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Jake Hager

Cubs Sign Jake Hager To Minor League Deal

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The Cubs signed infielder Jake Hager to a minor league contract over the weekend. Hager appeared in one game for their complex affiliate in Arizona. According to the transaction log at MLB.com, he’s now headed to Triple-A Iowa.

A right-handed hitter, Hager has 42 games of major league experience between the Mets and Diamondbacks. He hit .197/.307/.224 with 31 strikeouts in 89 plate appearances in limited action between 2021-22. Hager spent most of last season in Triple-A with Arizona. He had a down year, running a .245/.301/.415 slash in the Pacific Coast League, and was released in August.

Hager was the 32nd overall pick of the 2011 draft coming out of high school. He has appeared in parts of seven seasons at Triple-A across five organizations (not including Chicago). In just over 500 games there, he owns a .242/.301/.389 line. Hager has spent most of his time in the minors at shortstop, though he also has ample experience at both second and third base (with scattered appearances in the outfield).

Chicago lost some minor league infield depth when Nick Madrigal broke his hand a few weeks ago. They’re light on experienced Triple-A infielders, making Hager a straightforward fit as a depth option.

Diamondbacks Re-Sign Jake Hager To Minor League Deal

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The Diamondbacks have re-signed infielder Jake Hager to a minor league deal, according to the MILB transaction log.

Hager, 30 in a week, slashed .240/.345/.280 for the Diamondbacks over 59 plate appearances last year. He spent the bulk of the year at Triple-A, where he picked up five home runs as part of a .261/.342/.391 line across 303 plate appearances. That was the second stint Hager had had with the Diamondbacks. After being claimed off waivers from the Mets, Arizona released him at the end of the 2021 season before bringing him back on a minor league deal.

Originally drafted 32nd overall by the Rays back in 2011, Hager toiled away in the minors for Tampa Bay, Milwaukee and Seattle before the Mets finally gave him his first taste of the majors in 2021. He didn’t hit much across a brief spell with the Mets and Diamondbacks in 2021, and all told Hager’s put together a .197/.307/.224 line across 89 career MLB plate appearances.

Hager came through the minors as a shortstop, but has bounced around the field in his short time in the majors, logging time at second, third and shortstop as well as both corner outfield spots. For the third-straight season, Hager will provide the Snakes with some infield depth in the upper minors.

Diamondbacks Re-Sign Jake Hager To Minor League Deal

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The Diamondbacks have re-signed infielder Jake Hager to a minor league contract with an invitation to Spring Training, as announced over the weekend by the Triple-A Reno Aces.

Hager spent the majority of the 2022 season with Reno and slashed .261/.342/.391 with five home runs and eight stolen bases in his 303 plate appearances at the Triple-A level. He also got into 28 games at the MLB level and batted .240/.345/.280 with zero homers and zero steals across 59 plate appearances with the D-backs.

The 29-year-old journeyman — 30 in March — has proven capable of handling every position on the infield defensively, but he will lug a rough .197 career major league batting average and a .531 career major league OPS into camp in Arizona. Hager is probably going to be viewed as organizational depth leading into the 2023 campaign, an option to step in and at least provide competent a glove should something go awry with the Diamondbacks’ projected infield starters and bench fillers.

The current Arizona roster outlook has Josh Rojas and Emmanuel Rivera platooning at third base, Nick Ahmed handling shortstop duties and Ketel Marte locked in at second. Evan Longoria is an additional candidate for playing time at the hot corner, though it sounds like the D-backs mostly want to use him as their DH. 23-year-old switch-hitter Geraldo Perdomo is a good bet for an active backup role between third, short and second. Perdomo still has two options remaining and could see more regular action at Triple-A as well after a rough rookie season at the plate.

A’s Claim Yonny Hernandez From Diamondbacks

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The Athletics announced that they have claimed infielder Yonny Hernandez off waivers from the Diamondbacks. Additionally, the club has outrighted infielder Nate Mondou, left-hander Sam Selman and righties Austin Pruitt, Norge Ruiz, and Collin Wiles. The Diamondbacks also announced the claim of Hernandez, while relaying that infielder Jake Hager and right-hander Keynan Middleton cleared waivers and elected free agency.

