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Astros Trade Brandon Bielak To Athletics

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The Astros traded right-hander Brandon Bielak to the Athletics in exchange for cash, per a team announcement. Houston designated him for assignment last week. The A’s designated left-hander Easton Lucas for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster.

Bielak, 28, struggled with the ’Stros this season, posting a 5.71 earned run average in ten appearances (17 1/3 innings). His 10.8% strikeout rate and 5.5% swinging-strike rate both stand as career-low marks.

That said, Bielak was a solid swingman in three prior seasons with Houston. From 2021-23, he notched a 4.05 ERA over the life of 142 1/3 innings, fanning a combined 19.2% of his opponents against a 9.8% walk rate. The former 11th-round pick made 15 starts and tallied another 33 relief appearances during that time. He’s not a flamethrower, but Bielak averaged 93.4 mph on his heater during that three-year stint and kept the ball on the ground at a strong 48.1% clip. He’s posted similar numbers in parts of four Triple-A campaigns, recording a 3.98 ERA with a 24.3% strikeout rate and 9.6% walk rate through 246 2/3 frames.

Bielak is out of minor league options, so he’ll jump right onto the Oakland staff. The A’s have placed starters Joe Boyle (back strain), Paul Blackburn (stress reaction in foot) and Alex Wood (shoulder tendinitis) on the injured list this month. They also announced that injured lefty Ken Waldichuk is done for the season due to elbow surgery. The addition of Bielak will help replenish some of that depth, whether he steps right into the rotation or provides a long-relief option. Rule 5 righty Mitch Spence has been Oakland’s primary long man this year, but he’s pitched well and could feasibly step into the rotation himself.

Because he has just 2.110 years of big league service, Bielak can be controlled for three more years beyond the current season. He’ll need to carve out a role for himself on the Athletics’ roster and get back to his 2021-23 form if that’s to even become a factor, but there’s potential for him to be a multi-year acquisition if Bielak can get back on track. He’ll be arbitration-eligible for the first time this winter and shouldn’t see an especially large raise, given his role as a low-leverage swingman and occasional back-end starter.

The addition of Bielak to the roster comes at the expense of the 27-year-old Lucas, who made his big league debut with the A’s last year but has only seen 10 1/3 total innings in the majors. It’s been a struggle in that small sample, to say the least. Lucas has been charged with a dozen earned runs (10.45 ERA) on 18 hits and a dozen walks with 13 strikeouts. A massive .459 average on balls in play has contributed to his ugly numbers, but Lucas hasn’t done himself any favors by walking just over 12% of his opponents.

As one would expect, things have gone better in the upper minors. Lucas split the 2023 season between Double-A and Triple-A, posting a combined 3.86 ERA in 46 2/3 innings. He punched out 25.8% of opponents against an 8.6% walk rate. The southpaw posted a 2.87 ERA in 15 2/3 innings of Triple-A work this year as well — albeit with just 13 strikeouts against six unintentional walks. The A’s acquired Lucas from the Orioles last July in the trade sending righty Shintaro Fujinami back to Baltimore.

Oakland selected Lucas to the 40-man roster last summer but passed him unclaimed through outright waivers just a couple months later, in November. Because of that prior outright assignment, he’ll have the right to reject a minor league assignment in favor of free agency even if he goes unclaimed a second time. As such, there’s a chance that today’s DFA ends his time with the A’s organization less than a year after he was acquired in a deadline swap.

Athletics Promote Brady Basso For MLB Debut

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The Athletics announced a few roster moves today, with left-hander Easton Lucas and outfielder Lawrence Butler optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas. To fill those roster spots, infielder Zack Gelof was reinstated from the 10-day injured list while lefty Brady Basso was recalled from Vegas. Basso will be making his MLB debut as soon as he gets into a game.

The Oakland pitching staff has been pretty beat-up lately, with Paul Blackburn and Joe Boyle each landing on the injured list in the past week-plus. Alex Wood is also battling a shoulder issue and may require an IL stint of his own.

