Braves Place Travis D’Arnaud On Seven-Day Concussion IL
TODAY: The Braves officially announced d’Arnaud’s IL placement. Tromp was called up from Triple-A.
APRIL 8: Braves catcher Travis d’Arnaud will go on the seven-day concussion IL, manager Brian Snitker told reporters including Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. D’Arnaud was involved in a collision at home plate during the Braves match with the Padres tonight. He was removed from the game.
D’Arnaud has made a hot start to the season, slashing .355/.355/.452 with eleven hits over 31 plate appearances. Despite a putting up his best campaign to date last year and earning a trip to the All Star game, there was some speculation that the Braves may move on from D’Arnaud after they acquired Sean Murphy from Oakland. The team opted to hang on to d’Arnaud and his $8MM salary, instead preferring to slip catching duties between the pair and rotate them through the DH spot. So far, d’Arnaud has made three appearances at catcher and four at designated hitter.
Presumably Murphy will now handle an even greater majority of the catching duties while d’Arnaud is sidelined. The team hasn’t announced who it’ll likely turn to as a back up for Murphy, but they have Joe Hudson and Chadwick Tromp at Triple-A.
Each MLB Team’s Players On WBC Rosters
The World Baseball Classic is returning this year, the first time since 2017. The quadrennial event was supposed to take place in 2021 but was scuttled by the pandemic, now returning after a six-year absence. Rosters for the tournament were announced today and those can be found at this link. Here is a breakdown of which players from each MLB team are set to take participate. Quick caveat that this list is fluid and might be changed as more information becomes available.
Without further ado…
Angels
- Glenn Albanese Jr.
- Jaime Barria
- Gustavo Campero
- Alan Carter
- Jhonathan Diaz
- Carlos Estevez
- David Fletcher
- Jake Kalish
- D’Shawn Knowles
- Shohei Ohtani
- Jose Quijada
- Luis Rengifo
- Gerardo Reyes
- Patrick Sandoval
- Mike Trout
- Gio Urshela
- Cesar Valdez
- Zack Weiss
- Aaron Whitefield
Astros
- Bryan Abreu
- Jose Altuve
- Ronel Blanco
- Luis Garcia
- Colton Gordon
- Cristian Javier
- Martin Maldonado
- Rafael Montero
- Hector Neris
- Jeremy Pena
- Ryan Pressly
- Andre Scrubb
- Kyle Tucker
- Jose Urquidy
- Derek West
Athletics
Blue Jays
- Jose Berrios
- Jiorgeny Casimiri
- Yimi Garcia
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
- Spencer Horwitz
- Alejandro Kirk
- Otto Lopez
- Damiano Palmegiani
Braves
Brewers
- Willy Adames
- Sal Frelick
- Alex Hall
- Matt Hardy
- Joel Payamps
- Rowdy Tellez
- Abraham Toro
- Luis Urias
- Michele Vassalotti
- Devin Williams
Cardinals
- Nolan Arenado
- Genesis Cabrera
- Tommy Edman
- Giovanny Gallegos
- Paul Goldschmidt
- Ivan Herrera
- Matt Koperniak
- Noah Mendlinger
- Oscar Mercado
- Miles Mikolas
- Lars Nootbaar
- Tyler O’Neill
- JoJo Romero
- Adam Wainwright
- Guillermo Zuniga
Cubs
- Javier Assad
- Owen Caissie
- Danis Correa
- Ben DeLuzio
- Roenis Elias
- Miles Mastrobuoni
- Matt Mervis
- B.J. Murray Jr.
