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Pirates Place Endy Rodriguez On 10-Day IL, Designate Joey Wentz

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The Pirates announced four roster moves, including the news that catcher/infielder Endy Rodriguez has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to right elbow inflammation.  Left-hander Joey Wentz was also designated for assignment.  In the corresponding roster moves, the Bucs selected the contract of catcher Brett Sullivan, and called up right-hander Isaac Mattson from Triple-A Indianapolis.  (Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette was among the beat writers who noted earlier today that Sullivan and Mattson had locker space in the Pirates’ clubhouse while Wentz’s locker was gone, and manager Don Kelly told Hiles and other media and Rodriguez was going to the IL.)

Rodriguez has been limited to 18 games and 52 plate appearances in what has been another injury-plagued season for the former top prospect.  A lacerated finger sidelined Rodriguez for six weeks, and he played in just one inning of his third game back from the IL before elbow discomfort forced him out of yesterday’s 5-4 Pirates win over the Phillies.

The exact nature of the elbow issue isn’t known, but it’s a notable red flag given that Rodriguez missed the entire 2024 season due to UCL surgery.  The best-case scenario is that Rodriguez is just feeling some residual soreness perhaps more related to this year’s IL stint than anything lingering from his UCL procedure, but for now, Rodriguez will face additional time on the sidelines.  With only a .173/.246/.250 slash line through his first 57 plate appearances, Rodriguez could also potentially use this absence as a reset on his season.

Rodriguez has split time between first base and catcher when he has been able to play.  For the latter position, since Joey Bart is also on the seven-day concussion IL, Sullivan will now head to the majors to join Henry Davis as Pittsburgh’s catching combo.  Sullivan was acquired in a trade with the Padres in mid-April soon after Rodriguez was placed on the IL with his finger injury, as the Pirates wanted to add to their depth behind the plate.

Sullivan has hit .206/.243/.299 over 103 PA at the big league level (all with San Diego in 2023-24).  Over 11 pro seasons, the 31-year-old has posted some good numbers in the minors, including a .268/.338/.443 slash line and 43 home runs over 1670 Triple-A plate appearances.  Sullivan has been considered a middling defensive catcher, which could explain why he hasn’t received much big league time even while spending most of his career with the Rays and Padres — two clubs that have their share of needs at catcher in recent years.

Wentz is out of minor league options, so the Pirates had to designate the southpaw and expose him to waivers before trying to move him off the 40-man roster.  Pittsburgh acquired Wentz on a waiver claim from the Tigers last September, and he has been decent if unremarkable over 38 innings of bullpen work.  Twenty-six of those innings came this season, with Wentz posting a 4.15 ERA, 19.1% strikeout rate, and 9.6% walk rate.  As per usual, Wentz has performed better against left-handed batters than right-handed batters over his career, though his splits this year (.661 OPS against lefties, .716 OPS against righties) doesn’t reveal a huge gap.

While his 2025 work remains a smaller sample size, it does represent a big step up from the 6.03 ERA Wentz posted in 173 innings with Detroit and Pittsburgh in 2023-24.  That could be enough for a southpaw-needy team to put in a claim on Wentz’s services, but if he clears waivers, he doesn’t have a prior outright on his resume so he’d have to accept an outright assignment to Indianapolis.

Pirates Promote Braxton Ashcraft

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The Pirates have called right-handed pitching prospect Braxton Ashcraft up to the majors and sent right-hander Isaac Mattson to Triple-A, manager Don Kelly told reporters (including MLB.com’s Alex Stumpf).  No further transaction was required since Ashcraft has been on the Bucs’ 40-man roster since November 2023.  Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported yesterday that Ashcraft would be traveling with the Pirates on their current road trip to Arizona, though it wasn’t clear if Ashcraft would be officially activated or if he would just be part of the team’s taxi squad.

As it turns out, Ashcraft will indeed get his first taste of Major League action, and he’ll also be operating in a new role.  Ashcraft has started 69 of his 71 career games in the minors, but Kelly said that Ashcraft will for now work as a long reliever or bulk pitcher on Pittsburgh’s staff.  This would seem to indicate that Mike Burrows will remain as the Pirates’ fifth starter behind the stable top four of Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller, Andrew Heaney, and Bailey Falter.  Burrows was only just called up within the last week to replace Carmen Mlodzinski, who struggled over nine starts.

Pittsburgh fans may continue to raise eyebrows over the fact that Bubba Chandler has yet to be recalled for his MLB debut, as the Bucs have thus far turned to Burrows (whose lone career big league game came in 2024), plus two other pitchers (Tom Harrington and now Ashcraft) who hadn’t yet appeared in the Show.  While Chandler is one of the sport’s best overall prospects, the pitching-rich Pirates seem more willing for now to give looks to some of their other well-regarded young arms.

