obviously have to weigh the merits of keeping him on the roster, but based on Cherington’s comments, Oviedo seems safe for now.
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