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Fernando Rodriguez

Minor MLB Transactions: 8/23/17

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Here are some of the latest minor moves from around the game, as reported by Baseball America’s Matt Eddy, unless otherwise noted:

  • The Tigers announced tonight that they’ve optioned lefty Chad Bell to Triple-A Toledo and will select the contract of right-hander Zac Reininger prior to Thursday’s contest. The 24-year-old Reininger was Detroit’s eight-round pick back in 2013 and has had a strong season across three minor league levels in 2017, rising from Class-A Advanced to Triple-A. In 63 2/3 total innings, Reininger has posted a 2.54 ERA with 8.5 K/9 against 2.5 BB/9. His ground-ball rate was a strong 53.4 percent in 28 Class-A frames but has fallen to the 39 percent range in the upper minors.

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Cubs Sign Fernando Rodriguez, Four Others

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The Cubs have signed righty reliever Fernando Rodriguez, presumably to a minor league deal, Matt Eddy of Baseball America reports. Rodriguez’s agency, J.M.G. Baseball, tweeted last week that their client had agreed to terms with an NL club. The Cubs have also added second baseman Jemile Weeks, catcher Ali Solis, lefty Daniel Moskos and shortstop Elliot Soto, also presumably on minor league deals.

The 32-year-old Rodriguez has pitched for the A’s for the last three seasons, most recently posting a 4.20 ERA, 8.2 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 in 40 2/3 innings in 2016. The Athletics outrighted him in October, likely thinking ahead to the tender deadline — Rodriguez has five-plus years of service time and would have been eligible for arbitration. Rodriguez had shoulder surgery in September, although typical recovery time would have allowed him to resume throwing by around now.

The 29-year-old Weeks collected 57 plate appearances with the Padres in 2016 and hit sparingly, missing much of the season to a hamstring strain. The former first-round pick is a career .271/.372/.373 hitter at the Triple-A level.

Solis is a 29-year-old, glove-first journeyman who’s made brief big-league appearances with the Padres and Rays. He played last season in the Red Sox system.

Moskos, now 30, is best known for being the fourth overall pick in the 2007 draft. He pitched last season for the Padres’ Triple-A affiliate in El Paso, posting a 3.39 ERA, 6.9 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 over 61 innings of relief.

The 27-year-old Soto came up in the Cubs system but spent last season with the Marlins’ Triple-A club in New Orleans, batting .241/.358/.297 and splitting his time between second, shortstop and third.

A’s Outright Eric Sogard, Fernando Rodriguez, Four Others

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TODAY: Rodriguez, Landendorf, Roach, Lambo, McBride and Smith have all declared free agency, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports (Twitter link).  Sogard also elected to become a free agent on Saturday.

THURSDAY: The Athletics announced this afternoon that they’ve outrighted second baseman Eric Sogard, infielder Tyler Ladendorf, first baseman Andrew Lambo and right-handers Fernando Rodriguez, Donn Roach and J.B. Wendelken to Triple-A Nashville, thereby removing those six players from their 40-man roster. That makes eight players that Oakland has shed from its 40-man roster in the past 24 hours, as the team also outrighted Matt McBride and Chris Smith yesterday.

Sogard is the most notable name of the bunch, though he missed the entire 2016 season due to knee surgery. Prior to that, the 30-year-old Sogard saw semi-regular time with the A’s from 2013-15, and he’s spent parts of five years on the Oakland roster dating back to 2011. The outright could spell the end of his time in Oakland, as Sogard has the Major League service time required to elect free agency. The 30-year-old batted just .247/.294/.304 in 401 plate appearances last season and has slashed a mere .247/.305/.315 from 2013-15. He did, however, draw positive grades for his baserunning, per Fangraphs, and both Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating peg him as a plus defender at second base. Sogard is also capable of filling in at shortstop and third base as needed, so he could make for a nice utility target for clubs seeking low-cost defensive upgrades this winter.

Rodriguez, 32, underwent shoulder surgery last month but logged 40 2/3 serviceable innings out of the Oakland bullpen in 2016. Since joining the A’s in 2014, he’s pitched to a solid 3.74 ERA with 8.8 K/9 against 3.6 BB/9. Like Sogard, Rodriguez has the requisite service time to elect free agency following his outright assignment, and depending on his progress from shoulder surgery could be a nice buy-low target for teams looking for veteran ’pen depth.

Wendelken, 23, has been weighing Tommy John surgery and recently sought a second opinion on his right elbow. Given the current injury he’s facing, it’s not a surprise that he cleared waivers. The A’s will be able to retain his rights and clear a 40-man roster spot by outrighting him, and he can rehab from any surgery that he may ultimately undergo next season without accruing MLB service time. Oakland picked up Wendelken in last winter’s trade that sent Brett Lawrie to Chicago, and he showed a penchant for missing bats in Triple-A (4.11 ERA, 12.7 K/9, 5.1 BB/9 in 46 innings) before struggling in a small sample of MLB games.

