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
Angels Sign Jose Godoy, Gerardo Reyes, Cam Vieaux To Minor League Deals
The Angels have signed catcher Jose Godoy, right-hander Gerardo Reyes, left-hander Cam Vieaux to minor league contracts, according to MiLB.com’s official transactions page. All three players were assigned to Triple-A Salt Lake.
Reyes has the most big league experience of the trio, with 29 games and 28 innings pitched across two seasons. Twenty-six of those innings came with the Padres in 2019, and then Reyes was sidelined by the abbreviated 2020 season and Tommy John surgery early in 2021. Finally returning to game action last April with the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate, Reyes had a 3.74 ERA over 45 2/3 minor league innings, racking up a lot of whiffs (28% strikeout rate) and unfortunately also a lot of free passes (15.9% walk rate). The righty also got back to the majors for two appearances with Anaheim.
A hard-thrower with a live fastball, Reyes is still a work in progress as he enters his age-30 season. He has posted increasingly strong strikeout totals dating back to his time in the Padres’ farm system, though walks have also been a consistent issue, and his 2022 walk rate represented his highest over such an extended sample size of innings. There isn’t much risk for the Angels in continuing to carry Reyes on a minor league deal, just in case he gets fully on track after a normal offseason and can finally harness his velocity.
After joining the Angels, Godoy has now been part of five different organizations since March, starting with the Mariners and then bouncing to the Giants, Twins, and Pirates on waiver claims. All these travels resulted in only 10 MLB games for Godoy in 2022, suiting up twice for Minnesota and eight times with Pittsburgh. With two outright assignments, Godoy had the ability to become a free agent, and he took that option after the season.
Godoy has appeared in 26 total Major League games over two seasons, and the longtime Cardinals farmhand has some respectable numbers in the minors, including a .271/.323/.405 slash line over 605 career Triple-A plate appearances. The 28-year-old Godoy joins Matt Thaiss and Chad Wallach as catching depth for the Angels behind Logan O’Hoppe and Max Stassi, though there have been some rumblings that Los Angeles might be looking to further upgrade itself behind the plate. The Angels had some interest in Willson Contreras before he signed with St. Louis, so unless the Halos’ interest was limited to Contreras specifically, they could still aim to bring another catcher into the mix.
Vieaux made his Major League debut in 2022, posting a 10.38 ERA over 8 2/3 innings with the Pirates. Vieaux qualified for minor league free agency after the season, as Pittsburgh designated and outrighted him twice off its 40-man roster — by coincidence, the Bucs DFA’ed Godoy to create roster space when selecting Vieaux’s contract back in August.
A sixth-round pick for Pittsburgh in the 2016 draft, Vieaux will be changing organizations for the first time in his pro career. The lefty was a starter for much of his time in the minors but transitioned to relief pitching in 2021, and Vieaux seemed to hit a wall at the Triple-A level. Things started to click in 2022, as he posted a 3.06 ERA, 23.7% strikeout rate, and 7.6% walk rate over an even 50 innings for Triple-A Indianapolis. While not huge strikeout numbers for a reliever, Vieaux’s K-rate has ticked upwards since his move to the bullpen, so the 29-year-old might yet be able to reach another gear as he continues to acclimate to relief pitching.
Angels Select Gerardo Reyes, Ryan Aguilar
The Angels announced a host of roster moves before tonight’s series in Toronto. Relievers Aaron Loup and Ryan Tepera and outfielder Taylor Ward were all placed on the restricted list. That’s standard procedure for players who haven’t been vaccinated against COVID-19 and are thus prohibited from traveling into Canada. In order to replace them on the roster, the Halos recalled righty José Marte and selected the contracts of reliever Gerardo Reyes and outfielder Ryan Aguilar. All three players have been designated as “substitutes,” meaning they can later be taken off the roster and returned to the minor leagues without passing through waivers.
It’s likely to be a temporary promotion for that trio, but Reyes and Aguilar have long-awaited opportunities to make an impact at the major league level. Reyes has a bit of big league experience, having come out of the bullpen 27 times for the 2019 Padres. The right-hander posted a 7.62 ERA over 26 innings. He spent 2020 at the alternate training site and was dealt from San Diego to Anaheim that deadline in exchange for veteran catcher Jason Castro.
