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Blair Calvo

Tigers Notes: Maeda, Manning, Hopkins, Garko

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Kenta Maeda made his return to the Tigers rotation this evening. Detroit reinstated the veteran right-hander from the 15-day injured list, optioning Matt Manning to Triple-A Toledo in a corresponding move. Maeda took the ball against the Blue Jays, working five scoreless innings.

Maeda was down for the minimal two weeks after battling an illness. Signed to a two-year free agent deal last offseason, he has struggled to a 5.80 ERA over his first eight starts. His 15.8% strikeout rate is well down from the 27.3% mark he managed during his final season with the Twins. He has also surrendered nine homers over 35 2/3 innings, a lofty 2.27 longballs per nine. Most of the damage has been concentrated over three bad starts. Maeda has given up at least six runs in a trio of outings and no more than three runs in his other five starts.

Despite Maeda’s inconsistency, Detroit has gotten generally solid rotation work. Tarik Skubal, Reese Olson and Jack Flaherty have been anywhere from solid to excellent. Casey Mize has a more pedestrian 4.57 ERA through nine outings. Manning has been the clear #6 option on the depth chart, starting five games around a trio of stints in the minors. He has only managed a 4.88 ERA over five MLB appearances but has a 3.79 mark with a huge 31.6% strikeout rate in 19 Triple-A innings.

While Maeda’s return is the bigger injury news for the Tigers, they did lose a couple depth players this week. The team informed reporters (including Evan Woodbery of MLive) that minor league reliever Blair Calvo and outfielder TJ Hopkins are out for the season. Both players recently underwent surgery to repair labrum tears in their right shoulders.

Calvo and Hopkins each made their big league debuts in 2023, though both players have subsequently been outrighted from the 40-man roster. Calvo made one MLB appearance for the Rockies and had only pitched twice for Detroit’s Double-A affiliate. Hopkins, whom the Tigers claimed off waivers from the Giants in February, appeared in 25 big league contests for the Reds last year. He’d been hitting .190/.326/.329 in Double-A.

The Tigers also announced some off-field news this afternoon. Detroit promoted Ryan Garko from vice president of player development to assistant general manager. The former big league first baseman has worked with the Tigers’ farm system since he was hired in September 2021. He joins Sam Menzin, Jay Sartori and Rob Metzler as assistant GMs. They’re behind baseball operations president Scott Harris and first-year general manager Jeff Greenberg in the front office hierarchy.

Astros Claim Bennett Sousa Off Waivers

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The Astros have claimed left-hander Bennett Sousa off of Detroit’s waiver wire, according to the Tigers.  The Astros announced that infielder Rylan Bannon was designated for assignment to create roster space on Houston’s 40-man.  Right-hander Blair Calvo was also outrighted to the Tigers’ Triple-A affiliate after clearing waivers.

Sousa has been optioned to Triple-A Sugar Land, where he’ll provide some depth should the Astros need some left-handed help in their bullpen.  Framber Valdez is the only left-hander on Houston’s MLB roster, and Sousa joins fellow Sugar Land Space Cowboys Parker Mushinski and Matt Gage as the only other left-handed options on the 40-man.

The 28-year-old Sousa is changing teams for the second time in a week, as Detroit only claimed him off waivers from the Brewers on August 29.  Sousa’s brief Tigers tenure didn’t result in any Major League or minor league action with the organization, as the Tigers designated him for assignment just on September 1.

A tenth-round pick for the White Sox in the 2018 draft, Sousa made his MLB debut with Chicago in 2022 before joining the Reds on a waiver claim back in February.  The Brewers then acquired Sousa in April, leading to two appearances for Sousa in a Milwaukee uniform.  Altogether, Sousa has appeared in 27 MLB games and thrown 23 innings during his career, posting an even 9.00 ERA.  Over 193 1/3 innings in the minors, Sousa has a 2.98 ERA to go along with some good strikeout rates and grounder rates, though control has increasingly become an issue as Sousa has worked his way up the minor league ladder.

Bannon made his Major League debut last season, and has already suited up for three different teams (Orioles, Braves, Astros) over his seven career games in the Show.  Perhaps best known as one of the five players acquired by the O’s from the Dodgers in the Manny Machado trade, Bannon was involved in a flurry of waiver claims over the last five months of 2022, going from the Orioles to the Dodgers to the Braves to the Cubs and finally to the Astros in December.

His 21 career PA in the majors have only yielded two hits, but Bannon has posted some decent numbers in the minors, including a .228/.339/.420 slash line over 1191 PA at the Triple-A level.  Between his bat and his ability to play second base, third base, and shortstop, it wouldn’t be a shock if Bannon is claimed again on waivers from a team looking for some infield depth.