- Vinny Nittoli
- Fabian Pertuz
- Liam Spence
- Seiya Suzuki
- Marcus Stroman
- Pedro Strop
- Nelson Velazquez
- Jared Young
Diamondbacks
- Dominic Fletcher
- Jakob Goldfarb
- Gunnar Groen
- Merrill Kelly
- Ketel Marte
- Eric Mendez
- Dominic Miroglio
- Emmanuel Rivera
- Jacob Steinmetz
- Mitchell Stumpo
- Alek Thomas
Dodgers
- Austin Barnes
- Mookie Betts
- Freddie Freeman
- Clayton Kershaw
- Adam Kolarek
- Miguel Rojas
- Will Smith
- Trayce Thompson
- Julio Urias
Giants
Guardians
- Enyel De Los Santos
- Dayan Frias
- Andres Gimenez
- Bo Naylor
- Richie Palacios
- Cal Quantrill
- Cade Smith
- Meibrys Viloria
- Josh Wolf
Marlins
Mariners
- Matt Brash
- Diego Castillo
- Matt Festa
- Harry Ford
- Teoscar Hernandez
- Milkar Perez
- Julio Rodriguez
- Eugenio Suarez
- Blake Townsend
Mets
- Pete Alonso
- Jonathan Arauz
- Edwin Diaz
- Eduardo Escobar
- Dominic Hamel
- Elieser Hernandez
- Francisco Lindor
- Jeff McNeil
- Omar Narvaez
- Cam Opp
- Adam Ottavino
- Jose Quintana
- Brooks Raley
- Claudio Scotti
Nationals
Orioles
Padres
- Xander Bogaerts
- Nabil Crismatt
- Nelson Cruz
- Jarryd Dale
- Yu Darvish
- Jose Espada
- Ruben Galindo
- Luis Garcia
- Ha-Seong Kim
- Manny Machado
- Nick Martinez
- Evan Mendoza
- Juan Soto
- Brett Sullivan
- Julio Teheran
Phillies
- Jose Alvarado
- Erubiel Armenta
- Malik Binns
- Jaydenn Estanista
- Vito Friscia
- Brian Marconi
- J.T. Realmuto
- Kyle Schwarber
- Noah Skirrow
- Gregory Soto
- Garrett Stubbs
- Ranger Suarez
- Trea Turner
- Taijuan Walker
- Rixon Wingrove
Pirates
- David Bednar
- Tsung-Che Cheng
- Roansy Contreras
- Alessandro Ercolani
- Santiago Florez
- Jarlin Garcia
- Antwone Kelly
- Josh Palacios
- Jeffrey Passantino
- Tahnaj Thomas
- Duane Underwood Jr.
- Chavez Young
- Rob Zastryzny
Rangers
Rays
- Jason Adam
- Jonathan Aranda
- Randy Arozarena
- Christian Bethancourt
- Trevor Brigden
- Wander Franco
- Andrew Gross
- Joe LaSorsa
- Francisco Mejia
- Isaac Paredes
- Harold Ramirez
- Graham Spraker
Red Sox
- Jorge Alfaro
- Richard Bleier
- Rafael Devers
- Jarren Duran
- Ian Gibaut
- Rio Gomez
- Norwith Gudino
- Enrique Hernandez
- Nick Pivetta
- Henry Ramos
- Alex Verdugo
- Masataka Yoshida
Reds
- Donovan Benoit
- Silvino Bracho
- Luis Cessa
- Fernando Cruz
- Alexis Diaz
- Arij Fransen
- Kyle Glogoski
- Tayron Guerrero
- Evan Kravetz
- Nicolo Pinazzi
- Reiver Sanmartin
- Vin Timpanelli
Rockies
- Daniel Bard
- Jake Bird
- Yonathan Daza
- Elias Diaz
- Kyle Freeland
- Justin Lawrence
- German Marquez
- Michael Petersen
- Alan Trejo
Royals
- Max Castillo
- Robbie Glendinning
- Carlos Hernandez
- Nicky Lopez
- MJ Melendez
- Vinnie Pasquantino
- Salvador Perez
- Brady Singer
- Bobby Witt Jr.
- Angel Zerpa
Tigers
- Javier Baez
- Miguel Cabrera
- Chavez Fernander
- Andy Ibanez
- Jack O’Loughlin
- Jacob Robson
- Eduardo Rodriguez
- Jonathan Schoop
- John Valente
Twins
- Jose De Leon
- Edouard Julien
- Jorge Lopez
- Pablo Lopez
- Carlos Luna
- Jose Miranda
- Jovani Moran
- Emilio Pagan
- Christian Vazquez
White Sox
- Tim Anderson
- Kendall Graveman
- Eloy Jimenez
- Lance Lynn
- Yoan Moncada
- Nicholas Padilla
- Luis Robert
- Jose Ruiz
Yankees
Braves Recall Freddy Tarnok, Select Ryan Goins
The Braves announced a host of roster moves this morning. Pitching prospect Freddy Tarnok has been recalled, while the club selected the contract of infielder Ryan Goins. Catcher Chadwick Tromp has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a left quad strain, while reliever Danny Young was designated for assignment.
Tarnok, 23, is headed to the big leagues for the first time. A third-round pick out of a Florida high school in 2017, the 6’3″ hurler has spent the past few seasons as one of the organization’s more interesting pitching prospects. He’s split the 2022 campaign between Double-A Mississippi and Triple-A Gwinnett, starting all 20 of his appearances. Between the two levels, he owns a 3.63 ERA over 89 1/3 innings, striking out an impressive 27% of batters faced against a slightly elevated but manageable 9.1% walk rate.
