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Jacob Nottingham

Mariners Claim Jacob Nottingham, Designate Jose Marmolejos

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The Mariners announced a series of roster moves this afternoon. Seattle claimed catcher Jacob Nottingham off waivers from the Brewers and selected the contract of fellow backstop José Godoy. To create 40-man roster space, first baseman/corner outfielder José Marmolejos and reliever Brady Lail have been designated for assignment. Incumbent backup catcher Luis Torrens was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma.

It’s familiar territory for Nottingham. He played for Milwaukee from 2018-21, but the Brewers designated him for assignment last month. Seattle claimed Nottingham off waivers but designated him for assignment themselves just four days later without giving him an opportunity to get into a game. In the interim, the Brewers lost starting catcher Omar Narváez to injury, so Milwaukee quickly acquired Nottingham back for cash considerations. Now, with Narváez healthy, Nottingham found himself squeezed off the roster yet again.

Having acquired Nottingham twice in less than a month, the Seattle front office clearly has some affinity for the 26-year-old. The right-handed hitter was a decently-regarded prospect on the strength of his raw power, and he’s shown flashes of it over his first 99 MLB plate appearances, hitting .205/.293/.477 with seven homers. However, he comes with some question marks about his receiving aptitude and has struck out quite a bit at nearly every level of his pro career, including at a 38.4% clip in his brief major league time.

Nottingham is out of minor league option years, which has surely driven his recent roster shuffle. The Mariners must keep him on the MLB roster this time around or again risk losing him to another club. Optioning Torrens could suggest Seattle’s prepared to give Nottingham some run.

Acquired from the Padres as part of last summer’s Austin Nola trade, Torrens showed some offensive promise down the stretch last season. He’s gotten off to a terrible start to 2021, though, hitting .178/.219/.300 over 96 plate appearances. Torrens has also had a rough go defensively. He’s thrown out just two of 21 attempted base stealers, rated as a below-average pitch framer (per Statcast) and been behind the plate for a lofty 14 wild pitches in just 190 2/3 innings (although, to his credit, he hasn’t been charged with a passed ball). The Mariners surely hope Torrens can regain his footing on both sides of the ball in Tacoma.

Godoy began his pro career with the Cardinals organization. He spent the 2012-20 seasons in the St. Louis system, topping out at Triple-A. Godoy was at the Cards alternate training site last summer and elected minor league free agency at the end of the year. He signed a minors pact with Seattle over the winter and earned his first big league promotion with a strong start for Tacoma. All told, the 26-year-old carries a .315/.370/.481 line in 119 career Triple-A plate appearances and has hit .255/.339/.391 in parts of three seasons at Double-A.

Like Godoy, Marmolejos joined the Mariners via minor league free agency, doing so during the 2019-20 offseason. He’s picked up 209 MLB plate appearances over the past two seasons, although he didn’t do much at the plate. Marmolejos has hit just .177/.263/.355 and struck out in an alarming 30.6% of his plate appearances. Lail signed a minors pact over the winter and was selected to the MLB roster three days ago. He’s since pitched a pair of innings out of the bullpen, allowing three runs on four hits.

Brewers Acquire Jacob Nottingham For Cash Considerations

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Let the circle be complete. The Brewers have acquired catcher Jacob Notthingham from the Mariners for cash considerations, per the Mariners (via Twitter). The Brewers designated Notthingham for assignment this past Wednesday, at which point the Mariners claimed him off waivers. But with Omar Narvaez headed to the injured list, the Brewers once again found themselves in need of a catcher. Nottingham did not appear in a game for the Mariners.

Nottingham has been placed on the Brewers’ active roster. He’ll make his season debut today against the Dodgers. Mario Feliciano, meanwhile, has been optioned back to Triple-A after little more than a day on the active roster, per Will Sammon of the Athletic (via Twitter). Feliciano walked and scored a run in his debut yesterday.

As for the Mariners, they pick up a little bit of cash for the honor of holding Nottingham’s rights for a couple of days. Seattle DFA’ed Nottingham themselves yesterday, so there’s little reason not to send Nottingham back to Milwaukee.

