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George Kontos

George Kontos Retires

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Longtime major league reliever George Kontos has hung up his cleats, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports. The 35-year-old Kontos hasn’t pitched since the Nationals’ Triple-A affiliate released him last August, but he will stay in baseball as an analyst with NBC Sports Bay Area.

“I did have some inclinations from early on when I was a player in San Francisco that one day this might be the route that I would take,” Kontos told Pavlovic on the Giants Insider Podcast. “It’s definitely nice to be coming back to the black and orange and being around San Francisco again.”

The right-handed Kontos was a fifth-round pick of the Yankees in 2006, but the majority of his work as a big leaguer came as a member of the Giants. He notched quality results with the club from 2012-17 – a 309 2/3-inning span in which he logged a 3.05 ERA with 7.3 K/9 and 2.06 BB/9. Kontos was also part of a pair of World Series-winning Giants teams.

Along with the Yankees (with whom he debuted in 2011 and spent time with again in 2018) and Giants, Kontos saw major league action with the Pirates and Indians. All told, he amassed 357 innings of 3.10 ERA ball in the bigs over parts of eight seasons. MLBTR congratulates Kontos on a successful career and wishes him the best in his new role.

Nationals Release George Kontos

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Veteran right-handed reliever George Kontos has been released by the Nationals, per an announcement from Paul Braverman of the Fresno Grizzlies PR department (Twitter link). He’d been with the Grizzlies since signing a minor league pact back in late May.

Kontos, 34, has had a tough year in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. It’s worth noting that more than a third of the total runs he’s allowed came between two meltdown appearances, but that doesn’t exactly discount the fact that his bottom-line results haven’t been pretty. In 46 innings with Fresno, he’s posted a 6.07 ERA with 7.2 K/9, 3.5 BB/9, 1.37 HR/9 and a 38.6 percent ground-ball rate.

A veteran of eight MLB seasons, Kontos pitched for four clubs from 2017-18, tallying a 3.68 ERA and an 85-to-27 K/BB ratio in 93 innings of work between the Giants, Pirates, Yankees and Indians. He’s best known for his time as a solid middle reliever/setup piece for the Giants, with whom he won a pair of World Series rings (posting a sub-3.00 ERA in both 2012 and 2014). Kontos logged 309 2/3 innings as a Giant from 2012-17, recording a tidy 3.05 ERA with averages of 7.3 punchouts and 2.6 walks per nine innings pitched along the way.

Nationals Sign George Kontos

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The Nationals have signed right-handed reliever George Kontos to a minor league contract, per Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com. Kontos will report to Triple-A Fresno.

The Kontos signing is Washington’s latest attempt to ameliorate what has been an abysmal bullpen so far in 2019. The club’s relief unit has managed a catastrophic 7.09 ERA, which ranks last in the majors, as well as several other unsightly statistics. Having logged a 3.10 ERA in 357 combined innings with the Yankees, Giants, Pirates and Indians, Kontos may be able to help the Nationals’ cause if he returns to the majors in their uniform.

Unfortunately for Kontos and the Nats, he hasn’t been an effective big leaguer since 2017. The soft-tossing Kontos, 33, divided 2018 among three teams and pitched to a 4.39 ERA/5.60 FIP with 5.06 K/9 and 2.36 BB/9 across 26 2/3 frames. Kontos then settled for a minors deal with the Cubs in the offseason, but he didn’t catch on with them or any other major league organization until Saturday. Instead, Kontos has only pitched for the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League to this point.

Cubs To Sign George Kontos

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The Cubs have agreed to a minor-league deal with reliever George Kontos, according to Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com (via Twitter). The deal comes with an invitation to participate in spring camp as a non-roster player.

Kontos, 33, has a long track record of getting results at the MLB level, though he has rarely flashed truly convincing peripherals. It’s hard to argue with 357 frames of 3.10 ERA pitching in the bigs. At the same time, with an underwhelming combination of 6.7 K/9, 2.9 BB/9, and a 43.7% groundball rate for his career, Kontos carries only a 3.82 FIP, 4.00 xFIP, and 3.76 SIERA.

Generating light contact has been the name of the game for Kontos, who has held opposing hitters to a .265 batting average on balls in play for his career. Despite the unremarkable strikeout totals, he has also carried a strong 11.7% lifetime swinging-strike rate. Most intriguing of all was a 2017 bump in that statistic to an elite 16.4% level, though Kontos did not carry that with him into the ensuing campaign. He ultimately matched his career-worst ERA last year, allowing 4.39 earned runs per nine over 26 2/3 innings while bouncing between three teams.

All said, there’s plenty to like in securing Kontos on a minor-league deal. At worst, he represents a quality depth option to have on hand. And that past whiff rate does still tantalize, particularly since (as Levine notes) Kontos has shown an uptick in his velocity in workouts this winter. His typically low-nineties heater had trended down a bit in 2018.