Ashcraft has been waiting a while for the call to the majors, as he was a second-round pick for the Pirates back in the 2018 draft.  Multiple injuries (including a Tommy John surgery in 2021) slowed his progress, and Ashcraft has logged only 283 1/3 innings over parts of six pro seasons.  The Bucs still felt confident enough in his potential to add Ashcraft to their 40-man roster in advance of the 2023 Rule 5 Draft, and he went on to post good numbers across two levels in 2024, even with forearm inflammation again limiting his time on the mound.

Over 48 1/3 innings at Triple-A this season, Ashcraft has a 5.03 ERA, though a .361 BABIP has contributed to that inflated number.  Ashcraft’s 51.1% grounder rate, 25.6% strikeout rate, and 8.7% walk rate paint a better picture of his performance, even if his control has dipped a bit in comparison to his last couple of post-surgery seasons.

Baseball America ranks the righty as the fourth-best minor leaguer in the Pirates’ farm system, while MLB Pipeline has him seventh on their Bucs top 30 list.  Both scouting reports wonder if Ashcraft may be best suited to relief pitching, given both his injury history his lack of a strong or consistent changeup.  Ashcraft has a plus fastball in the 95-98mph range, and his slider and curveball are also intriguing enough to make the right-hander a potential three-pitch threat.

Since Pittsburgh’s rotation is fairly full at the moment and Chandler’s debut is looming, Ashcraft’s bullpen role will allow him to get his foot in the door at the MLB level, and perhaps also hint at his eventual future.  Obviously the Pirates will still give Ashcraft some looks as a starter down the road before committing one way or the other to his future deployment, and for now, Ashcraft will get the opportunity to help out the Pirates’ inconsistent pen.

Pirates Select Isaac Mattson

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The Pirates announced today that they have selected the contract of right-hander Isaac Mattson. He’ll take the active roster spot of fellow righty Colin Holderman, who lands on the 15-day injured list due to right thumb inflammation. To open a 40-man spot for Mattson, infielder Nick Gonzales was transferred to the 60-day injured list. Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette relayed the Mattson and Holderman moves prior to the official announcement (link one, two and three).

It’s been an unfortunate season for Holderman so far, who already spent time on the IL due to a right knee sprain in April. He has allowed 15 earned runs in 15 innings, giving him a flat 9.00 earned run average. He has 11 strikeouts and walks apiece, giving him a 14.9% clip in both of those categories, both of those being worse than average.

Perhaps the injuries provide an explanation for his struggles, as he was far better in previous seasons. Over the 2023 and 2024 campaigns, he had a 3.52 ERA in 107 1/3 innings, pairing a 24.6% strikeout rate with a 9.7% walk rate.

Ideally, a bit of a rest period will get him healthy and back on track. It’s turning into a lost season for the Bucs, as their 15-33 record has them near the National League basement, with only the Rockies beneath them. Holderman is under club control through 2028, so it would make sense to prioritize his long-term health as opposed to benefitting the team in the short term.

Taking his place is Mattson, who is having a strong 2025 so far. The 29-year-old signed a minor league deal with the Bucs in December and has been with Triple-A Indianapolis all year so far. He has logged 18 innings for that club with a 2.50 ERA, 30.6% strikeout rate and 6.9% walk rate.

Those are encouraging numbers, though in a small sample. From 2021 to 2024, Mattson tossed 156 1/3 innings on the farm with a 3.91 ERA and 28.2% strikeout rate but a 13.7% walk rate. So far this year, he has basically cut that walk rate in half. If he can keep that up, perhaps he’ll get some runway to add to his major league track record, which currently consists of a 5.59 ERA in 9 2/3 innings. However, he does have options, so it’s possible the Bucs shuttle him back to Indianapolis when they need a fresh arm.

As for Gonzales, he landed on the 10-day injured list on March 28th due to a non-displaced fracture in his left ankle. His 60-day count is retroactive to that initial IL placement, so he’ll be eligible to be reinstated about a week from today. He started a rehab assignment on Saturday but it seems the Bucs will let him get a few more minor league contests under his belt, which is understandable since he’s been out of action for close to two months.

Photo courtesy of Charles LeClaire, Imagn Images

Pirates Re-Sign Isaac Mattson To Minor League Deal

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The Pirates have signed right-hander Isaac Mattson to a minor league deal, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com and relayed by the player himself on his Instagram page. He has been assigned to Triple-A Indianapolis for now but will presumably receive an invite to big league spring training.

Mattson, 29, signed a minor league deal with the Bucs for the 2024 season as well. He was selected to the roster in September and was able to throw 5 1/3 innings over three appearances, allowing three earned runs. He also got into four games with the Orioles in 2021, giving him a 5.59 ERA in seven major league games at this point in his career. He was outrighted off the roster at the start of the offseason.

