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Nationals Sign Luis Garcia

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July 8th: The Nationals have now officially announced the signing of Garcia. Right-hander Eduardo Salazar has been optioned to Triple-A Rochester as the corresponding active roster move. Righty Trevor Williams has been transferred to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man spot. Williams was just placed on the 15-day IL a few days ago due to an elbow sprain. It appears the Nats don’t expect him to return before September. Washington also recalled catcher Drew Millas and placed catcher Keibert Ruiz on the seven-day concussion-related IL.

July 6th: The Nationals have signed right-hander Luis Garcia to a Major League contract, the Washington Post’s Andrew Golden reports.  The deal will become official when the 38-year-old Garcia passes a physical.

It didn’t take long for Garcia to find a new landing spot, as the Dodgers only just released the veteran reliever on Friday.  Garcia signed a minor league deal with Los Angeles last winter and broke camp with the team, but his struggled during his time on the big league roster.  Garcia posted a 5.27 ERA and 12.7% walk rate over 27 1/3 innings, and spent about a month on the injured list recovering from an adductor strain.

There have been plenty of ups and downs for Garcia over his 13 MLB seasons, which isn’t surprising for a grounder specialist who relies a lot of batted-ball luck.  His most sustained stretch of success came fairly recently, as Garcia posted a 3.62 ERA, 23.4% strikeout rate, and 7.4% walk rate across 154 relief innings for the Cardinals and Padres from 2021-23.  Those results led to a one-year, $4.25MM free agent deal with the Angels during the 2023-24 offseason, and Garcia continued to pitch decently well before his production dipped after a deadline trade to the Red Sox.

Washington has one of the league’s worst bullpens, so there’s not much risk for the Nats in taking a flier to see if Garcia can bounce back from his rough showing in L.A.  If he really pitches well between now and the July 31 trade deadline, the Nationals could even look to quickly flip Garcia elsewhere for a low-level minor leaguer.

Once Garcia gets into a game with his new club, he will have pitched with eight different teams at the big league level over the course of his long career.  This is actually the second Dodgers-to-Nationals trip Garcia has taken — after beginning his career as an international prospect in Los Angeles’ farm system, the Dodgers dealt Garcia to the Nats way back in August 2009.  Garcia didn’t see any big league action during his year-plus in the Washington organization, and didn’t end up making his MLB debut until he was a 26-year-old pitching with the Phillies in 2013.  (By coincidence, Garcia pitched against the Nats in his first Major League game.)

Nationals Claim Eduardo Salazar From Mariners

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The Nationals announced that they have claimed right-hander Eduardo Salazar off waivers from the Mariners and optioned him to Triple-A Rochester. The Mariners had designated him for assignment earlier this week. The Nats had two vacancies on their 40-man roster, which is now at 39.

Salazar, 26, signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers in the offseason. That club added him to their 40-man roster in the middle of April but designated him for assignment just over a month later. The Mariners stepped up with a claim at that time but he lasted just over two weeks before being designated for assignment again, now landing with his third club of the year.

Around those transactions, he only has one appearances in the majors this year, tossing two scoreless innings for the Dodgers back on May 15. He made seven starts for Triple-A Oklahoma City while in the Dodgers’ system with a 5.61 earned run average. The Mariners kept him in a relief role for their Triple-A club, having Salazar throw 3 1/3 innings over four outings, allowing two earned runs.

There’s not much to go on in that sample, but the Nats had a couple of roster spots to use. Last month, they designated both Víctor Robles and Matt Barnes for assignment, opening up a couple of spots on their 40-man.

The Nats are likely intriguied by Salazar’s ability to generate ground balls. He did so at a 58.6% clip with OKC and it’s possible his 5.61 ERA there wasn’t entirely his fault as he had a .389 batting average on balls in play at that time. For reference, major league average BABIP is .288 this season. He also got grounders over 54% of the time with Reds last year, both in Double-A and Triple-A. He tossed 12 1/3 innings in the majors with the Reds last year, with a 51.1% grounder rate in that time. During his brief stint in the majors here in 2024, his sinker averaged 93.9 miles per hour.

Whether the Nationals envision Salazar as a starter or a reliever remains to be seen, but he has a couple of options. That means he can be kept in the minors for the rest of this year and one more season as they try to figure out the best path forward for him. If things click, he has less than a year of service time and can therefore be a long-term piece for the Nats.