This is one of the times on the baseball calendar when roster turnover is high, for a couple of reasons. First, there is no injured list between the World Series and Spring Training, meaning that players on the 60-day IL will soon be retaking their spots. Secondly, the deadline to add prospects to the 40-man roster in order to protect them from being selected in the Rule 5 draft is November 15. Those two factors both combine to squeeze certain players off rosters and onto waivers.

Hernandez, 25 in May, had spent all of his career in the Rangers organization until being traded to the D-Backs in April. He got into 12 MLB games this year, spending much more time in the minors. He hit .241/.349/.324 in 71 Triple-A games this year, wRC+ of 78. That’s not an especially impressive showing, but Hernandez fared much better in previous seasons and has always had good plate discipline. Despite the rough year, he still walked in 11.7% of his plate appearances and struck out in just 15.8% of them, with both of those numbers being much better than average. He’s never hit for much power though, having only hit five home runs in a minor league career that dates back to 2015. He still has options, meaning the A’s can keep him in the minors next year and try to see if they can draw something extra out of him.

Mondou, 28 in March, was just selected to the roster in October. He made his MLB debut by getting into one game where he made three hitless plate appearances, walking once and striking out once. In 108 Triple-A games, he hit .283/.374/.431 for a wRC+ of 105. Given his seven years of minor league experience, he will be eligible to elect free agency five days after the World Series.

Selman, 32 this month, has thrown 73 MLB innings over the past four seasons. He has a 4.81 ERA in that time with a 22.5% strikeout rate, 10.3% walk rate and 29.6% ground ball rate. He cut his walk rate to 6.7% in 2022 but also gave up four home runs in just 18 1/3 innings, leading to a 4.91 ERA. He’s eligible to elect free agency by virtue of having been previously outrighted in his career.

Pruitt, 33, signed a minor league deal with the A’s for 2022 and was twice selected to the roster with one DFA in between. He got into 55 1/3 innings on the season and registered a 4.23 ERA. His 17% strikeout rate was below average but he limited walks to a 4% rate and also got grounders on 45.5% of balls in play. He’s eligible to elect free agency both on account of his previous outrights and more than three years of service time.

Ruiz, 29 in March, was once a high-profile signing out of Cuba but saw his stock fade in recent years. A switch from starting to relieving in 2019 seemed to give him a boost, leading to him getting to make his MLB debut in 2022. He tossed 19 innings with a 7.11 ERA, though a .413 batting average on balls in play could indicate there’s some bad luck in there. He had a much nicer 3.73 ERA in 41 Triple-A innings. He should stick with the A’s as depth but without taking up a roster spot.

Wiles, 29 in May, got the call to the big leagues for the first time in September. He was able to log 9 2/3 MLB innings while putting up a 4.66 ERA in that small sample. He worked as a starter in the minors, logging 143 1/3 Triple-A innings with a 5.40 ERA. He limited walks to a 4.3% rate but was undone by 27 long balls in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.

Hager, 30 in March, appeared in 28 big league games for Arizona this year, hitting .240/.345/.280 in that time for a wRC+ of 84. He had fairly similar results in 72 Triple-A games, adding a bit more pop but walking less. He’s eligible to elect free agency based on the fact that he’s been previously outrighted in his career.

Middleton, 29, has appeared in each of the past six seasons, spending time with the Angels and Mariners before suiting up with the Diamondbacks in 2022. He tossed 17 innings in the majors and another 17 in Triple-A this year, with better results in the minors. He had a 5.29 ERA in the bigs along with a 2.12 ERA for Reno. He is eligible to elect free agency both because of he has more than three years of MLB service time and a previous career outright.

Diamondbacks Place Emmanuel Rivera On The Injured List, Select Jake Hager

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2:13 PM: The Diamondbacks have announced that Rivera has been transferred to the 60-day injured list. Their 40-man roster stands at 40.