Lucas was added to the club’s roster on May 8, less than a week ago, to provide a fresh arm to the staff. He was optioned three days later when the club promoted Joey Estes. But when Blackburn landed on the IL, Lucas was quickly recalled and proceeded to throw 39 pitches in relief last night. The lefty may have been unavailable for a day or two and the long relief options are limited, as Mitch Spence also threw last night and Kyle Muller tossed four innings in relief of Wood on Sunday.

Amid all of that, the club has decided to call up Basso for the first time. A 16th-round selection of the 2019 draft, he missed 2022 recovering from Tommy John surgery but was back on the mound in 2023. He split his time between High-A and Double-A, tossing 63 1/3 innings with a 2.42 earned run average. He struck out 26.3% of batters faced while walking 6.2%.

The A’s added him to their 40-man roster in November to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. He was sent back to Double-A and made six starts with a 2.84 ERA. He was recently promoted to Triple-A, with his first start at that level going poorly, allowing nine earned runs in 2 1/3 innings. That one rough outing aside, he’s been in good form this year and will now gets his first call to the majors.

Athletics Place Paul Blackburn On Injured List

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The Athletics announced that right-hander Paul Blackburn has been placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to May 11, with a stress reaction of the fifth metatarsal of his right foot. Left-hander Easton Lucas was recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas in a corresponding move.

It’s unclear when Blackburn suffered his injury, but it his results have gradually worsened as the season has gone along. He first three starts of the season were scoreless but he allowed 21 earned runs over his five most recent outings. Against the Mariners on Friday, he went four-plus innings with seven earned run allowed.

In the short term, the news is obviously a setback for the A’s. When healthy, he has been one of the pillars of their organization in recent years. As other pitchers have come and gone and many have floundered, he posted a 4.35 ERA in 2022 and 2023. This year, his hot start and subsequent struggles have led to a 4.11 ERA.

Of course, the “when healthy” qualifier is an important one for Blackburn. He was limited to 21 starts in 2022 and 20 last year, missing time due to issues with the middle finger of his pitching hand. The 111 1/3 innings he threw in 2021 are still his career high at the big league level. Now he’s in for yet another injury absence, though it’s not known how long the A’s expect that to be.

The A’s already have Ken Waldichuk, Freddy Tarnok and Luis Medina on the 60-day IL, with Joe Boyle on the 15-day IL. Blackburn is now joining them and perhaps Alex Wood as well. Manager Mark Kotsay told Martín Gallegos of MLB.com (X link) that Wood has been pitching through a shoulder injury that seemed to get worse yesterday. “Alex has been grinding,” Kotsay said. “He hasn’t felt great. He gave us everything he had.” Kotsay seemed to suggest that an IL stint could be coming by saying last night: “We’ll have more news tomorrow.”

If Wood follows Blackburn to the IL, the rotation would be left with JP Sears, Ross Stripling and Joey Estes. Sears and Stripling have been effective enough. Sears has a 4.20 ERA on the year and Stripling is at 5.14, though with a .356 batting average on balls in play and 57.9% strand rate. Stripling’s 3.71 FIP and 4.50 SIERA suggest he could be better going forward with a bit more help from the baseball gods. Estes was just recalled and his one start was decent, allowing one earned run in five innings, though he had a 6.04 ERA in Triple-A before getting called up.

The club will need to figure out how to fill a rotation spot, perhaps two. Mitch Spence has been throwing multi-inning stints out of the bullpen and has a 3.65 ERA, so he could perhaps be an option. Hogan Harris or Osvaldo Bido were recently up to make spot starts and could perhaps do so again. Brady Basso and Royber Salinas are on the 40-man roster, though neither player has yet reached the majors and each has made just one Triple-A start.

In the longer term, it’s possible the injury could impact Blackburn as a midseason trade candidate. He is making $3.45MM this year and is slated for one more arbitration season before he will become a free agent after 2025. Though the A’s are performing a bit better than expected this year at 19-23, they are still most likely going to be in seller position at the upcoming deadline.

