Marlins Outright Severino Gonzalez, Austin Nola
The Marlins announced this morning that they have outrighted righty Severino Gonzalez and catcher Austin Nola to Triple-A. Both players cleared waivers after recently being designated for assignment.
In other moves, the Fish put outfielder/first baseman Garrett Cooper on the 10-day DL with a right wrist contusion. He’ll be replaced by outfielder Braxton Lee, who was recalled.
Gonzalez was brought up for only a single game and did not end up entering. It is not clear whether he has accepted the assignment, but he would have the right instead to elect free agency. Gonzalez owns a 6.68 ERA in his 66 career frames in the majors, all with the Phillies in 2015 and 2016, but did manage 8.5 K/9 against 1.9 BB/9 in that span.
As for Nola, the 28-year-old has played all over the infield, including behind the dish, making him an interesting potential asset. But he has never really advanced with the bat. In 750 career Triple-A plate appearances, he carries only a .259/.320/.353 batting line.
Marlins Designate Austin Nola For Assignment
The Marlins have designated catcher/infielder Austin Nola for assignment and placed Rule 5 right-hander Brett Graves on the 60-day disabled list, tweets MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro. The Miami Herald’s Clark Spencer adds that moves clear 40-man spots for the addition of veteran catcher Bryan Holaday, infielder Yadiel Rivera and right-hander Jacob Turner, each of whom has made the Opening Day roster.
Nola, the 28-year-old brother of Philies right-hander Aaron Nola, has yet to reach the big league level after coming off the draft board as a fifth-round selection of the Marlins back in 2012. While he began his pro career playing shortstop, the elder Nola eventually gathered a fair bit of experience at second base and third base before making the even larger jump to catcher last season in the upper minors. To his credit, Nola halted 27 of 65 stolen base attempts against him (42 percent).
Versatility in the field aside, Nola simply hasn’t produced much at the plate as a pro. He’s a career .243/.330/.320 hitter in parts of six minor league seasons, including a .259/.320/.353 slash in 750 plate appearances at the Triple-A level.