That’s obviously not much of a sample size to make conclusions from, but the Bucs just got an up-close look at Mattson in Triple-A for most of the 2024 season. He tossed 60 innings over 29 appearances at that level with a 3.15 ERA. His 12.9% walk rate there was on the high side but his 29.8% strikeout rate was quite strong. That’s generally been the case for him at the upper levels of the minors. He has thrown 138 1/3 minor league innings over the past four years with a 4.10 ERA, 27.9% strikeout rate and 14.5% walk rate.

There’s no harm in a minor league deal, so the Bucs will bring him back in a non-roster capacity. If he can take a step forward in terms of control, that would obviously improve his utility. If he earns his way back onto the roster, he is still has two option years and has very little service time, meaning he can potentially be cheaply retained in a depth role for quite some time.

Pirates Decline Option On Marco Gonzales

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The Pirates declined their option on starter Marco Gonzales. There’s no buyout and it would have cost $15MM to keep him around. He’ll miss most or all of next season after undergoing flexor surgery in his throwing elbow. The Bucs also outrighted Ben Heller, Isaac Mattson and Daulton Jefferies off the 40-man roster.

Pittsburgh acquired Gonzales from the Braves in a move that amounted to a small salary dump for Atlanta. The southpaw made three decent starts to begin the year before it was tanked by injury. A forearm strain shelved him between mid-April and the All-Star Break. Gonzales only made four starts to close the month before going back on the injured list — this time with the injury that required surgery.

Gonzales closed the season with a 4.54 earned run average through 33 2/3 innings. He was limited to 10 starts and 50 innings by a forearm strain in 2023 as well. He’s probably looking at minor league offers this winter. The hope is that he’ll be able to recapture the solid back-of-the-rotation form he showed with the Mariners between 2018-22.

Heller, Mattson and Jefferies each made a handful of appearances for the Bucs this year. They all worked in low-leverage relief. None of them found much success in small samples. All three pitchers can elect free agency.

Pirates Outright Jake Woodford

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Sept. 23: Woodford passed through waivers unclaimed and has been assigned outright to Triple-A Indianapolis, per the transaction log at MLB.com.

Sept. 19: The Pirates announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Isaac Mattson. Fellow righty Jake Woodford has been designated for assignment as the corresponding move. The 40-man roster remains full.

Woodford was just selected to the roster yesterday and it seems the plan was simply for him to make a spot start as the club plays out the string on the 2024 season. He took the ball against his former club the Cardinals yesterday, tossing 4 2/3 innings. He struck out five hitters and didn’t issue a walk, but he allowed four earned runs on eight hits, including a home run.

The righty was also on Pittsburgh’s roster earlier in the year but without much success. He now has a 7.97 earned run average through 35 innings on the year. That’s surely a bit misleading as his 44.6% strand rate is well below league average, but he’s also not doing himself favors with his 15.6% strikeout rate and 35.2% ground ball rate.

He’s been able to work around the lack of strikeouts in the past. He tossed 116 innings as a swingman for the Cards over 2021 and 2022, posting a 3.26 ERA. He only punched out 15.4% of opponents but also kept the ball on the ground 45.8% of the time. His ERA jumped to 6.23 last year due to a home run spike, which led the Cards to non-tender him.

The Bucs will put him on waivers in the coming days, as they did in late August. At that time, he cleared waivers, elected free agency and then re-signed on a fresh minor league deal. With so little of the 2024 season remaining, it’s possible he goes unclaimed and goes into offseason mode slightly ahead of schedule.

Mattson, 29, will take Woodford’s place and return to the big leagues for the first time since 2021. He made four appearances for the Orioles that year, allowing three earned runs in 4 1/3 innings, which is the total of his major league experience thus far.

He signed a minor league deal with the Pirates coming into 2024 and has had a solid year on the farm. He has thrown 71 innings between Double-A and Triple-A with a 3.17 ERA and 29.8% strikeout rate, though the 12.7% walk rate is on the high side.

He’ll give the Bucs a fresh arm for the bullpen as they finish out the season. He has a couple of options remaining and just a few days of service time, so he can theoretically be retained well into the future, though he would have to hold onto his roster spot throughout the club’s offseason transactions.

Twins Sign Isaac Mattson To Minors Contract

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The Twins signed right-hander Isaac Mattson to a minor league deal, as initially reported by Tom Reisenweber of the Erie Times-News (Twitter link).  Mattson has been assigned to the Twins’ Double-A affiliate in Wichita.

Making his return to affiliated baseball for the first time since last July, Mattson spent part of last season pitching in the independent Frontier League, and has spent the 2023 season pitching in the independent Atlantic League.  Over 19 relief innings with the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs this year, Mattson looked pretty sharp, posting a 3.32 ERA and 32.43% strikeout rate.  His 10.81% walk rate is on the high side, but it’s still a big improvement from the extreme control problems Mattson had with the Orioles’ Triple-A affiliate in 2022.

