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Greg Allen

Cubs, Greg Allen Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Cubs have agreed to a minor league deal with outfielder Greg Allen, reports Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times. The CAA client has been invited to major league camp.

Allen, 31, has appeared in parts of seven big league seasons. The 2024 campaign was the first time since 2016 that he hasn’t appeared in the majors in a given season. He spent last year with the Yankees organization, hitting .225/.338/.360 with three homers and 13 steals (in 15 attempts) during 58 Triple-A games.

A plus runner with a light bat, Allen has never hit much in the majors. He carries just a .231/.300/.340 line in 828 plate appearances. However, he’s swiped 48 bags in 57 tries (84.2%) and has regularly provided good defense across all three outfield slots — particularly in left field.

The Cubs aren’t hurting for outfield depth by any means. They have Ian Happ, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker lined up to start, with Seiya Suzuki filling a DH role and likely spelling Happ and Tucker in the corners. Utilityman Vidal Brujan has primarily been an infielder but has gained experience across all three outfield slots over the past few seasons. Kevin Alcantara and Owen Caissie, both ranked among the game’s top-100 prospects, are on the cusp of MLB readiness. The Cubs are deep enough that they felt comfortable designating out-of-options slugger Alexander Canario for assignment earlier this week.

That said, the potential loss of Canario and a groin strain for Caissie that currently has him shut down from all baseball activity has at least thinned the group a bit. Allen can add some cover at all three outfield positions and bring an element of speed to the upper levels of the Cubs’ system. He’s unlikely to break camp with the club, but he’ll bring a career .276/.387/.413 line in parts of six Triple-A seasons to the Cubs’ top affiliate in Iowa if he begins the season in Triple-A.

Yankees, Greg Allen Agree To Minor League Deal

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Fleet-footed outfielder Greg Allen is returning to the Yankees organization on a minor league deal, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. The CAA client will be in camp as a non-roster invitee this spring. Joel Sherman of the New York Post adds that Allen would earn at a $1.1MM rate if selected to the big league roster. There’s another $400K available via incentives, per Sherman, which takes the form of a $50K bonus for every 50th plate appearance beginning at 150 and ranging through 500. Allen hasn’t reached 150 MLB plate appearances since 2019 and has never topped 291 plate appearances in a season.

It’s the third stint with the Yankees for the 30-year-old Allen, who was traded from San Diego to New York back in 2021. Allen appeared in 15 games that season and has since bounced from the Pirates, to the Red Sox, back to the Yankees, to the Brewers and now back to the Bronx.

Allen spent the bulk of the 2023 season in the Yankees organization but was designated for assignment in August and elected free agency after going unclaimed on waivers. He took just 28 plate appearances with the Yanks — his only big league action last season — and slashed .217/.333/.478 with a homer and three steals in that tiny sample. The rest of his season was spent in Triple-A, where he batted a combined .252/.388/.371 between the Yankees, Brewers and Red Sox organizations.

In parts of seven of MLB seasons, Allen is a .231/.300/.340 hitter with 11 homers, 31 doubles, eight triples, a 5.7% walk rate and a 23.4% strikeout rate in 828 plate appearances. He’s a switch-hitter with minimal pop but plus speed and strong defensive skills across all three outfield positions. Allen won’t have an easy path to a big league roster spot on a team whose outfield mix consists of Juan Soto, Aaron Judge, Alex Verdugo, Trent Grisham and Giancarlo Stanton (though he’ll primarily DH). That said, he’s a fine depth piece to stash in Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to begin the season, which seems to be the likeliest role for him unless injuries create some openings on the big league roster during spring training.

Brewers Sign Greg Allen; Acquire Chris Roller From Guardians

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The Brewers have made a couple of moves, per Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. Outfielder Greg Allen has been signed to a minor league contract and outfielder Chris Roller has been acquired from the Guardians in exchange for cash. Both players will report to Triple-A Nashville for now but are eligible to play for the Brewers in the offseason by joining the organization prior to September 1. Roller was eligible to be traded after the deadline since he hasn’t been on a 40-man roster this year.

Allen, 30, began the year with the Red Sox on a minor league deal but was traded to the Yankees in May. The Yanks added Allen to their roster but he landed on the injured list after just 10 games due to a right hip flexor strain. He returned about six weeks later and played in 12 more games before being designated for assignment and electing free agency.