Mariners Place Ty France On The 10-Day Injured List

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The Mariners made a series of roster moves this morning, headlined by the club’s reported promotion of first base prospect Tyler Locklear. Seattle also selected the contract of right-hander Matt Bowman, as first reported by Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times. In corresponding moves, first baseman Ty France was placed on the 10-day injured list with a fractured heel and right-hander Collin Snider was optioned to Triple-A in order to clear space on the active roster. Meanwhile, right-handers Levi Stoudt and Eduardo Salazar were designated for assignment to clear 40-man roster space for Locklear and Bowman.

The loss of France is surely a frustrating one for Mariners fans, as the 29-year-old has been one of the club’s hottest hitters dating back to the start of May. In his last 34 games, France has slashed a strong .259/.353/.448 in 133 plate appearances. That strong stretch has lifted his overall season line to a respectable .251/.329/.403, but his hot streak will now be cut short by a trip to the IL after France was hit in the heel by a pitch from Royals lefty Daniel Lynch IV. France was initially considered day-to-day due to the issue but after continued discomfort he underwent imaging that revealed a fracture. A timetable for France’s return is not yet clear, though it seems likely to be a fairly lengthy absence. France’s injury opened the door for Locklear’s promotion, which you can read more about here. As noted by Divish, the Mariners plan for Locklear to be the club’s everyday first baseman going forward, rather than part of a platoon with Luke Raley.

Also joining the club alongside Locklear is Bowman, a veteran of six major league seasons who has already pitched for the Diamondbacks and Twins so far this year. When the Twins dealt Bowman to Arizona, he had been squeezed off of Minnesota’s 40-man roster despite a solid showing in five appearances, where he posted a 2.35 ERA in 7 2/3 innings of work. Unfortunately, the wheels came off for Bowman across his four appearances with Arizona, where he was shelled for six runs on eight hits and two walks in 6 2/3 innings of work that ballooned his ERA to 5.02 on the year. That led the Diamondbacks to designate the righty for assignment in late May, and he later elected free agency rather than remain in the organization as a non-roster depth piece.

Bowman signed with the Mariners on a minor league deal last week and looked good in two scoreless appearances with the club’s Triple-A affiliate in Tacoma. Now, he’s set to join a Mariners bullpen that has lost key players like Matt Brash, Gregory Santos, and Gabe Speier to the injured list this season. While the 33-year-old righty hasn’t exactly impressed in the majors in recent years, he nonetheless sports a 3.51 ERA in 66 2/3 innings of work at the Triple-A level over the past two seasons with a solid 23.1% strikeout rate that suggests he could be a solid middle relief option for Seattle going forward. He’ll be replacing Snider in the club’s bullpen after the righty briefly came up from Triple-A last week; the 28-year-old now figures to return to the minors as a depth option for the Mariners moving forward.

Departing the club’s 40-man roster are Stoudt and Salazar, neither of whom have pitched for the Mariners in the majors this year. Salazar was claimed off waivers from the Dodgers just two weeks ago and sports a 6.91 ERA in 14 1/3 innings of work in the majors with L.A. and Cincinnati. He allowed two runs on three hits and three walks while striking out just one in 3 1/3 innings of work with Triple-A Tacoma. As for Stoudt, the righty was claimed off waivers from the Reds back in February as a potential depth starter but has pitched to disastrous results at Triple-A, with a 6.92 ERA in 52 innings of work and a strikeout rate of just 14.9%. The Mariners will have one week to either trade the pair or attempt to pass them through waivers. If either player clears waivers successfully, the Mariners will have the opportunity to outright them to the minor leagues as non-roster depth.

Mariners Claim Eduardo Salazar, Designate Sammy Peralta

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The Mariners announced that they have claimed right-hander Eduardo Salazar off waivers from the Dodgers and assigned to Triple-A Tacoma. The Dodgers designated him for assignment earlier this week. In a corresponding move, left-hander Sammy Peralta has been designated for assignment.

Salazar, 26, signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers in the offseason and he was added to their roster in mid-April. He only made one appearance for the big league club, tossing two scoreless innings, spending most of his time this year on optional assignment.

He made seven starts for Triple-A Oklahoma City this year, tossing 33 2/3 innings with a 5.61 earned run average. He only struck out 13.7% of batters faced but limited walks to a 7.8% clip and got grounders on 58.6% of balls in play. With a .389 batting average on balls in play, it’s possible that luck played a role in how many runs he allowed to cross the plate.

Keeping the ball on the ground has been a feature of his game in the past as well. He made his major league debut with the Reds last year and had a 51.1% grounder rate in 12 1/3 innings, while also getting opponents to pound the ball into the dirt at a similar rate in the minors.