Reyes was outrighted off the 40-man roster last March and underwent Tommy John surgery not long after, but he’s returned to action in Salt Lake this season. Through 39 innings with the Bees, the 29-year-old has a 3.69 ERA. He’s punched out an above-average 29.2% of opposing hitters but issued walks at an elevated 15.7% clip.
Aguilar, meanwhile, could get a chance to make his MLB debut. A 31st round pick of the Brewers out of the University of Arizona in 2016, he remained in the Milwaukee farm system through the end of last season. The 27-year-old signed a minor league deal with the Halos over the offseason and has spent the year at Double-A Rocket City. He’s posted an excellent .280/.427/.517 line with a massive 19% walk rate (albeit against generally younger competition) to earn a big league call. A left-handed hitter, he’s played primarily right field with the Trash Pandas.
Loup, Tepera and Ward will miss the weekend series. They’ll presumably rejoin the club on Monday, when they return home to host the Yankees. Sam Blum of the Athletic tweets that hitting coach Jeremy Reed also did not make the trip to Toronto.
Angels’ Gerardo Reyes, Brendan McCurry To Undergo Tommy John Surgery
Angels right-handers Gerardo Reyes and Brendan McCurry will undergo Tommy John surgery and miss the 2021 season, the team announced to reporters (Twitter link via Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com). Reyes was already known to be dealing with a UCL sprain and was recently removed from the 40-man roster. McCurry, a former Astros and Athletics farmhand, signed a minor league deal with a spring training invite over the winter.
Reyes, 27, came to the Halos in the August trade that sent veteran catcher Jason Castro to the Padres. He appeared in one game this spring but departed early. The righty didn’t pitch in the Majors for the Padres or Angels last season but did log 26 frames with San Diego in ’19. He was knocked around for a 7.62 ERA in that time, but Reyes also showed a blistering heater that averaged 97 mph while punching out 32.5 percent of opponents (against a passable 9.4 percent walk rate).
Reyes has kept his ERA at 3.57 or better in every minor league stop since 2017, steadily increasing his strikeout rate along the way. A second straight season without pitching in a conventional game setting won’t do him any favors, but he’ll give the Angels a potential power arm out of the ‘pen in 2022 and beyond, assuming he successfully rehabs the injury.
McCurry, 29, has yet to make his big league debut but carries a career 4.03 ERA with quality 26.2 percent strikeout and 7.2 percent walk rates in 205 2/3 innings of Triple-A ball. He’s slated to be a minor league free agent again next winter.
The Angels announced a few other injury updates, including a hip injection for righty Luke Bard that will slow his spring progression. He’s expected to be re-evaluated in 72 hours, tweets MLB.com’s Jack Harris.
Angels Outright Gerardo Reyes
The Angels announced that they have outrighted reliever Gerardo Reyes, bringing their 40-man roster to 39.
The right-handed Reyes has been dealing with a UCL sprain in his pitching elbow this spring, though there’s no word on the severity of the injury. He’s still considering next steps at this point, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic tweets.
Reyes joined the Angels last August in a trade with the Padres for catcher Jason Castro, but he didn’t pitch for the Halos in 2020. The 27-year-old made his major league debut the previous season with an unsightly 7.62 ERA in 26 innings out of the Padres’ bullpen, though he did post an excellent 32.5 percent strikeout rate and average 97 mph on his fastball.
Health Notes: Leake, Sox, Rox, Angels
Right-hander Mike Leake does not plan to sign before the season opens, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets. Leake, then a Diamondback, sat out last season because of COVID-19 concerns, and Heyman writes he could return to action this year “if things are more back to “normal.”‘ The 33-year-old innings eater has rejected “multiple offers” in free agency, Heyman adds. During his most recent season in 2019, Leake put up a 4.29 ERA/4.79 SIERA with a below-average strikeout rate (15.2 percent) but an excellent walk percentage (3.2) over 197 innings between the Mariners and D-backs.
- White Sox second baseman Nick Madrigal is scheduled to make his Cactus League debut Monday, according to manager Tony La Russa (via James Fegan of The Athletic). Madrigal missed about a month in 2020, his first major league season, with a left shoulder injury and then underwent surgery in October. The 23-year-old batted .340/.376/.369 in 109 plate appearances, and though he rarely struck out (6.4 percent), he also didn’t hit for any power (zero home runs, .029 ISO).