Blackburn’s results have been more passable than outstanding, but all teams need pitching at the deadline and non-rental starters tend to be the most attractive assets in the summer market. The righty therefore is one of the most straightforward trade candidates this year, given his status and that of the team he plays for. The extent of his injury will therefore be of interest not just to the A’s but to many other clubs around the league as the summer pitching market develops.

Athletics Announce Several Roster Moves

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1:15pm: Hernaiz has a “severe” left ankle sprain, per Martín Gallegos of MLB.com. He’s going to see a specialist today.

11:23am: The A’s on Wednesday announced announced that they’ve recalled catcher/first baseman Tyler Soderstrom from Triple-A Las Vegas and also recalled righty Osvaldo Bido to serve as the 27th man for today’s doubleheader. Oakland also selected the contract of lefty Easton Lucas. Meanwhile, infielder Darell Hernaiz was placed on the 10-day IL with a left ankle injury, lefty Hogan Harris was optioned to Las Vegas, and minor league righty Alex Speas was designated for assignment to open a 40-man spot for Lucas.

A slate of transactions on the heels of a 15-8 blowout loss yesterday and a doubleheader today seemed inevitable. Bido will start the second game of today’s twin bill against the Rangers. He’s in his first year with the A’s organization after becoming a minor league free agent but nevertheless signing a major league contract this offseason. He’s excelled through his first six appearances (five starts), pitching to a 2.59 ERA in 31 1/3 frames with a 30% strikeout rate and 10% walk rate. The 28-year-old made his MLB debut with the Pirates last season and pitched 50 2/3 innings with an unsightly 5.86 ERA.

Swapping out Harris for Lucas will give the A’s some length in the bullpen, as Lucas has tossed 15 2/3 innings in 11 appearances this season, pitching two or more innings on four occasions. He’s delivered solid results in that role, posting a 2.87 ERA — albeit with a less-inspiring 13-to-8 K/BB ratio (plus another hit batter).

Soderstrom’s call to the big leagues will give the A’s another look at the former first-rounder and top prospect. The 2020 No. 26 overall pick debuted as a 21-year-old last summer but looked overmatched, hitting just .160/.232/.240 with a 31.2% strikeout rate in 138 plate appearances. The lefty-swinging slugger has had a nice start to the season in Triple-A, hitting for a pedestrian .245 average but reaching base at a hearty .353 clip while slugging .529 in 119 plate appearances. Soderstrom, who is touted for his plus-plus raw power, has already drilled seven homers and collected eight doubles on the young season. He’s fanned at a 26.1% clip, but strikeouts are likely always going to be part of his game — and he’s at least helped offset some of those whiffs with a healthy 10.1% walk rate.

It’s not yet clear how the A’s will divide up playing time with Soderstrom now in the big leagues. Starting catcher Shea Langeliers has struggled mightily at the plate but continues to play strong defense. Backup Kyle McCann has raked at a .393/.485/.750 clip, but that’s come in a minuscule sample of 33 plate appearances.

Soderstrom has plenty of experience at first base as well, given that there are significant questions about his defensive skills behind the plate. Oakland recently optioned Opening Day first baseman Ryan Noda, but early-season pickup Tyler Nevin has hit well since Noda was sent down. Nevin has spent the bulk of his time at first base but has experience at all four corner positions. In all likelihood, there will be plenty of mixing and matching, which is to be expected from an A’s team that entered the season with few set-in-stone starting players and is actively evaluating potential long-term options at multiple spots. The majority of Oakland’s roster can and has played multiple positions — many with other clubs — while trying to carve out permanent MLB roles.

The A’s only acquired the 26-year-old Speas on April 6, sending cash to the White Sox for him following a DFA in Chicago. The flamethrowing righty sits in the 99-100mph range with his heater and can run it up to 102-103mph. Predictably, that’s led to both eye-popping strikeout totals and alarming walk rates in the minors. He pitched 10 1/3 innings for the Athletics’ Las Vegas affiliate but was tagged for 13 runs in that time, due in no small part to a 13.2% walk rate and three homers allowed.