Salazar has worked both as a starter and a reliever in his career and could perhaps provide the Mariners with depth in both departments. He can be optioned for the rest of this year and for one more season as well. He also has just a handful of service days, meaning the Mariners can hang onto him for the foreseeable future as long as he continues to justify his roster spot.

Peralta, 26, was claimed off waivers from the White Sox in early April. He has made 12 appearances for Triple-A Tacoma but allowed 13 earned runs in 12 1/3 innings. His 20% strikeout rate, 13.3% walk rate and 36.8% ground ball rate are all subpar.

That poor performance has led to him being bumped off Seattle’s roster and they will now have one week to trade him or pass him through waivers. Perhaps some club will be interested based on his previous work. He made his major league debut last year with the White Sox and had a 4.05 ERA in 20 innings. His 5.09 ERA in Triple-A last year wasn’t especially impressive but he did strike out 23.1% of batters faced while walking just 6.4%.

Dodgers Designate Eduardo Salazar For Assignment

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The Dodgers announced they’ve designated right-hander Eduardo Salazar for assignment. They needed to create a 40-man roster spot for Yohan Ramírez, whom they acquired from the Mets this morning. Los Angeles optioned Landon Knack to Triple-A Oklahoma City to open a spot on the active roster.

Los Angeles signed Salazar to a minor league deal early last offseason. The 26-year-old cracked the big league roster in April. He only made it into one game, tossing two scoreless innings of relief. Salazar has otherwise spent the season in OKC. He has worked out of the rotation at the top minor league level. Salazar has taken the ball seven times and thrown 33 2/3 innings. He has allowed 5.61 earned runs per nine with a well below-average 13.7% strikeout rate.

To his credit, Salazar has kept the ball on the ground at a huge 58.6% clip in Oklahoma City. He posted similar numbers last season as a member of the Cincinnati organization. Salazar had a 51.1% grounder rate in eight MLB appearances with the Reds. He induced worm-burners at a 54.8% clip for their Triple-A team in Louisville, but a subpar 16.1% strikeout rate contributed to him allowing more than a run per inning.

The Dodgers have a week to trade Salazar or put him on waivers. The Venezuela native went unclaimed on outright waivers after being designated by Cincinnati last summer. That gives him the right to decline any additional outright assignments in his career, so he’d be able to elect free agency if he clears again.

Dodgers Designate Taylor Trammell For Assignment

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The Dodgers announced a series of roster moves in advance of tonight’s matchup with the Nationals. Los Angeles confirmed their previously reported selection of reliever Eduardo Salazar and recalls of righty Kyle Hurt and outfielder Andy Pages. To create spots on the roster, the Dodgers optioned relievers Ricky Vanasco and Nick Ramirez and designated outfielder Taylor Trammell for assignment. The latter move clears the necessary 40-man roster spot for Salazar.

Trammell only spent two weeks on the L.A. roster. The Dodgers claimed him off waivers from the Mariners on April 2. He barely played, going hitless with three strikeouts in six plate appearances. Trammell appeared in five games but only got one start. As an out-of-options player who was clearly relegated to a depth role, his spot in the organization was tenuous. Pages, one of the organization’s top prospects, will step into the vacated outfield spot.

The 26-year-old Trammell was once a top minor league talent himself. The 35th overall pick in the 2016 draft by the Reds, he was twice involved in significant trades. He went to the Padres in a 2019 deadline deal and was flipped to the Mariners the following season. Trammell debuted with the M’s in 2021 and spent parts of three years in Seattle, but he never hit at the level the Mariners had envisioned.

In 351 plate appearances, the lefty hitter turned in a .168/.270/.368 slash. He drew a decent number of walks and hit 15 homers in 121 games, but he hasn’t made consistent contact. Trammell has gone down on strikes at an untenable 37.3% clip against big league pitching. That has now squeezed him off a pair of rosters.

The Dodgers have a week to trade Trammell or put him on waivers. Los Angeles was near the bottom of the waiver priority when they successfully claimed him a couple weeks ago, so they may be able to get him through the wire unclaimed. If another team does take a flier on Trammell, they’d have to keep him on the MLB team or designate him for assignment themselves.

Dodgers To Select Eduardo Salazar

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The Dodgers are calling up right-hander Eduardo Salazar, reports Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. The club has a full 40-man roster and the righty is not yet on it, so a corresponding move will be required to add him.