Roach, 28, has been traded once and claimed on waivers five time since being drafted by the Angels in 2010. His extreme ground-ball tendencies and strong control have continually piqued the interest of Major League clubs despite the fact that he’s a soft-tossing righty who has averaged fewer than five strikeouts per nine innings in Triple-A. Roach has been outrighted in the past and figures to elect free agency in search of a minor league deal this winter.

Ladendorf, 28, collected just four hits in 50 plate appearances with the A’s this season and has played sparingly over the past two seasons at the Major League level. Originally a second-round draft pick of the Twins, Ladendorf was traded to Oakland back in 2009 in exchange for Orlando Cabrera and is a career .261/.327/.349 hitter at the Triple-A level, where he’s played shortstop, second base, third base and outfield.

Lambo, 28, picked up just one plate appearance with the A’s in 2016 and is a career .189/.230/.295 batter at the Major League level. The former top prospect saw his 2016 campaign come to an end in mid-June after the A’s announced that he’d undergone surgery to treat testicular cancer. The announcement from the A’s was made on Twitter and, as such, doesn’t come with a timeline for Lambo’s recovery, but hopefully he is progressing well and can ultimately make a return to baseball.

Fernando Rodriguez Undergoes Shoulder Surgery

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Athletics reliever Fernando Rodriguez has undergone surgery on his right shoulder, the club announced (via MLB.com’s Jane Lee, on Twitter). Specifically, the 32-year-old’s latissmus dorsi tendon was repaired and a debridement was performed on his teres major tendon.

This type of procedure generally has a good rate of success, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle explains (Twitter links). It is the same work that was done previously to pitchers such as Jake Peavy, and doesn’t involve more significant rotator cuff issues.

Rodriguez had provided the A’s with 40 2/3 innings of 4.20 ERA pitching prior to the injury, compiling 8.2 K/9 against 3.8 BB/9. He was somewhat more effective a year ago, but still maintained a strong swinging strike rate of about 13% and ought to be a useful reliever if he can bounce back.

Rodriguez was playing on a $1.05MM salary in his second year of arbitration eligibility. He’ll command at least a modest raise on that amount in his final arb year, with free agency beckoning after 2017, so Oakland will presumably look closely at his recovery before deciding whether to tender him a contract this winter.

AL West Notes: Bregman, Healy, Valencia, Rodriguez, Rangers

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The Astros’ reported deal with Yulieski Gurriel adds another notable option to the mix in the left side of the infield, but that doesn’t mean top prospect Alex Bregman is on the trade block. Far from it, in fact, per Jon Morosi of MLB Network (on Twitter). A source tells Morosi that the club isn’t interested in flipping Bregman for a top-flight starter — though certainly the rising prospect is the kind of blue-chip asset that could net a major piece in return.

Here’s more from the AL West:

  • Just-promoted prospect Ryon Healy will serve as the Athletics’ primary third baseman, manager Bob Melvin told reporters including John Hickey of the Bay Area News Group (Twitter link). That leaves hot-hitting Danny Valencia to pick up plate appearances at first base and the corner outfield. Oakland’s decision to modify and reduce Valencia’s role seems to suggest that he isn’t a major part of the club’s plans for 2017. That, in turn, would presumably increase the team’s inclination to deal him this summer.
  • Athletics reliever Fernando Rodriguez will miss four to six weeks after being diagnosed with a lat tear, Hickey tweets. Rodriguez expressed surprise and disappointment with the prognosis. The 32-year-old has been a steady, albeit not a dominant, member of the A’s pen for the last two years. Over 40 2/3 innings in 2015, he owns a 4.20 ERA with 8.2 K/9 against 3.8 BB/9.
  • As the Rangers continue to browse the shelves of potentially-available starters, the team has at least asked the Braves about Julio Teheran, per SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (Twitter links). That hardly means there’s any real action on the righty, particularly since we’ve seen Texas tied to a whole host of starters in recent weeks. Cotillo also hears that the Rangers have had talks with the Brewers on catcher Jonathan Lucroy and southpaw Will Smith, though Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel tweets that the chatter “went nowhere.” All told, it still seems that the Texas front office is canvassing possibilities with the deadline a few weeks off.

Minor Moves: Gomes, Stewart, Wallace, Crosby

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With a rash of waiver claims today, several players made it through without being added to another club’s 40-man. The Angels announced that outfielder Shawn O’Malley cleared waivers and was released. Meanwhile, the Athletics have outrighted righty Fernando Rodriguez to Triple-A after he cleared, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets. Indians lefty Nick Maronde has cleared waivers, been assigned to Triple-A, and received an invite to big league camp, per Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer (via Twitter). And the Dodgers announced that outfielder/first baseman Kyle Jensen was outrighted to Triple-A.