It was the seventh straight year in which Allen got a part-time gig in the big leagues, having bounced from Cleveland to San Diego, Pittsburgh and the Bronx over the years, never reaching 300 plate appearances in any one season. He’s hit .231/.300/.340 in that time, which translates to a wRC+ of 74. But thanks to his speed, he’s been able to steal 48 bases in 57 attempts and play all three outfield positions with strong grades for his glovework.

Roller, 26, is a somewhat similar player. A 30th-round draft pick of the Dodgers in 2017, he went to the Guardians in the Triple-A portion of the 2020 Rule 5 draft. Since then, he’s taken 768 plate appearances between Double-A and Triple-A with a .214/.325/.341 batting line, which translates to a wRC+ of 81. However, he’s stolen 34 bases in 45 tries, including going 13 for 17 this year.

Rosters expand from 26 to 28 in September, which gives clubs more leeway to deploy specialized players. Many teams around the league use the extra roster spot to have an extra speed-and-defense player on the bench. Neither Allen nor Roller are on the roster just yet, meaning they are outfield depth for the time being. But by joining the organization prior to September 1, they could be options for the Brewers over the next month and even into the postseason. Since they are not on the 40-man, they will have to be granted a commissioner’s exemption to replace an injured player in October, but that’s not seen as a meaningful obstacle.

Greg Allen Elects Free Agency

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The Yankees announced that outfielder Greg Allen has elected free agency after clearing outright waivers. New York had designated him for assignment on Tuesday when bringing up rookies Everson Pereira and Oswald Peraza from Triple-A.

Allen has had a pair of stints in the Bronx. After suiting up for 15 games two seasons ago, he returned to the organization in May when the Yanks acquired him in a minor trade with Boston. Allen rather quickly thereafter suffered a strained hip flexor that cost him more than a month and a half. He returned in late July and operated in a fourth/fifth outfield capacity until this week’s DFA.

The switch-hitting Allen tallied 28 plate appearances over 22 games this time around. He picked up four extra-base hits, including a homer, while striking out 10 times. The former fifth-round pick has now appeared in seven straight MLB campaigns, working mostly in a depth capacity. He’s a .231/.300/.340 hitter in 828 career plate appearances. Allen has an excellent .292/.403/.433 batting line through parts of five seasons at the Triple-A level.

A plus runner, Allen has 48 stolen bases in 57 attempts at the major league level. That’s an 84.2% success rate that’s nearly five percentage points better than this year’s league average (despite the fact that the bulk of Allen’s attempts came before the introduction of the more favorable rules for baserunners last offseason). That speed gives him the ability to cover all three outfield positions, though public defensive metrics suggest he’s better suited for work in the corners than center field.

Active rosters expand from 26 to 28 players at the start of September. Clubs are required to bring up at least one position player as part of that expansion, leading some to roster a pinch-running specialist for the stretch run. Allen could hold some appeal in such a role. If he finds another landing spot before end of day on August 31, he’d be eligible for postseason play with his new employer.

Yankees Announce Several Roster Moves

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The Yankees announced Tuesday that they’ve reinstated Carlos Rodon from the 15-day injured list, recalled infielder Oswald Peraza and outfield prospect Everson Pereira from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, placed outfielder Billy McKinney on the 10-day injured list due to back spasms, and designated outfielder Greg Allen for assignment. The recalls of Peraza and Pereira were reported on yesterday.

Allen, 30, will lose his spot on the active and 40-man rosters to clear the way for Pereira to enter the outfield mix in the Bronx. Allen is out of minor league options, so he can’t be sent down without first clearing waivers. He appeared in 22 games for the Yankees since returning to the organization but received just 28 plate appearances in that time (during which he went 5-for-23 with a pair of walks and 10 strikeouts). Allen has been used primarily as a pinch-runner and defensive replacement late in games.

That’s a role with which Allen has become increasingly familiar over the years. The fleet-footed switch-hitter hasn’t topped 134 plate appearances in a big league season since 2019 and has never tallied 300 trips to the plate in a given season. Allen is a career .231/.300/.340 hitter with 11 home runs and a 48-for-57 showing in stolen bases (84%) at the MLB level. He’s played all three outfield spots extensively and draws above-average marks at each, per Statcast. Defensive Runs Saved pegs him as a plus left fielder but a lesser option in center field.

Allen’s brand of speed and defense could prompt a clear postseason contender to consider him on waivers in the next few days. Rosters will expand from 26 to 28 players on Sept. 1, and as long as Allen is with a new organization at 11:59pm ET or earlier on Aug. 31, he’d be eligible for postseason play with that new club. It’s relatively common for teams to carry pinch-running and defensive specialists in such settings, so Allen isn’t a lock to make it through waivers. If he does go unclaimed, he’ll be able to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency and sign with any team.

