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Anthony Varvaro

Anthony Varvaro Killed In Car Accident

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Former big league reliever Anthony Varvaro died in a car accident this morning, according to multiple media reports.  The 37-year-old Varvaro became a New York/New Jersey Port Authority police officer after retiring from baseball, and the car accident took place while he was heading for duty at the September 11th memorial service today in downtown New York City.

A Staten Island native, Varvaro’s pro baseball career began when the Mariners selected him in the 12th round of the 2005 draft.  Varvaro made his big league debut with the Mariners in 2010, and then spent the next four seasons pitching with the Braves before tossing 11 innings with the Red Sox in 2015, his final MLB season.

Varvaro had some very solid numbers in the majors, posting a 3.23 ERA over 183 2/3 career innings.  He emerged as a workhorse in Atlanta’s bullpen in 2013-14, with 123 appearances and 128 innings over those two seasons (with an impressive 2.74 ERA).  The Red Sox acquired him during the 2014-15 offseason, though his work in 2015 and a would-be trade to the Cubs were both cut short by flexor tendon surgery.  After pitching with Boston’s Triple-A affiliate in 2016, Varvaro then decided to retire at age 31, and pursue a new career in law enforcement.

A GoFundMe has been established for Varvaro’s family. We at MLB Trade Rumors send our condolences to Varvaro’s family, friends, and colleagues.

Minor MLB Transactions: 6/19/16

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Here are the latest minor moves from around baseball, with the newest transactions at the top of the page…

  • The Rockies acquired lefty Pat McCoy from the Blue Jays, according to the Jays’ Triple-A affiliate (Twitter link).  McCoy has pitched in four different organizations during a pro career that began in 2007, and his Major League experience consists of 14 relief innings with Detroit in 2014.  McCoy has a 4.43 ERA, 7.6 K/9 and 2.63 K/BB rate over 491 2/3 career minor league frames, with 288 of his 312 games coming as a reliever.
  • The Pirates selected the contract of catcher Jacob Stallings from Triple-A and added him to both their Major League and 40-man rosters.  Jason Rogers was optioned to Triple-A in a corresponding move.  Stallings will give the Bucs some depth behind the plate with Francisco Cervelli on the DL and Chris Stewart also battling an ankle injury.  A seventh-round pick in the 2012, Stallings has a .675 OPS over 1266 career minor league PA and wasn’t listed on Baseball America’s ranking of the Pirates’ top 30 prospects.
  • The Mariners have sent right-hander Steve Johnson outright to Triple-A Tacoma, the team announced. Johnson has been outrighted in the past, so he’ll have the option of declining in favor of free agency. The Mariners designated him for assignment Friday after he totaled a 4.32 ERA and 11 walks over 16 2/3 innings.
  • The Rays have outrighted lefty Dana Eveland to Triple-A Durham, according to the club. Eveland, like Johnson, has been outrighted previously. The 32-year-old has racked up 16 2/3 frames of 7.56 ERA ball at the major league level this season.
  • Minor league Red Sox reliever Anthony Varvaro has retired, per a club announcement. Varvaro, 31, concluded his career by recording a 2.83 ERA, 9.73 K/9 and 4.08 BB/9 in 28 2/3 innings for Triple-A Pawtucket this year. Prior to tossing 11 frames at the major league level for the Red Sox in 2015, he was a member of the Braves, with whom he had a pair of standout seasons from 2013-14. Varvaro combined for 128 innings of 2.74 ERA pitching in that span, also posting a 6.54 K/9, 2.67 BB/9 and 48.2 percent ground-ball rate.  Over the course of 183 2/3 innings in the majors with the Mariners, Braves and Red Sox, Varvaro logged a 3.23 ERA, 7.35 K/9 and 3.43 BB/9.
  • The White Sox have signed first baseman K.J. Woods, whom the Marlins released, and outfielder Slade Heathcott to minor league deals, reports Matt Eddy of Baseball America (Twitter link). The Marlins used a fourth-round pick in 2013 on Woods, who hit .239/.326/.386 in 872 minor league plate appearances with their organization. Heathcott, the more notable player of the two, was the Yankees’ first-rounder (29th overall) in 2009. BA ranked him as baseball’s 63rd-best prospect entering the 2013 season, but injuries and disappointing production led the Yankees to release him last month. Heathcott did perform well during his first taste of major league action last year, though, collecting 10 hits – including two home runs and a pair of doubles – in 30 PAs.