Speas pitched two innings with the Rangers in the majors last summer but split the remainder of the season between Double-A and Triple-A, where he punched out a combined 34.7% of his opponents but also issued walks at a 15.5% clip. He walked six of his 26 opponents with the White Sox during spring training. There’s no doubting the electricity of Speas’ raw arsenal, but he’s walked more than 18% of his opponents in pro ball. He’s in the second of three minor league option years.

Now that he’s been designated, Speas will spend up to a week in limbo while awaiting his fate. The A’s can use that window to find a trade partner, attempt to pass him through outright waivers, or release him.

Athletics Claim Miguel Andujar From Pirates

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The Athletics announced that they have claimed infielder/outfielder Miguel Andujar off waivers from the Pirates and selected outfielder Lazaro Armenteros. The A’s also outrighted left-handers Anthony Kay and Easton Lucas, as well as right-handers Tayler Scott and Chad Smith to Triple-A Las Vegas. The move on Armenteros was reported last week.

Andujar, 29 in March, had a tremendous season with the Yankees in 2018, finishing second in Rookie of the Year voting to Shohei Ohtani. But since then, he hasn’t been given an extended stretch of playing time in the big leagues. Shoulder surgery put him out of action for much of 2019 and Gio Urshela stole the third base job in the Bronx while he was gone. Since then, he has generally crushed in the minors but struggled when given brief looks in the majors.

2023 continued that pattern, with Andujar in the Pirates organization. He was up in the majors for a couple of weeks from late April to mid-May but hit just .161/.212/.387. But his Triple-A season was far stronger, as he hit .338/.404/.536 at that level. He got back to the big leagues as a September call-up and was able to post an excellent line .302/.351/.528 in the final month of the season.

Given that encouraging finish, the Bucs could have held onto Andujar but he was projected for an arbitration salary of $2.2MM and is out of options. He was also limited to playing first base and the outfield corners in 2023, both in the majors and in the minors. The Pirates decided to move on but the A’s have come in to claim him.

The latter club has traded away their most established big leaguers in recent years, which perhaps makes Oakland the ideal landing spot for Andujar. He will be competing for playing time in the first base/corner outfield/designated hitter mix with Ryan Noda, Seth Brown, Brent Rooker, JJ Bleday and others. If he is finally able to click in the majors again, he can be retained for another season via arbitration, though the A’s would likely trade him in that scenario.

Kay, 28, was just claimed off waivers a couple of weeks ago. He has a 5.59 ERA in 85 1/3 career innings at the major league level. He tossed 40 2/3 innings in the minors this year, between the Mets and Cubs, with a 3.76 ERA in that time.

Lucas, 26, just came of the A’s in the deadline deal that sent Shintaro Fujinami to the O’s. He was added to the roster in early September and made his major league debut, allowing six earned runs in 6 2/3 innings. He tossed 46 2/3 frames in the minors for the year across different levels and organizations, with a 3.86 ERA across those clubs.

Scott, 31, was claimed off waivers from the Red Sox in July. He had a 5.60 ERA in the majors in 2023, splitting time between three different clubs. Between three different Triple-A clubs, he logged 38 1/3 innings with a 1.64 ERA.

Smith, 28, was acquired from the Rockies in the last offseason. He went on to throw 13 2/3 innings for the A’s in 2023 with a 6.59 ERA. His 34 2/3 innings in Triple-A didn’t go any better, with a 7.53 ERA in that time.

A’s Designate Spencer Patton For Assignment, Select Easton Lucas

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The Athletics announced today that they have reinstated right-hander Mason Miller from the injured list, selected left-hander Easton Lucas and recalled right-hander Devin Sweet from Triple-A Las Vegas. In corresponding moves, left-hander Sam Long and right-hander Zach Neal were optioned to Triple-A and righty Spencer Patton was designated for assignment.