Minor MLB Transactions: 10/26/18

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We’ll track some minor moves from around the game here…

  • The Indians announced yesterday that they’ve re-signed left-hander R.C. Orlan and right-hander Shao-Ching Chiang to minor league contracts and invited both to Major League Spring Training in 2019. Orlan returned from injury in 2018 and worked his way back to Triple-A by season’s end, posting a combined 0.61 ERA with a 39-to-7 K/BB ratio across 29 2/3 innings. Much of that impressive-looking work came against Rookie-level opposition for the 27-year-old Orlan, but he also combined for 17 1/3 shutout innings between Double-A and Triple-A, making it easy to see why the organization was quick to retain him. Chiang, 24, generated strong results in a dozen Double-A starts before struggling more in his first 11 career starts at the Triple-A level. In all, the Taiwanese righty pitched to a 3.90 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 1.6 BB/9 in 136 innings.
  • Baseball America’s Matt Eddy runs through a couple hundred minor league signings, releases, Arizona Fall League assignments, Winter League assignments and free-agent elections in his latest Minor League Transactions roundup, which has notes on all 30 big league clubs. Among the more recognizable names to formally elect free agency were Pedro Alvarez, George Kontos, Carter Capps and Chase Whitley. All should have been expected when they weren’t on 40-man rosters at season’s end, but the formalities are still at least of some note.

Outrighted: Alec Asher, George Kontos

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We’ll track the day’s minor moves in this post …

  • The Brewers announced that Alec Asher was outrighted after recently being designated for assignment. That’s the second time this year the Milwaukee organization has sent Asher to Triple-A after he cleared waivers. He can choose instead to go into free agency now or at the end of the season. Asher, 26, has spent most of 2018 at Triple-A, where he owns a 5.42 ERA with 39 strikeouts and 32 walks in 88 innings.
  • Likewise, the Yankees say they outrighted veteran righty George Kontos, who was also in DFA limbo. As with Asher, he can elect the open market now or later. Kontos has seen time with three MLB teams this year, most recently making only a single appearance in New York. The eight-year veteran carries a 4.39 ERA with 5.1 K/9 against 2.4 BB/9 in 26 2/3 innings in the majors this season.

Yankees To Designate George Kontos For Assignment

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The Yankees will designate right-hander George Kontos for assignment in order to open a spot on the roster for righty Luis Cessa, per Newsday’s Erik Boland (Twitter link). He’d only been selected to the MLB roster two days prior.

Kontos, 33, appeared in one game in his reunion with the Yankees — the organization that originally drafted him — tossing 1 2/3 shutout innings with just one hit allowed and a pair of strikeouts. He’s pitched with the Pirates, Indians and Yankees this season, totaling 26 2/3 frames with a 4.39 ERA, 15 strikeouts and seven walks in that time.

Though Kontos has generally delivered respectable bottom-line results so far in 2018, his velocity, swinging-strike rate and overall strikeout rate have dipped substantially from 2017 to 2018. He has a quality track record as a useful middle reliever over the past six seasons with the Giants (and, late in 2017, with the Pirates), though he’s already cleared waivers once this season despite that past success. The Yankees will have a week to trade him or pass him through outright waivers in hopes of retaining him, although Kontos has enough service time to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency.

Yankees Select Contract Of George Kontos, Place CC Sabathia On DL

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4:00pm: The Yankees announced that they’ve selected Kontos’ contract and placed lefty CC Sabathia on the 10-day disabled list due to inflammation in his right knee. Jordan Montgomery, who underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this year, was moved to the 60-day DL to open a roster spot for Kontos. Additionally, the Yankees recalled Ronald Torreyes from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and optioned Luke Voit to Triple-A in his place.

It’s not yet clear who’ll step into Sabathia’s rotation spot, although right-handers Sonny Gray and Chance Adams would appear to be the likeliest choices. Gray was recently demoted to a bullpen role after struggling for much of the season, while Adams made his MLB debut and struggled in a spot start earlier this month.

2:55pm: The Yankees have selected the contract of right-hander George Kontos, tweets George A. King III of the New York Post. A corresponding move has yet to be announced, but Lindsey Adler of The Athletic tweets that Kontos is already in the clubhouse, so a corresponding move should be revealed in short order.

It’s a full-circle promotion for Kontos, whom the Yankees drafted in the fifth round back in 2006. Kontos was taken by the Padres in the 2010 Rule 5 Draft but returned to the Yanks before appearing in the Majors, and he ultimately debuted in the Bronx during the 2011 season. However, Kontos only totaled six innings in pinstripes, as the Yankees flipped him to the Giants in exchange for catcher Chris Stewart the following April.