Minor MLB Transactions: 12-15-2015

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We’ll track the day’s minor moves right here:

  • The Red Sox announced that they’ve re-signed right-hander Anthony Varvaro to a minor league contract. Additionally, they announced the signings of outfielder Ryan LaMarre (as WEEI’s Rob Bradford first reported), catcher Ali Solis, infielder Chris Dominguez and right-hander William Cuevas to minor league deals. Of that group, Varvaro, LaMarre and Dominguez played in the Majors last season, with Varvaro logging 11 innings in the Boston bullpen. The 31-year-old Varvaro has seen Major League action in each season dating back to 2010, highlighted by 128 innings of 2.74 ERA ball for the Braves from 2013-14. LaMarre, 27, made his big league debut with the Reds last season and appeared in 21 games but recorded just 26 plate appearances. Dominguez, 29, also received a brief look from Cincinnati in 2015 and got a similar cup of coffee with the 2014 Giants. Boston also confirmed its previously reported signing of veteran right-hander Sean O’Sullivan on a minors pact.

Earlier Updates

  • Among the Twins’ recent minor league signees are outfielder Darin Mastroianni, shortstop Wilfredo Tovar, and righty Brandon Kintzler, MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger tweets. The 30-year-old Mastroianni failed to crack the majors last year for the first time in four seasons, and slashed just .257/.308/.345 in 484 Triple-A plate appearances. Tovar, 24, had spent his entire career in the Mets organization and put up a .283/.327/.356 batting line last year over 388 turns at bat in his first run at the highest level of the minors. Injuries have limited Kintzler, who is 31. He only threw 29 1/3 innings at all levels last year after contributing 135 1/3 major league innings of 2.93 ERA pitching over 2013-14.
  • The Padres have signed backstop Erik Kratz to a minor league deal, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune recently reported on Twitter. Kratz, 35, only saw 28 MLB plate appearances last year but provides another depth piece for a San Diego club that has numerous options behind the dish.

Red Sox Designate Josh Rutledge, Outright Anthony Varvaro

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The Red Sox announced a series of transactions in which the team turned over a few 40-man spots. Leaving the big league roster were infielder Josh Rutledge, who was designated for assignment, and righty Anthony Varvaro, who was outrighted (and elected free agency).

Boston needed those slots as part of its efforts to protect players from the Rule 5 draft. Going onto the 40-man are infielder Marco Hernandez, righty Pat Light, and lefty Williams Jerez.

Rutledge, 26, has shown some pop at times from the middle infield but hasn’t been a consistent offensive threat and has rated poorly with the glove. He spent most of last season at Triple-A with the Angels organization, but went to Boston at the trade deadline in the Shane Victorino deal.

The 31-year-old Varvaro, meanwhile, turned in nice seasons for the Braves in 2013 and 2014. He went to the Sox via trade last winter. But he started off slowly in 2015 and ultimately required season-ending surgery for a torn flexor tendon (after being claimed and returned by the Cubs).

Cubs Return Anthony Varvaro To Red Sox

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The Red Sox announced that pitcher Anthony Varvaro has been returned to the club. The right-hander was designated for assignment by the Red Sox in late April and claimed off waivers by the Cubs days later.

Varvaro, it turns out, has a torn right flexor tendon and will undergo surgery Tuesday ending his season, reports Cormac Gordon of the Staten Island Advance.com.

“The tendon is partially torn off the bone, but the elbow is stable otherwise,” the 30-year-old told Gordon. “I was worried I might need another Tommy John surgery. That’s not the case. This is the best possible outcome.”

Rehabilitation is expected to last six months, so Varvaro could resume throwing in November. The Red Sox say they were unaware of how severe the injury was, so both clubs agreed that it “would be appropriate to return Varvaro to the Red Sox for placement on the disabled list in accordance with the major league rules.”