Patton, 35, signed a minor league deal with the club in April and has twice now been selected for short stints with the big league club. He got into four games in May before being designated for assignment. He cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment, which allowed him to return a few weeks ago, having made another eight appearances since then. Between those two stints, he has a 5.11 earned run average in 12 1/3 innings, striking out just 12.7% of hitters while walking 10.9%.

The A’s will place him on waivers in the coming days. It’s possible the same sequence of events plays out as earlier in the season, with Patton going unclaimed. He will again have the right to elect free agency at that time. In 113 career games in the majors dating back to 2014, he has a 5.11 ERA. He also spent 2017 to 2020 in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball with a 3.68 ERA in that league.

Lucas, 26, gets selected to a big league roster for the first time and will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game. Selected by the Marlins in 14th round of the 2019 draft, he was traded to the Orioles that December for infielder Jonathan Villar. He was then involved in another swap, going to the A’s a few months back as the return in the deal that sent right-hander Shintaro Fujinami to Baltimore.

Between the two organizations, he’s tossed 46 2/3 innings this year at Double-A and Triple-A. He has a combined 3.86 ERA, along with a 25.8% strikeout rate and 8.6% walk rate. He will join Sean Newcomb and Francisco Pérez as the club’s left-handed relievers for the time being and try to earn his way into the club’s plans for next year.

Orioles Acquire Shintaro Fujinami From A’s

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The Orioles added an upside play to their bullpen, acquiring Shintaro Fujinami from the A’s. Minor league reliever Easton Lucas is going back to Oakland in a one-for-one swap. Baltimore designated infielder Josh Lester for assignment to clear a 40-man roster spot.

Fujinami signed a one-year, $3.25MM free agent contract over the winter. The A’s took a flier on his upside despite an inconsistent decade-long run in Japan. The 6’6″ righty brought high-octane stuff but a spotty performance track record and wobbly control to the big leagues.

A cursory glance at Fujinami’s season line would suggest the experiment didn’t pay off. He concluded his A’s tenure with an 8.57 ERA through 49 1/3 innings. No other pitcher with 40+ frames has allowed more than eight earned runs per nine.

That ghastly season line is skewed by an incredibly poor first couple months. Initially penciled into the starting rotation, Fujinami was tagged for a 14.26 ERA across seven starts. The A’s understandably kicked him mostly to relief work by late April.

Fujinami’s 5.40 ERA over 31 2/3 relief innings isn’t eye-catching itself. That’s also skewed by some growing pains early on. The 29-year-old has worked scoreless outings in 15 of his last 20 appearances. Since May 27 — an admittedly arbitrary endpoint — Fujinami owns a 3.32 ERA in 21 2/3 frames. He’s striking hitters out at a quality 25.6% clip against a modest 7% walk rate in that time.

There’s risk in placing too much emphasis on a player’s recent trajectory compared to their overall body of work, of course. It’s perhaps easier to buy into Fujinami’s stronger results of late given the quality of his arsenal. Working in shorter stints has pushed the average velocity on his four-seam fastball from an already strong 97 MPH to the 99-100 MPH range. He’s also leaned more heavily on a 93-94 MPH split while scaling back on his mid-80s cutter.

Baltimore will hope the simplified pitch mix and continued experience against big league hitters allows Fujinami to maintain his form of the past six weeks. He’ll add a power arm to the middle innings of an already excellent relief corps. Baltimore’s bullpen entered play Wednesday ranked eighth in the majors with a 3.79 ERA. They’re fourth with a 26.1% strikeout percentage.

It’s a little more top-heavy than the typical bullpen, though. Félix Bautista and Yennier Cano have been fantastic at the back end, while veteran Danny Coulombe has excelled as the top southpaw. Bryan Baker and Mike Baumann have been generally effective, but both have issued a few too many walks. Fujinami is far from a control artist himself, but he provides skipper Brandon Hyde with another option to bridge the gap to Cano and Bautista.

The addition is solely about 2023. Fujinami will be a free agent again at season’s end. Even though he’ll only have one year of major league service, players signing out of Asian professional leagues are almost always granted the ability to return to the open market once their MLB contract plays out. Baltimore will take on the approximate $1.3MM in salary still owed to the righty through the end of the season.