Tigers Acquire Blair Calvo

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The Rockies and Tigers swung a minor trade this afternoon as Detroit acquired the services of right-hander Blair Calvo in exchange for cash considerations. Calvo had been designated for assignment by the Rockies earlier this week to make room for catcher Jorge Alfaro on the 40-man roster. To make room for Calvo on their own 40-man, the Tigers announced they have designated righty Braden Bristo for assignment. Calvo has be optioned to Triple-A.

Calvo made his MLB debut for the Rockies earlier this season, recording a single scoreless outing during his lone major league appearance. That outing stands in sharp contrast to what has been a brutal 2023 campaign for Calvo at the Triple-A level. In 23 innings of work for Colorado’s Triple-A affiliate in Albuquerque, the righty has been shelled to the tune of a 7.43 ERA, though a .413 BABIP and a strand rate of just 55.3% both indicate Calvo has pitched better than his disastrous results would indicate.

Going forward, Calvo figures to act as optionable bullpen depth for the Tigers, whose relievers sport a roughly middle-of-the-pack ERA of 3.85 despite covering the third most innings in the AL with 273 1/3 innings worked. As the Tigers gear up for the second half of the season, relief depth provided by hurlers like Calvo could allow Detroit to keep their relief corps fresh.

As for Bristo, the 28-year-old righty made his major league debut this season as well. To this point, he’s made three appearances in the majors during his time with the Rays and Tigers, each of which lasted multiple innings. In seven career innings of work, Bristo has posted a 2.57 ERA and 3.55 FIP with five strikeouts against four walks. Should he clear waivers, the Tigers will have the opportunity to outright him to the minor leagues, where he would continue to serve as multi-inning bullpen depth without requiring a 40-man roster spot.

Rockies Select Jorge Alfaro, Designate Blair Calvo For Assignment

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The Rockies announced today that they have selected the contract of catcher Jorge Alfaro. Fellow backstop Brian Serven was optioned in a corresponding move. In order to open a spot for Alfaro on the 40-man, right-hander Blair Calvo was designated for assignment.

Alfaro, 30, makes it back to the big leagues for the first time this year. He has appeared in each of the past seven major league seasons but had to settle for a minor league deal with the Red Sox this winter. He was crushing for their Triple-A team, hitting .320/.366/.520 through 191 plate appearances, but the Sox never called him up. Alfaro triggered an opt-out in his contract and the club released him rather than giving him a roster spot.

He then signed another minor league deal, landing with the Rockies just five days ago. He played three games for their Triple-A club and hit .357/.357/.571 in that brief sample before getting called up. That kind of production would be welcome on any club, but it’s no guarantee Alfaro can provide it. He has often hit well in the minors, which has led to many big league opportunities over the years, as the Phillies, Marlins, Padres and now Rockies have all had him on their respective rosters at various points. But in 478 career games in the majors, he’s hit just .256/.305/.396 for a wRC+ of 89.

Alfaro has generally been considered a bat-first catcher and has tallied a cumulative -17 Defensive Runs Saved thus far in his career. Teams could surely tolerate a bit of that if Alfaro were producing with the bat, but he’s hasn’t been able to manage that quite yet.

Despite his tepid results in the big leagues thus far, it’s not surprising that the Rockies are willing to give him a shot. He’s been hitting very well in the minors this year and is a former top 100 prospect. They already have a couple of catchers on the roster in Elias Díaz and Austin Wynns but have been going with a three-catcher setup of late. Serven was recalled a couple of days ago as Díaz was dealing with a minor injury. Díaz sat out Sunday’s game but returned to the lineup for the next three contests.

Díaz is having a solid season, hitting .295/.351/.457 for a 105 wRC+ and is unlikely to be usurped as long as he stays healthy. Perhaps Alfaro will factor into the designated hitter mix, where the club doesn’t really have an everyday option now that Charlie Blackmon is on the injured list. Since he’s been gone, Díaz, Randal Grichuk and Jurickson Profar have each been given starts as the DH. If both Díaz and Alfaro were in the lineup, they would still have Wynns on hand as a safety net in the event of an injury.

The club will surely be hoping that Alfaro can give a boost to their lineup but he could also wind up as a summer trade chip if this is the year he finally puts it together in the majors. The Rockies have one of the worst records in the National League at 29-41 and could find themselves in position to sell. Since Alfaro is scheduled for free agency again this winter, he would be a logical candidate for such a move.

In order to take a shot on Alfaro, the Rockies are risking losing Calvo. Now 27 years old, he was drafted by the club in the 23rd round in 2019. Last year, he tossed 35 relief innings in Double-A with a 3.09 ERA, 32.2% strikeout rate, 7.5% walk rate and 57.6% ground ball rate. The club added him to the roster in November to prevent him from being selected in the Rule 5 draft.