Mariners Designate Jacob Nottingham

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The Mariners have designated catcher Jacob Nottingham for assignment, the team announced.  Right-hander Wyatt Mills was called up from the alternate training site in a corresponding move.

It’s the second DFA in a little over a week for Nottingham, who was only just claimed by Seattle off the Brewers’ roster on April 28.  Nottingham might now be moving on without ever officially appearing in a Mariners uniform if another team makes a claim.  (Given how Milwaukee just lost starting catcher Omar Narvaez to the injured list, one wonders if the Brewers could reunite with their former backstop.)  Nottingham is out of minor league options, which is why neither the Mariners or Brewers could simply stash him in the minors.

The 26-year-old Nottingham has a .203/.306/.432 slash line over 85 career plate appearances in the majors, appearing in 30 games total with Milwaukee from 2018-20.  A sixth-round pick for the Astros in the 2013 draft, Nottingham played in the minors with the Astros and Athletics before going to the Brewers as part of the Khris Davis trade in February 2016.

Mills was a third-round pick for Seattle in the 2017 draft, and is a local product who hails from Spokane and attended Gonzaga.  MLB Pipeline ranks him as the 22nd-best prospect in the Mariners’ farm system, with Mills showing some extra intrigue after displaying a velocity bump (up to 97mph) in Arizona Fall League play.  Mills has “primarily relied on a fastball-slider combination to miss bats and generate a ton of groundouts,” according to Pipeline, with “high spin rates” on both pitches.  Mills has a 3.57 ERA over 126 minor league innings, all as a relief pitcher.

Mariners Claim Jacob Nottingham, Designate Brandon Brennan

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The Mariners announced that they have claimed catcher Jacob Nottingham off waivers from the Brewers. To make room for Nottingham, the Mariners designated right-hander Brandon Brennan for assignment.

Nottingham, whom the Brewers designated last week, will now join his fourth major league organization. He entered the pro ranks as a fourth-round pick of the Astros in 2013 and has also spent time with the Athletics. The 26-year-old was a prospect of some note in his younger days, but he hasn’t gotten an extended look in the bigs. Nottingham has so far amassed 85 plate appearances, all from 2018-20, and batted a playable .203/.306/.432 with five home runs. He’s out of minor league options, so he’ll have to stick on a Seattle roster that has received bottom-of-the-barrel production from catchers Luis Torrens and Tom Murphy in 2021.

The soon-to-be 30-year-old Brennan became a Mariner in December 2018 when they took him from the Rockies in the Rule 5 Draft. Brennan appeared with the Mariners from 2019-20, during which he dealt with oblique and shoulder issues and combined for 54 2/3 innings of 4.45 ERA/4.52 SIERA pitching with a 23.6 percent strikeout rate against a 12.7 percent walk rate. He still has three minor league options left.

Brewers Designate Jacob Nottingham For Assignment

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The Brewers announced Thursday that they’ve reinstated catcher Jacob Nottingham from the 10-day injured list and designated him for assignment. He’s been on the IL all season to this point following offseason thumb surgery.

Nottingham, 26, was a sixth-round pick by the Astros back in 2013 but has since been traded to the A’s (for Scott Kazmir) and then to Milwaukee (for Khris Davis). He’s appeared in parts of the past three seasons, hitting .203/.306/.432 in 85 trips to the plate. He’s also punched out in 35.6 percent of those plate appearances against a strong 10.6 percent walk rate.

At the time of both trades, Nottingham was a prospect of some note, but he’s never really tapped into enough of his above-average raw power. Scouting reports have long credited him with a strong arm to go along with that power, but they’ve also panned his overall defensive profile behind the dish.

Nottingham is out of minor league options, so Milwaukee either had to put him on the big league roster or designate him for assignment. With Omar Narvaez and Manny Pina both healthy — and Narvaez hitting at a ridiculous .396/.455/.604 pace — the Brewers unsurprisingly opted for the latter. They’ll now have a week to trade Nottingham or attempt to pass him through outright waivers. The latter route would allow them to assign him outright to their alternate site, keeping him in the organization while no longer occupying a 40-man roster spot.