Salazar, 26, signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers in the offseason after previously having spent his entire career in the Reds’ organization. He was able to make his major league debut last year with Cincinnati, allowing 11 earned runs in 12 1/3 innings. He struck out five opponents but also allowed 11 hits, gave out five walks and hit four batters.

He was outrighted off the Reds’ roster in August and was able to elect minor league free agency at season’s end. The Dodgers clearly saw something they liked, perhaps the ability to generate ground balls. Salazar averaged over 93 miles per hour on both his four-seam fastball and his sinker, while also offering a slider and a changeup. He got grounders at a 51.1% clip in his brief time in the majors and even more than that in the minors last year.

Salazar has made three Triple-A starts already this year, having thrown 15 2/3 innings with a 2.87 ERA. His 14.3% strikeout rate is nothing special but his 7.9% walk rate is fine while opponents have pounded the ball into the dirt at a 58.3% clip.

The Dodgers’ pitching staff is getting a bit squeezed. They already opened the season with Clayton Kershaw, Walker Buehler, Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May, Emmet Sheehan, Brusdar Graterol and Blake Treinen on the injured list. In recent days, Bobby Miller and Connor Brogdon have joined them.

The Dodgers have a four-man rotation of Tyler Glasnow, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Gavin Stone and James Paxton but nonetheless are planning on two straight bullpen games today and tomorrow. That’s due to Miller’s recent IL stint and the plan to keep Yamamoto on a weekly schedule for now as he transfers from Japan to North America. Glasnow, Paxton and Stone pitched in the last three days and won’t be available for the next two games either.

With an off-day on Thursday, the club is trying to fight through the next two contests as best they can, with guys like Landon Knack, Kyle Hurt, Ricky Vanasco and Salazar all being rotated through the roster either today or tomorrow. Pitchers who were already in the mix like Michael Grove and Ryan Yarbrough could be called upon to eat some innings as well.

Taking all that into consideration, it’s possible Salazar is slated for a short stay in the big leagues but he has a couple of options and could therefore be sent back to Triple-A without being exposed to waivers.

Dodgers Sign Eduardo Salazar To Minors Deal

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The Dodgers have signed Eduardo Salazar to a minor league contract, according to the right-hander’s MLB.com profile page.  The Reds outrighted Salazar off their 40-man roster back in August, and he elected minor league free agency after the season.

A member of the Cincinnati organization since 2017, Salazar is now changing teams for the first time in his professional career.  His stint with the Reds saw Salazar post a 4.38 ERA over 468 1/3 minor league innings, which includes a rough 9.09 ERA over 32 2/3 career frames at the Triple-A level.

However, 2023 saw Salazar pitch well at Double-A and then over his first few career Triple-A outings, which earned him his first look at the Major League level.  The righty ended up posting an 8.03 ERA in 12 1/3 relief innings for the Reds, with an even number of walks and strikeouts (five apiece) over his eight appearances.  Salazar’s production started to go south in Triple-A after his struggles in the big leagues, leading Cincinnati to make that outright assignment.

The 25-year-old Salazar had worked mostly as a starter before becoming a full-time reliever in 2023, though his low-strikeout, grounder-heavy approach doesn’t fit the preferred model for bullpen work.  Nonetheless, there’s no risk for the Dodgers in bringing Salazar aboard on a minors contract to see if he can unlock any new level of performance.  At worst, Salazar is a long relief option at Triple-A, and perhaps even in the majors if L.A. needs a fresh arm on short notice.

Reds Option Nick Senzel, Select Henry Ramos, Outright Eduardo Salazar

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TODAY: Salazar cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer (via Twitter).

AUGUST 11: The Reds announced a series of roster moves today, selecting the contract of outfielder Henry Ramos. In corresponding moves, infielder/outfielder Nick Senzel has been optioned to Triple-A Louisville while right-hander Eduardo Salazar has been designated for assignment.

Ramos returns to the majors for a second stint this season. The 31-year-old cracked the MLB roster in late April after signing a minor league pact last offseason. He appeared in 18 games, hitting .242/.356/.306 over a career-high 73 trips to the plate. Cincinnati outrighted him off the 40-man roster last month.

A 12-year minor league veteran, Ramos has only 36 games of big league experience. He’s having a strong year in Triple-A, putting up a .315/.399/.522 line through 54 contests with Louisville. He has walked at a strong 12% clip against a lower than average 19.2% strikeout rate while connecting on nine homers. A switch-hitter, Ramos has shredded left-handed pitching at a .367/.430/.556 clip between Triple-A and the big leagues this year.