Baseball America recently slotted Tarnok as the #8 prospect in the Atlanta farm system. The outlet praised his 95-98 MPH heater and a downer curveball that could be a plus offering. He also mixes in a slider and changeup and has solid control, giving him an opportunity to carve out a role in the starting rotation. Tarnok, who was added to the 40-man roster last winter to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft, is in his first of three minor league option years and could bounce on and off the active roster.
That’s not the case for Goins, who is back in the big leagues for the first time in two years. The 34-year-old utilityman signed a minor league contract with the Braves over the offseason. He’s only hitting .221/.250/.272 over 250 plate appearances with Gwinnett, but he’s a quality defender who can cover all around the infield. Atlanta placed Ehire Adrianza on the 10-day injured due to a non-COVID viral infection earlier this week, so Goins will step into the utility role.
A left-handed hitter, Goins has appeared in eight previous big league seasons. The bulk of that time came with the Blue Jays, where current Atlanta president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos served as general manager for a while. He’s a .228/.278/.333 career hitter, but he’s rated as a plus defensive second baseman throughout his time in the majors.
The Braves just nabbed Young off waivers from the Mariners last week. The 28-year-old made his only appearance in an Atlanta uniform last night, tossing 2 2/3 innings of mop-up work in a blowout win over the Mets. He’s up to 6 1/3 innings of three-run ball between Seattle and Atlanta, striking out six with a couple of walks but averaging only 88.7 MPH on his sinker. The lack of velocity hasn’t stopped the University of Florida product from posting strong numbers in Triple-A this year. He’s combined for 29 2/3 innings of 3.64 ERA ball, striking out a stellar 35.2% of opponents against an 8% walk rate.
Young will find himself back on waivers over the next couple days. Between his Triple-A production and all three remaining minor league option years, he could draw some interest from teams seeking left-handed relief depth.
Braves Option Ian Anderson
The Braves announced a series of roster moves today, recalling right-hander Huascar Ynoa and selecting catcher Chadwick Tromp. To create room on the active roster, they’ve optioned righty Ian Anderson and outfielder Guillermo Heredia.
The most noteworthy of these moves is the demotion of Anderson, who has been entrenched in the rotation for quite some time. First called up to the big leagues in August of 2020, he made six starts in the shortened season and registered a 1.95 ERA. That was impressive enough for Anderson to earn a spot in the club’s postseason rotation, as he made four more starts in the playoffs with a 0.96 ERA, as Atlanta reached the NLCS.
Last year, Anderson seemingly proved he wasn’t a short-season fluke by pitching well over a full campaign. Though he did make one trip to the IL, Anderson made 24 starts in 2021 with a 3.58 ERA, then made four more postseason starts with a 1.59 ERA, helping Atlanta win the World Series.
The 24-year-old has taken a step back here in 2022, however, currently sporting a 5.11 ERA on the year. His 29.7% strikeout rate in 2020 fell to 23.2% last year and is down to 19.8% here this year. His 11.3% walk rate is also a career high and his 47.4% ground ball rate a career low. It’s possible there’s some bad luck involved, as his .318 BABIP on the year is much higher than in past seasons, but there’s also a lot of blue on his Statcast page, with batters clearly making some good contact against him. With the emergence of rookie Spencer Strider and the acquisition of Jake Odorizzi, it seems Anderson’s struggles have bumped him from the front five. He’ll join the Gwinnett Stripers and try to get things back on track.
The move isn’t likely to have a huge impact on Anderson from a service time perspective, at least in the short term. He came into this season with one year and 94 days of service time and has added around 120 more days here in 2022. Even if he were to spend the rest of the season in the minors, he’d finish the campaign somewhere around 2.025. That would still put him on track to reach arbitration for the first time after 2023 and free agency after 2026, though future optional assignments could also alter that timeline.
The recall of Tromp was required due to a leg injury sustained last night by Travis D’Arnaud. Although X-rays were negative, per Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal Constitution, D’Arnaud will likely be unavailable for a few days. That leaves William Contreras as the primary catcher, with Tromp stepping in as the backup.
Braves Outright Chadwick Tromp
The Braves announced this afternoon that catcher Chadwick Tromp has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Gwinnett. Atlanta had designated him for assignment last week.