The Red Sox designated Varvaro for assignment on April 29th and the Cubs claimed him off waivers on May 3rd.  Three days later, the Cubs DFA’d Varvaro and subsequently outrighted him.

Varvaro posted a 2.74 ERA with 6.5 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a ground-ball rate near 48 percent with the Braves from 2012-13. With the Red Sox this year, Varvaro appeared in nine games and totaled 11 innings. The five runs he surrendered aren’t particularly concerning, but his velocity was down from an average of 92.5 mph in 2014 to 91.1 mph in 2015. That, combined with the 14 hits and six walks he yielded in his 11 innings, likely aided in his swift exit from the Boston organization.  Now, for the time being, he’s back in Boston.

Minor Moves: Lendy Castillo, Anthony Varvaro

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We’ll keep up with the minor moves of the day in this post:

  • The Rangers have signed right-hander Lendy Castillo to a minor league pact, reports the Dallas Morning News’ Gerry Fraley (Castillo’s mention is at the bottom of his post). The 26-year-old Castillo tossed 16 innings of relief for the 2012 Cubs, yielding 14 runs with 13 strikeouts against 12 walks. He spent last year with Chicago’s Double-A affiliate, posting a 3.95 ERA with 41 strikeouts in 41 innings. However, Castillo was old for the level and also mixed in an alarming 39 walks. He hasn’t had such pronounced control problems in the past, however, so the Rangers will hope to be able to help him rediscover the ability to throw strikes while maintaining his proclivity for whiffing batters.
  • Righty Anthony Varvaro has cleared outright waivers and is expected to be assigned to the Cubs’ Triple-A affiliate, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune tweets. Varvaro figures to take up residence as a handy depth option for Chicago, which recently called upon fellow former Braves reliever James Russell after he took a stint in Iowa. In his case, the 30-year-old Varvaro had worked to a 4.09 ERA in 11 frames early in the season with the Red Sox. While that is hardly dominant run prevention, and his 4.9 BB/9 were less than promising, Varvaro has put up good results with solid peripherals over the last several years and is a nice arm to have stashed.

Minor Moves: Beck, Constanza, Pineiro, Nelson

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

  • The White Sox have announced that they’ve selected the contract of righty Chris Beck to be the 26th man for the second game of their doubleheader today. Beck, 24, has made his way through the minors with few strikeouts but strong control, posting 5.4 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 since the White Sox drafted him in the second round in 2012. This season, he had a 4.78 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9 in 26 1/3 innings with Triple-A Charlotte.
  • The Reds have signed outfielder Jose Constanza to a minor-league deal, according to MLB.com’s transactions page. The 31-year-old Constanza collected 240 plate appearances with the Braves from 2011 through 2014, batting .273/.316/.323. He spent most of last season with Triple-A Gwinnett. The Braves released him last month.
  • The Blue Jays have signed veteran starter Joel Pineiro to a minor-league deal and assigned him to Double-A New Hampshire, Jays broadcaster Mike Wilner tweets. Pineiro, 36, last pitched in the big leagues with the Angels in 2011. He pitched briefly in the Cubs and Angels systems in a comeback bid last season, then pitched winter ball in Puerto Rico.
  • The Brewers will sign infielder Chris Nelson to a minor-league deal, according to SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (Twitter links). The Phillies recently released Nelson from their minor-league deal with him. The five-year veteran played briefly with the Padres in 2014. The former first-round pick has a career line of .265/.311/.388, with many of his at-bats coming in hitter-friendly Coors Field.
  • The Padres have outrighted catcher Wil Nieves to Triple-A El Paso, according to the MLB.com transactions page. The Padres designated Nieves for assignment earlier this week to make room for top prospect Austin Hedges. It’s unclear whether Nieves will accept his outright assignment or opt for free agency. Nieves appeared in just six games for the Padres this year.
  • The Cubs have outrighted righty Anthony Varvaro, also according to the MLB.com transactions page. The Cubs recently claimed Varvaro from the Red Sox and then designated him for assignment on Wednesday. He did not appear in a game for them. He pitched in nine games for Boston earlier this season.
  • The Athletics have released outfielder Alex Hassan, according to the Pacific Coast League transactions page. That news might actually come as a relief to Hassan, who had been claimed five times in the past seven months. The A’s designated Hassan for assignment yesterday.
  • The Angels have released corner infielder Ryan Wheeler, via the Pacific Coast League transactions page. They had claimed the 26-year-old from the Rockies last August. Wheeler, who played briefly in the big leagues in 2012, 2013 and 2014, was hitting .291/.304/.418 for Triple-A Salt Lake, although he has a track record of hitting for better power at the Triple-A level.
  • The Rays have announced that they’ve placed Alex Cobb, who’s having Tommy John surgery, on the 60-day DL and selected the contract of 23-year-old righty Andrew Bellatti. Bellatti had struck out 20 batters in 21 1/3 innings at Triple-A Durham this season, posting a 2.11 ERA, pitching as a starter even though he had spent most of the previous three seasons working in relief. As Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times explains, it’s been a strange path to the Majors for Bellatti, a 2009 draft pick who spent a few months in jail for vehicular manslaughter following a 2010 car accident.