- White Sox catcher Yasmani Grandal is also sidelined at the moment, having suffered a twisted right knee last week. La Russa said Grandal is progressing in his recovery, but the team doesn’t have a target date for his return right now, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times relays. Grandal turned in yet another strong season in 2020 – his first with the White Sox – as he slashed .230/.351/.422 with eight homers over 194 PA and was a finalist for the Gold Glove Award at his position. He’ll be all the more important to the White Sox this year with previous backup James McCann having signed with the Mets in free agency.
- The Rockies’ Antonio Senzatela has a right hamstring strain that will delay his Cactus League debut by two starts, manager Bud Black told Thomas Harding of MLB.com and other reporters Wednesday. Senzatela has been a regular in the Rockies’ rotation since he entered the majors in 2017, and the 26-year-old righty posted a career-best 3.44 ERA (albeit with a far less encouraging 5.02 SIERA) over 73 1/3 innings a season ago.
- Angels righty Gerardo Reyes is dealing with a UCL sprain in his pitching elbow, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic relays. The Angels are determining next steps at the moment, Ardaya reports, but UCL injuries are always scary for pitchers. Reyes hasn’t taken the mound yet for the Angels, who acquired him from the Padres for catcher Jason Castro last August. The 27-year-old reliever made his big league debut in 2019 with 26 innings of 7.62 ERA ball, but he struck out 32.5 percent of the batters he faced and averaged 97 mph on his fastball.
- Red Sox righty Bryan Mata has triceps soreness and will undergo an MRI on Thursday, per Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe. Mata, 21, ranks as one of the organization’s top prospects, with Baseball America placing him fourth overall and contending that he could be a No. 3/4 starter in the future. If healthy, a 2021 big league debut could be on the table for Mata, who has topped out at the Double-A level thus far.
Health Notes: Pham, File, Rodriguez, Reyes
Padres outfielder Tommy Pham estimates he’s at 80% strength after he was stabbed in the lower back last October, he told reporters (including Dennis Lin of the Athletic and Bob Nightengale of USA Today). The 32-year-old opened up about the incident, telling reporters he initially believed he would never play again. Scarier still, Pham says doctors later told him he could have been killed or paralyzed by his wound, which ultimately required more than 200 stitches to close, per Nightengale. Fortunately, he’s on the path to recovery and played in the Padres’ first spring training game today, although he says he’s still not at his previous weight-lifting capabilities. In addition to the stabbing, Pham underwent an offseason surgery to correct a wrist issue, but it seems he’s recovered from that procedure.
More injury-related situations around the game:
- Brewers right-handed pitching prospect Dylan File underwent surgery to repair a stress fracture in his throwing elbow, team personnel told reporters (including Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Adam McCalvy of MLB.com). The surgery is expected to keep him out of action until at least the middle of June. File was added to Milwaukee’s 40-man roster over the offseason. Given his recovery timetable, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Brewers place him on the 60-day injured list if a need for a 40-man spot arises in the coming weeks.
- Rangers reliever Joely Rodríguez is “a couple of weeks behind” schedule of the team’s other relievers, president of baseball operations Jon Daniels told reporters (including Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News). The southpaw was bothered by an offseason ankle issue; he’s now pain-free, but the injury delayed his ramp-up before spring training. It remains to be seen if he’ll have enough time to build up before Opening Day. Rodríguez was a bright spot in limited time with Texas last season, striking out seventeen while issuing five walks across 12.2 innings of three-run ball.
- The Angels announced that pitching prospect Packy Naughton has a Grade 1 flexor pronator strain, per Fabian Ardaya of the Athletic (Twitter link). He’ll be out of action for three to five weeks. There was some concern for the left-hander after an MRI revealed a UCL sprain yesterday but it seems he’ll avoid the worst case scenario. Naughton was acquired from the Reds in advance of last summer’s trade deadline and could be a big league option for Los Angeles at some point in 2021.
- Another of the Angels’ acquisitions at the 2020 trade deadline, right-hander Gerardo Reyes, left this afternoon’s spring training contest with discomfort in his throwing elbow, per a team announcement. The 27-year-old reliever came over from the Padres in the Jason Castro deal. Reyes has a 7.62 ERA/3.38 SIERA over 26 MLB innings.
Padres Acquire Jason Castro From Angels
11:06PM: The trade has been officially announced by both teams.