Mattson was originally a 19th-round pick for the Angels in the 2017 draft, and he was dealt to the Orioles in December 2019 as part of the four-player trade package that brought Dylan Bundy to Anaheim.  Mattson’s time with the O’s included his first stint in the majors, which consisted of 4 1/3 innings over four appearances during the 2021 season.  However, Baltimore outrighted him off its 40-man roster in April 2022, and then released him in July after his struggles with Triple-A Norfolk.

The 27-year-old Mattson has pretty consistently posted high strikeout totals throughout his minor league career, even prior to his full-time move to relief pitching in 2019.  Despite lacking the velocity traditionally associated with a high-strikeout bullpen arm, Mattson is an interesting depth arm for the Twins to explore, particularly at the no-risk cost of a minor league contract.

Orioles Outright Isaac Mattson

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The Orioles announced this afternoon that reliever Isaac Mattson has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Norfolk. The move clears a spot on the Baltimore 40-man roster, which now sits at 39.

Baltimore added Mattson to the roster last offseason to keep him from being selected in the Rule 5 draft. The O’s had previously acquired the University of Pittsburgh product from the Angels as part of the Dylan Bundy trade in December 2019. Mattson made his first four big league appearances last season, allowing three runs in 4 1/3 innings with three strikeouts and five walks.

It was a rough season with Norfolk, where the righty spent the majority of the year. He tossed 17 1/3 innings in 18 outings, pitching to a 6.23 ERA. The 26-year-old had a solid 29.6% strikeout percentage and 7.4% walk rate, but he was plagued by a .447 opponents batting average on balls in play.

Mattson has never before been outrighted and doesn’t have the requisite service time to refuse the assignment. He’ll remain in Norfolk — where he’d already been after the O’s optioned him to start the year — and try to pitch his way back onto the 40-man roster.

Padres Claim Shaun Anderson Off Waivers From Orioles

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The Padres claimed right-hander Shaun Anderson off waivers from the Orioles today, both teams announced. The Padres optioned the right-hander to Triple-A El Paso.

Anderson’s time with the Orioles was brief, as he made just seven appearances totalling 10 innings after being claimed off waivers from the Twins. Anderson surrendered 10 earned runs on 17 hits and five walks while striking out seven. He’ll provide depth for the Padres, whose pitching staff has struggled to stay healthy this season.

As for the Orioles, they made a number of their own roster moves today, reinstating Ryan Hartman from the injured list, recalling Isaac Mattson, and designating Conner Greene for assignment. Greene, 26, made just three appearances for the O’s, yielding six earned runs in 3 2/3 innings.

Orioles Make Five Roster Moves

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The Orioles announced a series of roster moves prior to tonight’s game with the Astros, including the news that right-hander Travis Lakins Sr. is heading to the 10-day injured list due to right elbow pain.  Additionally, infielder Stevie Wilkerson has been designated for assignment and left-handed Alexander Wells was optioned to Triple-A.  Filling the spots on the active roster will be right-handers Isaac Mattson and Spenser Watkins — Mattson was called up from Triple-A, while Watkins’ contract was selected.  USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported earlier today that Watkins would be added to Baltimore’s 26-man roster.

Lakins was making a rare appearance as a starting pitcher last night when his elbow issue forced him out of the game ( a 13-3 Orioles victory over the Astros) after 1 2/3 innings.  O’s manager Brandon Hyde specified to The Baltimore Sun’s Jon Meoli and other reporters that Lakins suffered an elbow strain, and the righty will undergo further evaluation.  This isn’t Lakins’ first time dealing with elbow problems, as inflammation cut short his 2016 season while pitching in the Red Sox minor league system.

Baltimore claimed Lakins off waivers from the Cubs in the 2019-20 offseason, and the right-hander had a solid 2.81 ERA over 25 2/3 relief innings for the Orioles last year.  Things haven’t gone as smoothly this season, however, as Lakins has a 5.79 ERA and 13.8% walk rate over 28 innings of work in 2021.

With the O’s still in need of some rotation help while John Means is on the IL, it could open the door for Watkins to get a look in the starting five as he gets his first taste of the big leagues.  A 30th-round pick for the Tigers in 2014, Watkins pitched well at the lower levels of Detroit’s farm system but had some struggles at Double-A and Triple-A.  This almost led him to walk away from the game, as Nightengale notes that Watkins had a high school coaching job lined up before he signed a minor league deal with the Orioles this winter.

Wilkerson was another offseason minors signing for the O’s, and the utilityman appeared in 30 games for the team, hitting only .167/.211/.208 over 76 plate appearances.  Wilkerson didn’t see any big league action in 2020, and he has a career .210/.268/.340 slash line in 486 PA over parts of three seasons with Baltimore.

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