Atlanta claimed Tromp off waivers from the Giants last September. He spent the offseason on the 40-man roster but lost his spot when the Braves brought up Bryce Elder for his major league debut. Tromp has appeared in nine games with Gwinnett over the past two years but hasn’t suited up at the MLB level with the Braves. The righty-hitting backstop did appear in 33 games with the Giants between 2020-21, picking up 82 plate appearances. He has managed just a .215/.220/.418 line in that limited time, but the Aruba native is a .253/.314/.412 hitter in parts of five Triple-A seasons.
The 27-year-old Tromp doesn’t have the requisite service time to refuse an outright assignment, so he’ll remain in the upper levels of the system. He no longer occupies a spot on the 40-man roster but will try to play his way back into that mix. Travis d’Arnaud, Manny Piña and William Contreras are the remaining backstops on the Atlanta 40-man.
Braves Select Bryce Elder, Designate Chadwick Tromp For Assignment
The Braves have selected the contract of right-handed pitching prospect Bryce Elder in advance of tonight’s game, per a club announcement. Elder will start for the Braves and make his Major League debut. In a corresponding 40-man roster move, catcher Chadwick Tromp was designated for assignment. Atlanta also optioned lefty Tucker Davidson and catcher William Contreras to Triple-A Gwinnett.
Elder, 22, somewhat incredibly becomes the second Braves draftee from the shortened, five-round 2020 amateur draft to reach the Majors. He and teammate Spencer Strider have both had meteoric rises through the minors and now represent two of the just five players from the 2020 draft already in the Majors. Elder (fifth round) and Strider (fourth) are the only non-first-rounders from that draft already in the Majors.
Looking at last year’s numbers, it’s perhaps not a shock that Elder was such a quick riser. He opened the 2021 season with 45 innings of 2.60 ERA ball against older competition in Class-A Advanced before tossing 56 frames of 3.21 ERA ball upon promotion to the Double-A level. Elder was then bumped to Triple-A Gwinnett, where he logged a 2.21 ERA in 36 2/3 frames despite being one of the youngest pitchers in the league.
Elder kept his strikeout rate above 27% the entire time and also posted ground-ball rates of at least 53.6% at each level, although command was more of a concern. Elder walked 57 of the 559 batters he faced (10.2%) and was particularly spotty in that regard against more advanced hitters at the Triple-A level (13.6%).
Baseball America ranks Elder sixth among Braves farmhands, noting that while the system has more powerful arms, Elder is the prototypical “pitchability” starter who’s a good bet to hold a spot in a rotation due to a five-pitch mix headlined by a sinker, plus slider and above-average changeup. Improving on his command will be key to further development for Elder, but he’ll have the opportunity to do so at the MLB level given the lack of proven starters for the Braves at the moment. Max Fried, Charlie Morton and Ian Anderson are all secure in their rotation spots, but Kyle Wright, Huascar Ynoa and Tucker Davidson have not yet solidified themself as long-term options. Mike Soroka, meanwhile, is on the shelf until this summer as he rehabs an Achilles injury.
As for the 27-year-old Tromp, he’ll lose his roster spot after four productive games in Gwinnett, where he’s gone 5-for-14 with a home run and a double. Tromp spent the bulk of the past two seasons in the Giants organization, batting .215/.220/.418 in a tiny sample of 82 Major League plate appearances. Atlanta claimed him off waivers from San Francisco last September. Tromp didn’t have a productive 2021 season in Triple-A, where he’s a career .254/.314/.412 hitter in parts of five seasons.
The Braves will have a week to trade Tromp, place him on outright waivers or release him. Teams are always on the lookout for catching depth, so there’s always a chance that a 27-year-old catcher with a pair of minor league options remaining will find a new home on the waiver wire.
Braves Claim Chadwick Tromp
The Braves have claimed catcher Chadwick Tromp off waivers from the Giants and assigned him to Triple-A Gwinnett, per a team announcement. San Francisco had designated Tromp for assignment over the weekend.
Tromp, 26, has appeared in 33 games for the Giants over the past two seasons and posted a .215/.220/.418 batting line with five homers and a double in 82 plate appearances. That represents the entirety of his Major League experience to date. Tromp has also spent parts of four season in Triple-A, where he’s a .253/.316/.414 hitter.
Tromp has drawn solid framing marks both in Triple-A and his limited MLB time, and he’s thrown out one third of attempted base thieves in his professional career. He has two more minor league option years remaining beyond the current campaign, so he could potentially be a flexible depth option in Atlanta for the foreseeable future.