Health Notes: Yordan, E-Rod, Bailey, Nottingham, Parra

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After he missed all but two games last season, the Astros are set to welcome back slugger Yordan Alvarez this year. It appears the 2019 AL Rookie of the Year will be limited solely to designated hitter, though, as manager Dusty Baker said Friday (via Brian McTaggart of MLB.com) that it’s “very unlikely” he’ll play any outfield in 2021. Alvarez underwent surgery on both knees, and Baker commented, “It’s shown in the past that whenever [Alvarez] plays in the outfield, he’s hurting for two or three days, you know what I mean?” If Alvarez doesn’t see any action in the grass, it’ll leave left field to Michael Brantley, who battled his own injury troubles a year ago and spent most of his season at DH.

  • Red Sox left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez will return to the mound Saturday when he throws two innings in a simulated game, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com relays. That’s welcome news after Rodriguez missed all of last year because of myocarditis and COVID-19. Rodriguez was one of Boston’s top pitchers during the previous couple seasons, and as a pending free agent, the 27-year-old is heading into a pivotal campaign.
  • Reds right-hander Brandon Bailey announced on Twitter that he underwent Tommy John surgery on Friday. It was the second TJ procedure for the 26-year-old Bailey, whom the Reds acquired from the Astros in November. The 26-year-old Bailey made his major league debut last season in Houston with 7 1/3 innings of two-run ball, six hits allowed, and four walks against three strikeouts. During his most recent minor league action in 2019, Bailey recorded a 3.30 ERA with more than a strikeout per inning across 92 2/3 Double-A frames.
  • Brewers catcher Jacob Nottingham is not recovering from late-December thumb surgery as quickly as expected. Nottingham is only doing “small baseball activities” right now and will not be ready for the start of Cactus League play, according to manager Craig Counsell (via Todd Rosiak and Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). A healthy Nottingham and free-agent pickup Luke Maile figured to jockey for the No. 3 catcher position behind Omar Narvaez and Manny Pina, so Nottingham’s injury could help Maile in his quest to land that job. Nottingham, who is out of minor league options, amassed 54 plate appearances last year and hit .188/.278/.458 with four home runs.
  • Nationals outfielder Gerardo Parra underwent right knee surgery in the fall and is currently at 70 to 80 percent, he told Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post and other reporters Friday. Parra expects to be ready for Opening Day, but having signed a minor league deal in the offseason, he has work to do this spring in order to earn a spot on Washington’s roster.

Jacob Nottingham Undergoes Thumb Procedure

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Brewers backstop Jacob Nottingham has undergone surgery on the radial collateral ligament of his left thumb, MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy tweets. The procedure is said to have gone as anticipated.

Nottingham, who was injured during the postseason, will have just over two months to heal up before camp opens. The hope is that he’ll be a full go at or near the start of Spring Training.

This malady likely won’t have a big impact on the Brewers’ plans, particularly given the promising prognosis. If anything, it could nudge the organization to gather up a bit more catching depth.

Nottingham, 25, hit for enough power (.458 slugging percentage) to make up for a miserly .278 OBP in a twenty-game stretch with the Milwaukee organization in 2020. He stepped into the MLB fold after Manny Pina went down with an injury.

The Brewers ultimately elected to tender Pina a contract, making him the odds-on favorite to serve as the #2 backstop. Presumptive starter Omar Narvaez scuffled with the bat in his first season with the club, but seems sure to get a chance to redeem himself.

That leaves the out-of-options Nottingham with a need to make an impression in camp. If he shows well enough, and/or there are cracks in the Narvaez/Pina pairing, the Brewers could carry three backstops. If not, Nottingham may end up being dangled in trade or placed on the waiver wire.

Brewers Designate Justin Grimm; Manny Pina To Undergo Knee Surgery

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5:32pm: Not so fast on Pina, who says he’ll require at least four weeks to recover from surgery and is hoping he’ll return if the Brewers make the playoffs (via Haudricourt).

4:21pm: Pina will undergo season-ending surgery, manager Craig Counsell told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and other reporters.