5:21PM: Right-hander Gerardo Reyes is going to Los Angeles as the return for Castro, MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell reports (Twitter link). The hard-throwing Reyes has 26 MLB innings on his resume, posting a 7.62 ERA, 13.2 K/9, and 3.45 K/BB over 26 innings for San Diego in 2019. Advanced metrics painted a much more favorable picture of Reyes’ performance, however, as he was hurt by a stunningly low 47.3% strand rate.
3:27PM: The Padres have acquired catcher Jason Castro from the Angels, confirms Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. The 33-year-old veteran had been scratched from today’s game due to mounting trade interest, as first reported by Jon Heyman of MLB Network.
The return headed to the Angels in the deal is not yet known. More than likely, it won’t be a significant haul for the Halos, given that Castro is due to hit free agency at season’s end, making him essentially a one-month rental.
Castro will head to San Diego to complement Austin Hedges in the Padres’ catching mix. The move represent more win-now aggression on San Diego’s part; they’ve been busy this trade season, already making deals for reliever Trevor Rosenthal and first baseman Mitch Moreland this weekend.
The former Astro enjoyed something of a revitalizing season with the Twins last year, with his .767 OPS representing his highest single-season mark since 2013. That was fueled by a nice power surge, as Castro slugged 13 home runs in just 275 plate appearances.
That production hasn’t quite been there this season, as Castro’s batting average has slumped below .200 and his OPS is down to .707, but we ought to be careful not to rush to conclusions given that he’s made just 62 plate appearances. He’s hitting the ball just as hard as last year while getting on base at a solid clip thanks to a 16.1% walk rate. Interestingly, he’s hitting the ball in the air more than ever, so the jury’s still out on the merits of that development.
As a result, the Angels rewarded Castro with a one-year, $6.85MM contract in the winter. Unfortunately, he only wound up playing 18 games for the Halos before being shipped out. He’ll be owed just a bit more than $1MM for the remainder of the season.
In San Diego, he’ll offer a nice alternative to the defensive-minded Hedges, who’s working with a mere .614 OPS for the year. He’s probably more capable offensively than both Hedges and incumbent backup Francisco Mejia, who’s currently on the injured list. Needless to say, there will be a bit of a defensive drop-off from Hedges to Castro, the latter of whom logged above-average framing numbers a season ago but is getting somewhat negative returns thus far in 2020.
Castro’s presence will likely squeeze the young Mejia out of some at-bats, but the Padres will be happy to bring aboard a veteran of Castro’s ilk as they gear up for a postseason run in 2020, shifting their focus away from development and towards winning.
Optioned Players: 3/28/20
Today is the last day in which teams can option players to the minors before the MLB roster freeze kicks in. We’ll keep track of the smaller-scale option decisions around the league.
- The Padres optioned reliever Gerardo Reyes to Triple-A El Paso, the club announced. The righty logged 26 innings in 27 MLB appearances in 2019, his first big league action. Reyes’ 7.62 ERA was certainly not what he envisioned, but he struck out a very strong 32.5% of opposing hitters behind a 15.6% swinging strike rate. Reyes averaged 96.9 MPH with above-average spin on his fastball in his MLB work and looks like a solid relief prospect for the Friars.
Padres Option Nick Margevicius, Recall Cal Quantrill
The Padres have optioned left-hander Nick Margevicius to Double-A Amarillo and sent reliever Gerardo Reyes to Triple-A El Paso, per a team announcement. To take their roster spots in San Diego, the club recalled righty Cal Quantrill from El Paso and reinstated reliever Trey Wingenter from the 10-day injured list.
The Margevicius demotion ends his run in the Padres’ starting staff, at least for now. Although the 22-year-old is not a top prospect and had never pitched above the High-A level entering the season, he spent the first month and a half of 2019 in the Friars’ rotation. The returns were great at first, but the soft-tossing Margevicius has gone into a tailspin since mid-April. In his most recent start, a 7-2 loss to the Pirates on Saturday, he yielded six earned runs on eight hits (including four homers) in four innings. Margevicius now carries a 4.96 ERA/6.00 FIP with 6.55 K/9, 2.98 BB/9, a 43.4 percent groundball rate and a 21.2 percent HR-to-fly ball rate over 45 1/3 major league frames.
Margevicius’ struggles have opened the door for Quantrill, who will have a chance to make a case for a starting job. The promising prospect, 24, will take the ball Sunday for his third start of the season. He could eventually hand the ball off to Wingenter, who got off to an effective start this year before right shoulder inflammation forced him to the shelf two weeks ago.