Of course, the Braves already have a good bit of catching depth within their system. Atlanta recently extended veteran Travis d’Arnaud on a two-year, $16MM contract that guarantees him $8MM in 2022 and 2023. The Braves also have a pair of well-regarded catching prospects in Shea Langeliers and William Contreras — the latter of whom has already made his MLB debut.
Speculatively, Tromp could give them an option early in the 2022 season if the Braves want both Contreras and Langeliers to be getting everyday at-bats in the minor leagues. That’s a long ways off, however, and he’d first need to survive the offseason on Atlanta’s 40-man roster, which is no sure thing.
Giants Activate Alex Wood, Designate Chadwick Tromp For Assignment
The Giants have activated starter Alex Wood from the injured list, per MLB.com’s Maria I. Guardado. Sammy Long was optioned to Triple-A and Chadwick Tromp has been designated for assignment.
Wood should slide right back into the rotation for the final few weeks of the season while auditioning for a spot in the playoff rotation. The 30-year-old southpaw has put together a resurgent year for the NL West leaders, making 23 starts and logging 125 2/3 innings with a 4.08 ERA/3.71 FIP. Despite a couple of trips to the injured list, this is the healthiest Wood has been over a full season since 2018.
Tromp has been a regular member of the Giants’ catching rotation, though clearly behind Buster Posey, Curt Casali, and Joey Bart in the hierarchy. Still, the 26-year-old has made 82 plate appearances for the Giants over the past two seasons.
Long has both started and relieved this season, taking five turns in the rotation and appearing seven times in relief. He has a 5.53 ERA/4.22 FIP across 40 2/3 innings with relatively average peripherals across the board: 21.6 percent strikeout rate, 8.5 percent walk rate, and 39.2 percent groundball rate.
West Notes: Giants, Diamondbacks, A’s
The Giants made a number of roster moves tonight, including placing Brandon Belt on the bereavement list following the passing of his grandmother, per The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly (via Twitter). Donovan Solano also went on the injured list today, with no reason specified. He has tested positive for COVID-19 and is likely to miss 7-10 days, tweets the San Francisco Chronicle’s John Shea.
To replace them on the roster, the Giants added Chadwick Tromp and Thairo Estrada, per MLB.com’s Maria I. Guardado (via Twitter). Tromp will provide some coverage for the banged-up Buster Posey, though it doesn’t look like Posey will spent any time on the injured list. Elsewhere out west…
- Jordan Lawlar, the Diamondbacks‘ top pick in the 2021 amateur draft, will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery, per Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. The sixth overall pick suffered a posterior labrum tear in his left shoulder that will likely take around seven months of recovery time. Arizona hopes to have him ready by the beginning of next season.
- Stephen Piscotty will undergo surgery on his wrist tomorrow, per Martin Gallegos of MLB.com (via Twitter). Piscotty had been bothered by his wrist for much of the year, attempting to play through the injury. The Athletics outfielder struggled to a 79 OPS+ through 188 plate appearances.
Giants’ Latest Roster Moves
The Giants made a number of roster moves on Tuesday, provided here by Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group (via Twitter). On the pitching front, San Francisco purchased Dominic Leone‘s contract from Triple-A and optioned righty Nick Tropeano. The recently-acquired Sam Delaplane was also moved to the 60-day injured list.
The well-traveled Leone has a 4.09 career ERA over 253 career innings for the Mariners, Diamondbacks, Blue Jays, Cardinals, and Indians, for whom he pitched in 2020. Tropeano, 30, pitched well in four appearances, giving up just one earned run in six innings. He threw two scoreless against the Angels on Monday, so his demotion could simply be about getting a fresh arm in the bullpen.
The Giants also made a change behind the plate, placing Curt Casali on the 10-day injured list with a left wrist sprain. He’s not expected to be out for more than the 10-game minimum, writes Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. Those hoping to see top prospect Joey Bart will be disappointed, however. It’s reasonable to assume that the short-term nature of the injury does not warrant disrupting Bart’s development.
Instead, Chadwick Tromp has been recalled to serve as Buster Posey‘s backup behind the plate for the next 10 days. The 26-year-old backstop debuted last season, posting a 65 wRC+ in 64 plate appearances.
Lastly, Crowley adds that Evan Longoria‘s injury appears to be a mild intercostal strain, and he’ll avoid a stint on the injured list. Longoria is enjoying a resurgent season at the plate this year with a 139 wRC+ and 1.5 fWAR through 178 plate appearances.