Rodon will look to get into a good groove and carry some momentum into 2024. He signed a six-year, $162MM deal in the offseason but hasn’t yet been able to provide the Yanks with any return on that investment yet. He dealt with forearm and back issues early in the year and wasn’t able to make his team debut until July. He struggled through six starts, posting a 7.33 ERA, before landing back on the IL due to a hamstring strain.

The Yankee season has largely been sunk by injuries, including those of Rodon but also many others. They are now 60-64 and 9.5 games back of a playoff spot with just over a month left on the schedule. Their playoff odds are down to 0.4% at FanGraphs. But both the club and Rodon would surely be encouraged if he could post some good starts before the offseason gets going, carrying some good feelings into the winter.

Yankees Notes: Outfield, Judge, Loaisiga

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The Yankees shuffled their outfield mix today, optioning Oswaldo Cabrera and Franchy Cordero to the Triple-A while activating Greg Allen and Jake Bauers from the 10-day injured list. Bauers has been out since the beginning of the month with a rotator cuff contusion, while Allen has been on the shelf since early June with a strained right hip flexor.

The club is surely hoping the duo can help revitalize a beleaguered Yankees offense that has delivered a wRC+ of just 84 that ranks bottom four in the majors since star slugger Aaron Judge went on the injured list back in June. In 49 games this season, Bauers has slashed .224/.312/.470 with a solid wRC+ of 114 despite a strikeout rate nearing 30% thanks to a fantastic .246 ISO. Allen, meanwhile got into just 10 games with the Yankees before his trip to the IL. While he posted an excellent wRC+ of 138 during that limited time, a 41.2% strikeout rate and measly .162 xwOBA indicate that production is unsustainable. Nonetheless, Allen can nonetheless provide the Yankees with a switch-hitting outfielder with speed and quality defense off the bench.

The return of Bauers in particular could help provide the club’s lineup with a boost prior to the August 1 trade deadline, which is just over a week away. That being said, it goes without saying that the Yankees are going to need their $360MM man back to have any hope of turning around a season that’s seen them sink to fourth pace in the AL East despite a decent 52-47 record. To that end, the fans received good news today as Judge took live batting practice this morning from right-hander Jonathan Loaisiga, as relayed by MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch. Judge had previously been reported as “close” to a return, but today’s exercise represents an additional step forward as he works his way back from the torn toe ligament that has kept him out of the lineup for nearly two months.

Loaisiga, himself, has been out for nearly three months since undergoing elbow surgery to remove a bone spur back in May. That he’s progressed to the point of facing live hitting represents a step forward in the rehab process for him, as well. The next step for Loaisiga appears to be a rehab assignment, which The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner relays could begin next weekend, per manager Aaron Boone. Despite the Yankees sporting an MLB-best bullpen ERA of 3.21 this season, a healthy and effective return from Loasigia, who sports a 3.04 ERA and 3.31 FIP in 145 innings of work since the beginning of the 2020 campaign, could provide a major boost to the Yankees down the stretch.

Yankees’ Greg Allen To Miss Six To Eight Weeks With Hip Flexor Strain

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The Yankees placed Greg Allen on the 10-day injured list over the weekend after the outfielder strained his right hip flexor. It’s apparently a serious issue, as manager Aaron Boone told reporters this afternoon the club expected Allen to miss six to eight weeks (via Chris Kirschner of the Athletic).

It’s a tough break for the switch-hitting outfielder. Allen was looking to establish himself in a New York outfield that was already without Harrison Bader and since lost Aaron Judge to injury. He’d picked up a homer and a triple within his first 17 plate appearances since being acquired from the Red Sox in a minor trade last month. Allen has had a pair of brief stints with the Yankees over the past three years and performed well in each, though his overall MLB track record is modest.

In 292 career games, he’s a .231/.299/.340 hitter. Allen had some opportunities to carve out a role in Cleveland early in his career. His recent playing time has been more sporadic. He’s generally struggled offensively and is now on a second notable injury in as many seasons. He lost a good chunk of last year with a hamstring injury sustained while playing for the Pirates.

While the injuries to Judge and Bader are obviously far more significant problems, losing Allen for an extended stretch deals another hit to a Yankee outfield with few established players. New York has a group of Willie Calhoun, Jake Bauers, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Oswaldo Cabrera and Billy McKinney to take the reps on the grass. New York is using Giancarlo Stanton exclusively at designated hitter for now after an injured list stint due to a hamstring strain.