3:31pm: The Brewers announced that they’ve designated right-hander Justin Grimm for assignment and placed catcher Manny Pina on the 10-day injured list due to a torn meniscus in his right knee. Pina sustained the injury on a pickoff play last night, MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy tweets. Catcher Jacob Nottingham has been recalled from the alternate training site to replace Pina on the active roster.

Grimm, 32, has appeared in four games for the Brewers this year but surrendered multiple runs in three of those appearances. He’s been tagged for nine runs on nine hits (four homers) and four walks with six punchouts in 4 2/3 frames. Although he was once a quality relief option with the division-rival Cubs — 3.36 ERA and 3.20 FIP in 171 innings from 2014-16 — Grimm has seen his results decline precipitously since that stretch. He’s logged 77 1/3 innings in the Majors over the past four seasons and struggled to an alarming 7.33 ERA.

As for Pina, it’s a tough blow for the Brewers and the 33-year-old backstop alike. He’s out to a .231/.333/.410 slash to begin the season — solid production for any catcher, let alone a backup — but will now likely miss the remainder of the year. Even speedy recoveries from a meniscus tear can take a month, and for a catcher, any knee issue carries additional difficulty. Pina has been the Brewers’ backup catcher dating back to 2017, providing solid glovework and respectable OBP skills and pop for a reserve catcher. Since 2017, he’s a .257/.317/.411 hitter.

Nottingham has gotten brief looks in each of the past two seasons — nine games apiece — and will now step in as the primary backup to Omar Narvaez. He’s a .231/.355/.385 hitter in 31 MLB plate appearances and a .250/.326/.421 hitter in 528 PAs at the Triple-A level.

Brewers Option Five Players

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The Brewers have answered the last call for optional assignments, sending down a handful of players to their top affiliates. Jim Goulart of Brewerfan.net tweeted the news.

Catcher Jacob Nottingham is on his way down, indicating he’s not expected to crack an eventual Opening Day roster. Soon to turn 25, Nottingham has seen brief MLB action in each of the past two seasons but faced an uphill battle to earn a job with Omar Narvaez and Manny Pina locked in behind the plate.

Also sent out on options were four hurlers: southpaw Angel Perdomo and righties Bobby Wahl, Eric Yardley, and J.P. Feyereisen. Only Perdomo has ever actually appeared in regular-season action with a Milwaukee affiliate. He worked to a 4.28 ERA with a hefty 13.9 K/9 but equally voluminous 6.0 BB/9 in 69 1/3 upper-minors innings last year.

Yardley received his first ten MLB appearances last year with the Padres. The Brewers claimed him off waivers in the offseason. Wahl also has seen the majors, receiving brief looks with the A’s and Mets. He came to Milwaukee in the Keon Broxton swap but ended up missing the 2019 season due to a torn ACL. As for Feyereisen, he landed with the Brewers in a rare September swap with the Yankees, who obviously didn’t expect to have room for him on the 40-man roster in advance of the 2019 Rule 5 draft.

Brewers To Place Manny Pina On IL, Recall Jacob Nottingham

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The Brewers announced after last night’s game that catcher Manny Pina will be headed to the 10-day injured list with a hamstring injury. He’ll be replaced on the active roster by fellow receiver Jacob Nottingham, per MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy (via Twitter).

It’s not clear how long Pina will be sidelined, but he’ll need to use his time away to work on more than just his hamstring. Soon to turn 32, Pina has struggled to a .133/.220/.244 slash to open the season — well shy of the palatable offensive numbers he carried over the prior two campaigns.

Pina’s role has unsurprisingly been reduced in the wake of the addition of Yasmani Grandal, who’ll continue to see the bulk of the action behind the dish. Grandal will now be supplemented by Nottingham, a 24-year-old who enjoyed a cup of coffee last season.

Nottingham originally came to Milwaukee in the swap that sent slugger Khris Davis to the A’s. (Before that, he landed in the Oakland organization in the July 2015 Scott Kazmir trade.) At the time, he was seen as a bat-first catching prospect with real potential. He has struggled at times in the upper minors, though he was productive last year at Triple-A and was graded by MLB.com as the Brewers’ 16th-best prospect over the winter. Nottingham is slashing .247/.351/.395 in 94 plate appearances at San Antonio thus far in 2019.

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