Oakland offloads a small amount of cash and brings in an upper level relief option. Lucas is a 6’4″ southpaw who was selected by the Marlins in the 14th round of the 2019 draft. Miami traded him to Baltimore over the 2019-20 offseason for veteran infielder Jonathan Villar.

The 26-year-old is amidst a strong season in the upper minors. He’s split his time almost evenly between Double-A Bowie and Triple-A Norfolk. Over 29 2/3 combined frames, he owns a 2.73 ERA with an excellent 31.9% strikeout percentage and tolerable 9.5% walk rate. He’s holding left-handed hitters to a .200/.265/.378 batting line.

Lucas will be eligible for the Rule 5 draft if he’s not added to the 40-man roster at the end of the season. Considering his upper minors success and Oakland’s MLB-worst 5.72 bullpen ERA, he’ll probably get a big league look at some point in the coming weeks.

It’s the first of what is likely to be multiple moves for both clubs. The A’s have already stripped the roster most of the way down, but players like Paul Blackburn, Tony Kemp and Seth Brown could still find themselves on the move. Baltimore has pulled ahead of the Rays (on a percentage point basis) in the AL East and figures to look for rotation upgrades over the next two weeks.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post first reported Fujinami was being dealt to the Orioles and that Lucas was the return. John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle and Martín Gallegos of MLB.com had previously observed that Fujinami was saying goodbye to his Oakland teammates.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Marlins Acquire Jonathan Villar

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The Marlins have acquired infielder Jonathan Villar from the Orioles, as Craig Mish of MLB Network first reported (via Twitter). Lefty Easton Lucas is going back in return.

The Marlins have designated JT Riddle and Tayron Guerrero to create roster space. Previously dropped from the Baltimore 40-man, Villar was projected by MLBTR to earn $10.4MM in arbitration.

Villar enters his final season of arbitration control, so he’s not necessarily a long-term asset for the rebuilding Marlins. That said, it’s not hard to understand the thought process here. Villar has been a productive player the past few seasons, especially in 2019. Last year, he slashed .273/.339/.453 (107 wRC+) while playing in all 162 games for Baltimore. He started 158 of them somewhere on the middle infield. Between that durability, defensive profile and offense (bolstered by elite baserunning), Villar was worth exactly 4 wins above replacement, per Fangraphs. Finding that level of player for around $10MM isn’t easy.

Miami has Miguel Rojas and prospect Isan Díaz ticketed for much of the club’s middle infield work, so it’ll be interesting to see how manager Don Mattingly deploys Villar. Rojas, while a gifted defender, has never hit much, so it’s possible he’ll take on more of a utility role with Villar in the fold. It’d be a bit more surprising to see Villar cut into Díaz’s playing time. Speculatively, though, Díaz has faced some questions about his ability to stick at second base coming up through the minors. Perhaps Miami could look to expose him to other positions as they identify who shapes up as a long-term piece.

Riddle and Guerrero, meanwhile, will head out to make way for Villar and Jesus Aguilar, who was acquired from Tampa Bay on waivers. Riddle, a 28-year-old infielder, has never hit in parts of three seasons in Miami, combining for a .229/.269/.368 slash over 718 plate appearances. Guerrero, also 28, flashed power stuff out of the bullpen but never got quite as many swings and misses as one might expect. With an untenable 13.6% career walk rate, he ran out of leash in Miami.

It’s possible Villar and Aguilar could themselves wind up as trade candidates next season. If they produce, Miami could be motivated to flip them off to a team more positioned to contend in the short-term. Given the low acquisition costs of today’s moves, it’s hard to question the logic.

In Lucas, Baltimore brings aboard a recent 14th round pick out of Pepperdine. GM Mike Elias voiced an expectation that Lucas could someday mature into a back-end starter  (via Roch Kubatko of MASN), but he was not rated among the Marlins’ top prospects. Instead, the decision to waive, and eventually trade, Villar seems motivated almost entirely by a desire to clear his projected salary off the books.

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