Bauers has hit well in limited playing time. Calhoun has been a roughly league average hitter. Kiner-Falefa and Cabrera have struggled, while McKinney just came up from the minors this week. Even once Judge and Bader come back, the Yankees figure to look for ways to add to the outfield via trade this summer.

Yankees Place Ryan Weber, Greg Allen On Injured List

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The Yankees placed two players on the injured list, with right-hander Ryan Weber heading to the 15-day IL due to a right forearm strain, and outfielder Greg Allen going to the 10-day IL due to a right hip flexor strain.  Utility man Oswaldo Cabrera and left-hander Nick Ramirez were called up from Triple-A to fill the spots on the active roster.

Weber told the New York Post’s Greg Joyce that he other reporters that he felt soreness last night during his two innings of work in the Yankees’ 8-4 loss to the Dodgers.  An MRI will reveal what exactly could be wrong with Weber’s forearm and elbow area, and he and the Yankees can only hope that the worst-case scenario of a Tommy John surgery isn’t the outcome.

Now in his ninth MLB season, Weber has spent the last two seasons in the Bronx on minor league deals.  The 2022 season saw Weber constantly sent up and down to Triple-A in a flurry of DFAs and outrights, though 2023 has at least seen a bit more stability, as the Yankees didn’t select him to the big league roster until May 11, and Weber has remained on the 26-man until today.

Though Weber has tossed only 25 MLB innings between all of his moves on and off the roster, he has performed well when wearing the pinstripes, delivering a 2.16 ERA over those 25 relief frames.  Never a big strikeout pitcher, Weber has only a 10.3% K% as a Yankee, but also a 51.8% grounder rate and a tiny 2.1% walk rate.  While a small sample size, it does represent a nice big step up from Weber’s 5.28 ERA over 167 innings in his first seven seasons, and why Weber has continued to get looks from the Yankees despite the lack of missed bats.

Allen previously played for the Yankees in 2021, and he only made his return two weeks ago after a trade from the Red Sox.  Allen’s encore in the Bronx has thus far seen him hit .214/.313/.571 over 17 plate appearances, as his three hits have included a home run and a triple.

It’s a nice start for a player acquired as outfield depth, but with Allen now on the IL, the Yankees will again turn to Cabrera to help out in their troubled left field position.  While Aaron Judge is having his typically excellent season and Harrison Bader has been very good when healthy, left field has been a revolving door for New York, with seven different players already seeing at least some time in left this season.  With Bader now on the injured list due to a hamstring strain, the Yankees’ outfield depth is further tested.

Yankees Acquire Greg Allen From Red Sox

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8:28pm: New York officially announced the acquisition of Allen in exchange for minor league right-hander Diego Hernandez and cash. Hernandez, an 18-year-old native of Mexico, signed with New York as an undrafted free agent last year. He spent 2022 in the Dominican Summer League, starting five of 12 games.

7:17pm: The Yankees are acquiring outfielder Greg Allen from the Red Sox, reports Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe (Twitter link). Allen had been in the Boston organization on a minor league contract. Abraham adds the trade was due to an upward mobility clause in Allen’s deal which required the Red Sox to either promote him or trade him if another club offered an immediate big league roster spot.

While neither team has yet announced the trade, that suggests Allen is likely to step onto New York’s MLB roster in the next couple days. The Yankees will have to create a spot on the 40-man roster, though that can be done by transferring Carlos Rodón to the 60-day injured list. IL transfers are backdated to the time of the original placement (in Rodón’s case, Opening Day) and there’s no chance he’ll be ready for MLB action by next week.

Once official, it’ll be Allen’s second stint as a Yankee. The switch-hitting outfielder appeared in 15 games for New York two years ago. He played well, hitting .270/.417/.432 over 48 trips to the plate. Allen’s modest pre-2021 track record led the Yankees to place him on waivers despite that small-sample production. The Pirates claimed him and kept him on the roster for the majority of last season, but he slumped to a .186/.260/.271 line with a 31.3% strikeout rate in 134 trips to the plate. That brought his career slash to .232/.299/.336 in exactly 800 plate appearances over four teams.