Kontos went on to cement himself as a quality bullpen option in San Francisco over the next six seasons, working to a 3.05 ERA with 7.3 K/9 against 2.6 BB/9 in 309 innings as a Giant before being somewhat surprisingly let go on waivers last summer. The Pirates picked him up at that point and enjoyed 14 2/3 quality innings out of Kontos down the stretch in 2017 (1.84 ERA), but his strikeout rate, swinging-strike rate and velocity cratered in Pittsburgh earlier this season, leading him to eventually be designated for assignment. Kontos had a stop in the Indians organization as well but was recently flipped to the Yankees in exchange for cash considerations.

All in all, Kontos returns to the Yankees organization with a career 3.12 ERA, 7.2 K/9, 2.6 BB/9, 0.96 HR/9 and a 43.6 percent ground-ball rate in 355 2/3 innings at the big league level. He’ll presumably slide into a middle-relief role, though given the general depth of the New York bullpen, it’s far from a guarantee that he’s ticketed for a lengthy stint in the Bronx.

Minor MLB Transactions: 8/4/18

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We’ll use this post to keep track of some minor transactions throughout the day…

Latest…

  • The Tigers have made their second minor deal of the day, this time acquiring righty Eric Villanueva from the Mets in exchange for cash considerations, Woodbery tweets. Villanueva, 20, had been with the Mets since they chose him out of Puerto Rico in the 30th round of the 2016 draft. During his time with the Mets, Villaneuva worked at the Rookie level and struggled to a 5.14 ERA with unsightly strikeout and walk rates (5.1 K/9, 11.2 BB/9) across 40 1/3 innings.

Earlier…

  • The Yankees have acquired infielder Gio Urshela from the Blue Jays in exchange for cash considerations; Conor Foley of the Scranton Times-Tribune was first to take note of the transaction, and the move has since been announced by both organizations. The Jays designated Urshela for assignment on June 26th, about seven weeks after they claimed him off waivers from the Indians. The 26-year-old is widely known for his highlight-reel defensive plays, although he’s also error-prone on the big stage; Urshela made four errors while with Cleveland during last year’s ALDS. His tepid bat has been what’s really held him back, though. Urshela’s career batting line is .225/.274/.315 across 499 plate appearances with Cleveland and Toronto.
  • The Indians announced that they’ve traded right-hander George Kontos to the Yankees in exchange for cash considerations; the Yankees in turn announced that the veteran has assigned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre. The 33-year-old has pitched in parts of every MLB season since 2011, though he’s never shuffled around the league quite this much. Kontos began 2018 with the Pirates before being shipped to Cleveland, and will now head to his third team of the year. He’s earned himself a 4.68 ERA across 25 innings thus far, and his FIP (5.93) suggests he’s been lucky to attain even that mediocre mark. However, if he can return to the form of the 3.12 ERA hurler he’s been across his career on average, he could yet prove a useful piece for the Bombers.
  • The Tigers have acquired righty Christian Binford from the Orioles in exchange for cash considerations, per Evan Woodbery of MLive. Across 12 appearances this season (seven starts) with the O’s Double-A affiliate, Binford has pitched to a 4.95 ERA. While he’s walked just 1.28 batters per nine innings, he’s only managed to strike out a measly 5.59. However, his 4.35 xFIP suggests that he’s been slightly unlucky in terms of fly balls going for home runs. While Binford has remained at Double-A all season, he’s seen time at the minors’ highest level in each of the past two years (while with the Royals organization). In fact, prior to this season, the 25-year-old had never known any other organization outside of Kansas City, who selected him in the 30th round of the 2011 draft.

Minor MLB Transactions: 7/10/18

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We’ll use this post to track the day’s minor moves …

  • The Indians announced that right-hander George Kontos cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Columbus. The veteran has enough service time to elect free agency but will instead remain with the organization in hopes of a return to Cleveland. Kontos, 33, tossed 5 1/3 innings and allowed a pair of runs in his brief run with the Indians at the big league level. He’s seen his velocity and strikeout rate fall off substantially in 2018 but has a lengthy track record as a quality reliever with the Giants and, more briefly, the Pirates spanning from 2012-17 (3.00 ERA, 7.4 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 in 324 1/3 innings).

Earlier Moves

  • The Yankees announced that righty David Hale has elected free agency after clearing outright waivers. He was recently designated by the New York organization for the third time this year. Hale will test the open market, but presumably remains a candidate to return on another minor-league pact, as he has done previously. In the aggregate, Hale has pitched to a 4.61 ERA with 5.3 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in his 13 2/3 total MLB innings this year. The 30-year-old has worked as a starter at Triple-A, turning in 55 2/3 frames of 4.20 ERA ball there on the year.
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