Unfortunately, his results haven’t been as strong this year, though he did throw one scoreless inning in his major league debut. The rest of the year has been spent at Triple-A, where he has a 7.43 ERA through 23 innings. There’s probably a bit of bad luck in there, as he has a .413 batting average on balls in play and 55.3% strand rate. His peripherals have gone in the wrong direction compared to last year, though not by too much, as he’s struck out 28.3% of opponents while walking 8.8% and getting grounders on 47.6% of balls in play.

Though his 5.02 FIP is much nicer than this ERA, he’s nonetheless lost his roster spot. The Rockies will now have a week to trade him or pass him through waivers. In the event that he clears, he would not have the right to elect free agency since he has neither a previous career outright nor three years of service time.

Rockies Recall Blair Calvo

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The Rockies announced they’ve recalled reliever Blair Calvo from Triple-A Albuquerque. He’ll be in Bud Black’s bullpen tonight against the Diamondbacks following his first major league call. Karl Kauffmann was optioned out in a corresponding move.

Calvo, 27, has played four-plus seasons professionally. Signed for just $3,000 as a 23rd round draftee out of Florida’s Flagler Junior College in 2019, he’s worked almost exclusively out of the bullpen in the minors. He’s never appeared on an organizational prospects ranking at Baseball America, though Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs praised his plus slider and called him a potential middle reliever this spring.

In 153 2/3 career minor league frames, Calvo has a 4.86 ERA. He’s had the misfortune of working in some hitter-friendly environments on his way up the ladder. That includes this year’s run in Albuquerque, where the righty has allowed 18 runs in as many innings. A huge .426 batting average on balls in play hasn’t done him any favors. Calvo’s 29.2% strikeout rate and 49% ground-ball percentage are both solid, though he’s also walked batters at a 10.1% clip.

The Rockies added Calvo to their 40-man roster last offseason. He’d have otherwise been eligible for the Rule 5 draft. As a result, Colorado doesn’t need to make any 40-man transactions to accommodate his promotion. He’s in his first of three minor league option years and can bounce between Coors Field and the upper minors for the foreseeable future without landing on waivers.

Rockies Select Five Players To Roster

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The Rockies announced they have selected five players to their roster in advance of today’s Rule 5 deadline. They are right-handers Riley Pint and Blair Calvo, infielders Warming Bernabel and Julio Carreras, as well as outfielder Brenton Doyle.

Pint has pitched his way onto the 40-man roster for the first time. That was long the expectation after Colorado selected him fourth overall out of a Kansas high school back in 2016, but he’s traversed an unexpectedly challenging path. Pint struggled significantly with his strike-throwing in the lower levels of the minor leagues, and he decided to step away from the game entirely for a point last year. The 6’5″ hurler returned in 2022, splitting the season between Double-A Hartford and Triple-A Albuquerque.

Now 25, Pint spent the bulk of the season in Hartford, working to a 4.64 ERA in 42 2/3 innings out of the bullpen. He punched out a very strong 29.6% of opponents, although his 15.6% walk percentage remains alarming. The Rockies were nevertheless impressed enough with his form to foreclose any possibility of losing him in the Rule 5 draft. He could factor into the big league bullpen mix next year.

Calvo was a 23rd-round draftee in 2019 out of a Florida junior college. He worked 35 innings through 29 relief appearances in Hartford, pitching to a 3.09 ERA. Calvo struck out an excellent 32.2% of opponents, induced ground-balls at a massive 57.6% clip and only walked 7.5% of opponents. Calvo turns 27 before Opening Day and could join Pint in factoring into the MLB bullpen mix in 2023.

Bernabel, the #13 prospect in the organization according to Baseball America, was an amateur signee out of the Dominican Republic before the 2019 season. A right-handed hitting third baseman, he’s shown excellent bat-to-ball skills in the low minors. The 20-year-old posted a .317/.390/.504 line with 10 home runs and 21 stolen bases in 300 plate appearances with Low-A Fresno. He’s still likely a couple years from big league readiness, having just briefly reached High-A, but his rapidly improving prospect status gets him a 40-man spot early.

Carreras, 23 in January, signed out of the Dominican Republic during the 2018-19 international period. Baseball America considers him the #20 prospect in the system, praising his shortstop defense and power potential. He spent most of the year at High-A Spokane, hitting .289/.352/.473 with 11 homers to earn a late bump to Hartford.

Doyle is the #22 prospect in the system, according to BA. A fourth-round pick in 2019 out of Shepherd University, he spent most of the year in Hartford. He posted a .246/.287/.450 mark, connecting on 23 longballs but striking out at an elevated 31.2% clip. Doyle spent most of the season playing center field and has a very promising combination of power and athleticism, but his subpar bat-to-ball skills raise questions about his ultimate role.

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