Pittsburgh ran Allen through waivers at the end of the year. He caught on with the Red Sox on an offseason minor league pact and has impressed over 37 games for their Triple-A affiliate in Worcester. He’s hitting .250/.407/.388 in 151 trips to the plate. Allen has walked at a robust 13.9% clip and kept his strikeouts to a far more manageable 19.2% rate than he had in the majors last season. He’s also gone a staggering 23-23 in stolen base attempts. No other minor league player has run more often without yet being thrown out.

Allen has always had plus speed and strong basestealing instincts. He’s 45-53 in that regard in his major league career, an excellent 84.9% success rate. The introduction of more favorable rules for baserunners (larger bases, a pitch clock and pickoff limitations) should only make things easier for him in that regard. Allen’s athleticism hasn’t translated into universally strong defensive grades, however. Public metrics have pegged him as an above-average corner outfielder but given him mixed reviews over his 966 major league innings in center field.

The 30-year-old is out of minor league option years. Assuming the Yankees add him to the MLB roster, they’ll have to keep him in the majors or designate him for assignment. He’ll add another veteran depth outfielder behind Aaron Judge and Harrison Bader. New York has tried a number of different players in left field, giving the bulk of that time to Oswaldo Cabrera and Aaron Hicks. None of Cabrera, Hicks, Willie Calhoun nor Isiah Kiner-Falefa has contributed much offensively. Cabrera is the only member of that group who still has remaining minor league options.

Red Sox Notes: Alfaro, Goodrum, Tapia, Allen

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Catcher Jorge Alfaro is in camp with the Red Sox on a minor league deal and it was reported about three weeks ago that he has an upward mobility clause in his contract. Today, Chris Cotillo of MassLive has the details on how that will play out.

If Alfaro is not added to the club’s 40-man roster today, he can request that the Sox email the other 29 clubs, which they must do within 24 hours. Those other clubs will then have 24 hours to express their interest in giving Alfaro a spot on their own respective rosters. If one or multiple clubs are willing to give Alfaro a spot, Boston has 72 hours to decide whether or not to add Alfaro to their roster or let him join one of the other interested teams. If more than one team is interested, the Sox can choose which one he goes to.

The Red Sox only have two catchers on their 40-man roster at the moment, who are Reese McGuire and Connor Wong. The latter of those two was dealing with a hamstring strain earlier in spring, which seemed to open the door for Alfaro to get a job. However, Wong now seems healthy and back in the mix for a spot on the Opening Day roster. The Sox would surely love to keep Alfaro around as depth in the event another injury pops up, but it will depend on his level of interest from other clubs around the league.

Chris Hatfield of SoxProspects.com reports that utility player Niko Goodrum also has an upward mobility clause that gets going today, though it’s not known if it will take the exact same shape as Alfaro’s. The 31-year-old signed a minor league deal with the Red Sox on the heels of a rough season with the Astros. He hit .116/.156/.163 last year while striking out in 51.1% of his 45 plate appearances. He was optioned by the Astros but an injury limited him to just 20 minor league games for the year. He was released by Houston and the Red Sox took a flier on him but he’s hitting just .178/.275/.178 in spring so far. He can play all over the diamond but likely has steep odds of making the team, as he’s competing against guys who already have roster spots. Rob Refsnyder and Jarren Duran are candidates for a backup outfield job, while Bobby Dalbec and Yu Chang are potential bench infielders.

Another option for a job with the Red Sox is outfielder Raimel Tapia, who’s also in camp on a minor league deal. Hatfield adds that Tapia can opt-out of his deal on Monday if not added to the roster. Tapia was with the Blue Jays last year and hit .265/.292/.380 for a wRC+ of 90. With the Sox moving Enrique Hernández to cover shortstop while Trevor Story is injured, they have some uncertainty in center field. Adam Duvall is set to be the regular option there, though the 34-year-old has never seen extended time there. Tapia has primarily been a left fielder in his career, though he did play center in 38 games last year and the Sox are reportedly open to using him there as well. Perhaps that ability to play center gives him an edge in the battle for bench jobs in Boston, though he’s not on the 40-man right now. The club will evidently have to make a decision in the next couple of days or they could watch him walk away from his contract. He’s having a nice spring, hitting .325/.372/.600 thus far.

The Sox currently have a full 40-man roster and would have to open up some spots if they want to add anyone from this group. Should any of this group not make the club and then end up sticking around, they will have more options to opt out in the future. Per Hatfield, Goodrum can opt out on May 1 and July 1, Alfaro on June 1 and July 1 and Tapia on July 1. Additionally, outfielder Greg Allen has an upward mobility clause on May 15 and June 15.

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