Cubs Designate Anthony Varvaro For Assignment

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The Cubs announced today that they have designated right-hander Anthony Varvaro for assignment. His roster spot will go to fellow righty Justin Grimm, who was activated from the disabled list. Additionally, the Cubs have optioned Junior Lake to Triple-A Iowa and recalled outfielder Matt Szczur.

The Cubs claimed the 30-year-old Varvaro off waivers from the Red Sox just three days ago, and he didn’t get into a game with Chicago in his brief time with the club. Varvaro was likely added to keep a fresh arm in the ’pen should a need arise, and the Cubs may have similar hopes to those of the Dodgers, who have recently claimed and quickly designated promising arms in the hopes that they will clear outright waivers and be able to be kept in the organization.

That may be unlikely in Varvaro’s case, as the former Braves/Red Sox hurler has a solid track record in the Majors. Varvaro posted a 2.74 ERA with 6.5 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a ground-ball rate near 48 percent with the Braves from 2012-13, making their offseason decision to part ways with him somewhat surprising. With the Red Sox this year, Varvaro appeared in nine games and totaled 11 innings. The five runs he surrendered aren’t particularly concerning, but his velocity was down from an average of 92.5 mph in 2014 to 91.1 mph in 2015. That, combined with the 14 hits and six walks he yielded in his 11 innings, likely aided in his swift exit from the Boston organization.

The Cubs will have 10 days to trade Varvaro or place him on outright waivers. Given his track record, it’s not difficult to envision another club claiming him if he is placed on waivers.

Cubs Claim Anthony Varvaro Off Waivers

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The Cubs have announced they have claimed right-hander Anthony Varvaro off waivers from the Red Sox. To clear a 40-man roster spot, the Cubs have designated left-hander Joseph Ortiz for assignment.

Varvaro, who was designated for assignment by the Red Sox Wednesday, has appeared in nine games (11 innings) this year allowing five earned runs while striking out eight and walking six.

Ortiz has spent the entire season at Triple-A Iowa making eight relief outings and notably has struck out only one batter in 10 2/3 innings. The Cubs claimed the 24-year-old off waivers from the Rangers last October after he spent most of the season recovering from a January 2014 motorcycle accident. Ortiz made his MLB debut with Texas in 2013 (his only stint in the Majors) posting a 4.23 ERA, 5.4 K/9, and 2.0 BB/9 in 44 2/3 innings (32 games).

Red Sox Designate Anthony Varvaro

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The Red Sox have designated righty Anthony Varvaro, manager John Farrell announced on WEEI’s Dale & Holley radio show. Boston will call up lefty Tommy Layne and righty Dalier Hinojosa to add arms to the pen.

Varvaro, 30, had thrown 11 innings this year for the Red Sox after being acquired from the Braves over the winter. He struck out eight and walked six batters over that stretch while allowing five earned runs to cross the plate. Across six seasons in the big leagues, Varvaro has worked to a 3.23 ERA while posting 7.4 K/9 against 3.4 BB/9.

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