Here are the day’s further minor moves:

  • The Rays announced that right-hander Brandon Gomes has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Durham. He will be invited to Major League Spring Training. The 30-year-old Gomes found himself designated for assignment last week following the Wil Myers trade.
  • Infielder Ian Stewart has joined the Nationals on a minor league pact, Matt Eddy of Baseball America tweets. As Eddy notes, Stewart seems to be a solid match for a Nats’ roster that currently features all right-handed-hitting infielders (if you count Danny Espinosa, who currently sits atop the depth chart at second and is a much better hitter from the right side than the left). Soon to turn 30, Stewart — not unlike Espinosa himself — has failed to maintain the promise of prior MLB seasons, but has shown significant power capability in the past. Stewart will receive $800K in the bigs plus a possible $350K in incentives, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweets.
  • The Padres have signed first baseman Brett Wallace to a minor league pact (via Eddy, on Twitter). Like Stewart, Wallace was once a highly-valued prospect. But the 28-year-old has yet to end an MLB campaign with an above-average hitting line, and he does not offer the kind of defensive value that lets his bat play. That said, he could still have some upside remaining and will provide San Diego with a depth piece at a position of need.
  • The Red Sox agreed to terms with lefty Casey Crosby (again, via Eddy). Per Eddy, Crosby landed amongst the Tigers’ top thirty prospects seven times. The oft-injured 26-year-old only received three big league starts in Detroit, however, and continued to have control issues after being converted to relief last year at Triple-A.
  • 28-year-old outfielder Adron Chambers will head to camp with the Cubs, Cotillo tweets. After seeing minimal playing time at the big league level from 2011-13 with the Cardinals, Chambers spent last year at the Triple-A level with the Astros and Blue Jays. Over 206 plate appearances, he slashed a rather typical .283/.351/.411 in the highest level of the minors.
  • The Reds have added several more minor league signings, also via Cotillo. In addition to the previously-reported signing of Ivan De Jesus, Cincinnati has locked up outfielder Jermaine Curtis and righty Nathan Adcock. Curtis, 27, managed only a .675 OPS at Triple-A last year for the Cardinals, and will be looking for a fresh start after spending his entire professional career in that organization. The 26-year-old Adcock has thrown 104 MLB innings over the last several years, mostly in relief, working to a 3.86 ERA in that stretch.
  • The Twins have made a series of additions, per a club announcement (via Dustin Morse, on Twitter). Among them are outfielder Wilkin Ramirez and second baseman Jose Martinez. The former is a 29-year-old who has called the Minnesota organization home since 2012. Last year, he put up a .262/.305/.368 line at the highest level of the minors. Martinez, soon to turn 29, slashed .276/.345/.372 at Triple-A last year with the A’s.

A’s Acquire Eury De La Rosa, Designate Fernando Rodriguez

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The Athletics announced that they have acquired lefty Eury De La Rosa from the Diamondbacks in exchange for cash considerations and designated right-hander Fernando Rodriguez for assignment.

The 24-year-old De La Rosa was designated for assignment last week to clear room for Allen Webster and Rubby De La Rosa, who were acquired in the Wade Miley trade with Boston. The A’s have acquired a lefty relief option that pitched to a strong 2.95 ERA with 7.9 K/9, 3.4 BB/9 and a 43.1 percent ground-ball rate in 36 2/3 innings. However, the now-former Diamondback also turned in a reverse platoon split last year in Arizona, yielding a .309/.377/.418 batting line in a small sample of 61 plate appearances versus left-handed hitters.

Rodriguez, 30, appeared in seven games for Oakland in 2014 and allowed just one run in nine innings with four strikeouts and two walks. However, he’s yet to establish a track record of success in the Majors, having seen inconsistent playing time in the bigs dating back to 2009 and compiling a 4.62 ERA. He does throw relatively hard (career 93.3 mph average fastball) and did excellent work at Triple-A in 2014 (1.97 ERA, 10.4 K/9, 3.2 BB/9 in 45 2/3 innings), so another club could view him as a depth piece.

Athletics Avoid Arbitration With Ike Davis, Fernando Rodriguez

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The Athletics have announced one-year deals to avoid arbitration with Ike Davis and Fernando Rodriguez, via Twitter.

Davis will earn $3.8MM, per Chris Cotillo of SB Nation (Twitter link), which falls shy of the $4.4MM he was projected to take home by MLBTR and contributor Matt Swartz. Of course, that may go some way in explaining the deal, as Oakland may not have been interested in tendering him if it was unable to lock in its price.