The righty-hitting Senzel has also mashed against southpaws, putting up a .305/.367/.537 line with the platoon advantage. He’s a .175/.251/.281 hitter when up against right-handed pitching, however. Senzel hasn’t been effective against pitchers of either handedness of late, posting a .138/.206/.309 mark since the start of June. The former #2 overall pick now has a .219/.290/.368 batting line in 269 trips to the plate on the season.

It has been another underwhelming year for the former top prospect. Cincinnati has graduated plenty of top position player prospects over the past few months, pushing Senzel into a utility role. He’s now off the active roster entirely, optioned for his first minor league stint (excluding injury rehab assignments) since the Reds first promoted him in May 2019.

Senzel is playing this season on a $1.95MM arbitration salary. He is eligible for that process twice more after surpassing the four-year service threshold this spring. It seems increasingly likely he could be non-tendered, though. In just over 1300 major league plate appearances, the 28-year-old owns a .236/.300/.361 slash.

While Senzel remains in the organization and could yet get another look in the next six weeks, the Reds will place Salazar on waivers. The 25-year-old has made his first eight big league appearances this season, allowing 11 runs in 12 2/3 innings. He’d allowed only two runs (one earned) through 13 2/3 Double-A frames this year but has been tagged for an 8.24 ERA over 19 2/3 innings with Louisville.

Salazar has posted huge ground-ball numbers throughout his professional career. He has rarely generated big strikeout tallies, though he did fan upwards of 40% of opponents in his brief but dominant Double-A stint earlier this year. Salazar has ample starting experience in his career but has come out of the bullpen for all 33 appearances this season.

Reds Outright Alec Mills

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July 4: Per Charlie Goldsmith of the Cincinnati Enquirer, Mills has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A.

July 2: Per a club announcement, the Reds have made a series of roster moves. Cincinnati has designated right-hander Alec Mills for assignment and optioned right-hander Eduardo Salazar to Triple-A. In corresponding moves, the club has recalled outfielder Stuart Fairchild to the majors and activated right-hander Derek Law from the 15-day injured list.

Mills debuted with the Royals back in 2016 but has spent most of his time in the big leagues with the Cubs to whom Kansas City traded him the following year. From 2018 to 2020, Mills served as a solid swingman for Chicago, posting a 3.87 ERA and 4.59 FIP in 116 1/3 innings of work highlighted by a no-hitter against the Brewers during the shortened 2020 season. Since then, however, Mills has struggled mightily at the big league level. In 136 2/3 innings of work in the 2021-22 seasons, Mills posted a brutal 5.66 ERA, 26% worse than league average by measure of ERA+, with a 4.95 FIP. Those numbers prompted the Cubs to outright Mills off the 40-man roster last November, a move that resulted in Mills entering free agency.

He went unsigned throughout the offseason before eventually landing with the Reds on a minor league deal back in May. He posted a 4.09 ERA in 11 innings with the club in the minors before being selected to the roster prior to yesterday’s game against the Padres. Mills entered the game in the seventh for what proved to be a disastrous performance as the righty allowed five runs (two earned) on four hits (including a home run), a walk and a wild pitch while hitting a batter and failing to record a strikeout. Going forward, the club will have seven days to trade, release, or pass Mills through waivers. If passed through waivers, the club can assign him outright to Triple-A, though since Mills has been previously outrighted in his career he could opt to reject that assignment and test free agency.

Salazar, 25, made his MLB debut with the Reds earlier this year. In 12 1/3 innings of work this season, the righty has struggled to an 8.06 ERA and 4.66 FIP. He’ll return to the minors, where he’s posted a 4.03 ERA in 22 1/3 innings split between the Double-A and Triple-A levels, to serve as bullpen depth going forward.

Fairchild, 27, slashed .237/.331/.404 in 184 plate appearances while chipping in eight stolen bases and covering all three outfield spots prior to his demotion late last month. He hit well during his brief stint in Louisville, slashing .240/.296/.680 with three home runs in just 27 plate appearances. Fairchild figures to slot back into the club’s outfield mix alongside TJ Friedl, Jake Fraley, Will Benson, and Nick Senzel going forward.

Law, 32, returns to the club after missing six weeks with an elbow sprain. Prior to his trip to the IL, Law was one of Cincinnati’s more effective relievers this season, with a 2.57 ERA in 21 innings of work. That performance is somewhat belied by a 5.09 FIP thanks to Law’s elevated 14.3% walk rate compared to a 22% strikeout rate. Still, Law seems likely to join the club’s late inning mix ahead of closer Alexis Diaz alongside the likes of Buck Farmer and Lucas Sims.

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