Rodriguez’s deal is for $635K, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes reports on Twitter. The 30-year-old righty saw a good bit of action with the Astros over 2011-12, but only resurfaced at the MLB level last year after missing a year due to Tommy John surgery. He was dominant in 45 2/3 Triple-A frames, and put up good results in limited MLB action as well.

Players To Avoid Arbitration

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With tonight’s non-tender deadline looming, several players figure to not only be tendered contracts but agree to their 2014 salaries prior to 11pm CT. We’ll run down the players to avoid arbitration with their respective clubs in this post, and remember that you can track the progress on all arbitration eligible players by using MLBTR’s 2014 Arbitration Tracker. For a reminder on the projected salaries for each of these players, check out Matt Swartz’s projections in MLBTR’s Arbitration Eligibles series.

  • The Nationals announced they’ve avoided arbitration with righty Ross Ohlendorf, tweets Dan Kolko of MASNsports.com. Ohlendorf’s deal will guarantee him $1.25MM and can reach $3MM via incentives that can be achieved as a starter or reliever, per the Washington Post’s Adam Kilgore.
  • The Cubs have avoided arbitration with utility infielder Donnie Murphy, reports Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com (via Twitter), agreeing to a one-year, $825K pact that includes incentives.
  • The Orioles have avoided arbitration with outfielder Steve Pearce for $850K, tweets Rosenthal.
  • The Padres have reached terms with pitcher Eric Stults on a $2.75MM deal to avoid arbitration, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. He had been projected by Swartz to earn $3MM through arbitration. Unlike most arbitration deals, tweets Rosenthal, this one will be guaranteed.  Also getting a guaranteed deal from the Padres, per Rosenthal, is righty Tim Stauffer at $1.6MM.
  • The White Sox have avoided arbitration with catcher Tyler Flowers with a $950k contract, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
  • The Athletics have avoided arbitration with righty Fernando Rodriguez, tweets Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.  Rodriguez, who is represented by Metis Sports Management, LLC, will earn $600K plus award bonuses, MLBTR has learned.  The A’s will tender contracts to its remaining arb-eligible players, Slusser notes via Twitter.
  • The Indians have avoided arbitration with relievers Frank Herrmann and Blake Wood, the club announced. Each player will earn $560k, tweets Jordan Bastian of MLB.com, which falls below their respective projections from MLBTR’s Matt Swartz.
  • Newly-acquired catcher George Kottaras has reached agreement on a one-year, $1.075MM deal to avoid arbitration with the Cubs, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The contract includes incentives, according to Heyman. A left-handed batter, Kottaras managed only a .180 batting average last year, but got on base at a .349 clip in addition to posting a .370 slugging mark in his 126 plate appearances.
  • The Orioles have avoided arbitration with outfielder Nolan Reimold, sources tell Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun (link to Twitter). The 30-year-old will get a one-year, $1.025MM deal that includes incentives. Reimold lost most of the last two seasons to injury, but has a career .252/.327/.439 slash in 1,056 plate appearances dating back to 2009. His salary will be guaranteed, tweets Connolly.
  • The Phillies have avoided arbitration with infielder Kevin Frandsen, the club announced. Frandsen will receive a one-year, $900k deal that includes performance incentives. Last year, Frandsen had a .234/.296/.341 slash line in 278 plate appearances. The deal is guaranteed, Rosenthal tweets.
  • The Braves announced that they have avoided arbitration with infielder Ramiro Pena and left-hander Jonny Venters (Twitter link). Pena, 28, batted a solid .278/.330/.443 in 107 PAs this season before shoulder surgery ended his season. Venters’ contract was first reported two weeks ago and is said to be worth $1.625MM.
  • MLB.com’s Jason Beck tweets that the Tigers have avoided arbitration with Don Kelly by agreeing to a one-year, $1MM contract for 2014. Kelly will turn 34 in February and batted .222/.309/.343 in 2013 — all numbers that are nearly mirrored by his career .229/.290/.344 batting line. He is represented by LSW Baseball.
  • The Pirates have avoided arbitration with Chris Stewart, according to Daniel Barbarisi of the Wall Street Journal (on Twitter). Barbarisi reports that the trade sending Stewart to Pittsburgh was actually in place on Friday but was also contingent on Stewart agreeing to a new contract with the Pirates. Stewart, a client of James A. Kuzmich, PLLC, agreed to his new contract today, thereby finalizing the trade. He projected to earn $1MM, per Swartz.

Athletics Claim Nate Freiman

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The Athletics have claimed first baseman Nate Freiman from the Astros, according to the A's (on Twitter). The A's have placed Fernando Rodriguez on the 60-day DL to clear roster space for Freiman. Freiman hit .298/.370/.502 for the Padres' Double-A affiliate in 2012 before the Astros picked him in the Rule 5 Draft. He will need to stick on the Athletics' 25-man roster this season, or the A's risk losing him.

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