1:25 PM: The Diamondbacks have announced that Infielder Emmanuel Rivera has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a fractured left wrist. In a corresponding move, Infielder Jake Hager’s contract has been selected from Triple-A Reno. The club will need to open a 40-man spot for Hager, but with the season winding down, they could easily transfer Rivera or another injured player to the 60-day injured list.

This marks the end of the season for Rivera, who was acquired by Arizona from the Royals in exchange right-hander Luke Weaver at the trade deadline earlier this season. Rivera’s season line of .233/.292/.409 has improved slightly since his arrival in Arizona, where he has slashed .227/.304/.424 in 148 plate appearances while primarily playing third base. Rivera, 26, isn’t slated to hit free agency until after the 2027 season, so he is likely to remain part of the Diamondbacks infield mix in the coming years.

As for Hager, the 2022 season has been spent mostly at the Triple-A level, where he has slashed .261/.342/.391 in 72 games. Hager previously joined the big league team in late May, playing shortstop, third base, and second base and slashing .240/.345/.280 in 28 games before being optioned back to Triple-A in early July. In August, Hager was designated for assignment and assigned outright to Reno.

Diamondbacks Claim Reyes Moronta, Designate Jake Hager

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The D-Backs announced they’ve claimed reliever Reyes Moronta off waivers from the Dodgers. Infielder Jake Hager has been designated for assignment in a corresponding 40-man roster transaction.

Moronta’s stay in the NL West continues. The big right-hander’s most productive seasons came as a member of the Giants, the organization with which he began his career. Between 2018-19, Moronta was one of the better relievers in the game. He tossed 121 2/3 innings of 2.66 ERA ball over that stretch, striking out a strong 29.3% of opponents. He issued a few more walks than ideal, but he nevertheless held opponents to a pitiful .175/.292/.266 line over 508 plate appearances.

Unfortunately, that marked Moronta’s last extended run of action until this year. He missed the entire shortened 2020 campaign with a shoulder problem, then landed on the IL to start last season with a flexor strain in his forearm. Moronta returned late last year but the Giants designated him for assignment after just four MLB appearances. He passed unclaimed through waivers, became a minor league free agent after the season, and signed a non-roster pact with the Dodgers during the offseason.

Los Angeles selected him onto the MLB roster in May, and the 29-year-old has gotten into 22 games. Moronta had an alright run, working 23 2/3 frames with a 4.18 ERA. He fanned an above-average 27.6% of batters faced on a solid 12.7% swinging strike rate, but he also surrendered five home runs and continued to walk batters at a higher than average (albeit improved, relative to his time in San Francisco) 10.2% clip. As part of a Dodger bullpen that ranks third in the majors with a 3.05 ERA, it’s easy to see how Moronta was squeezed off the roster. He should have a clearer path to a regular role with an Arizona club that has a 4.31 reliever ERA that checks in 24th leaguewide.

Moronta is due the prorated portion of a $1.5MM salary (around $370K) for the remainder of this season. He entered the 2022 campaign with exactly four years of service time but spent the season’s first three weeks in Triple-A. That was enough that he won’t reach a full year of service this season, meaning he’ll be arbitration-eligible once more after the year. He’s also in his second minor league option year, so the Snakes can freely shuttle him between Phoenix and Triple-A Reno — although he’d earn the right to refuse any optional assignments once he reaches his fifth year of big league service, likely early in 2023.

Hager, meanwhile, re-signed with Arizona on a minor league deal over the winter after finishing the 2021 campaign in the system. The D-Backs selected the righty-hitting utilityman to the majors in May, and he’s appeared in 28 games. Over 59 plate appearances, Hager owns a .240/.345/.280 line. He’s had a longer run in Reno, hitting .230/.330/.365 through 212 trips to the plate in one of affiliated ball’s more hitter-friendly environments. He’s spent the bulk of his minor league defensive action at shortstop but has played more second and third base in the big leagues.

Arizona will place Hager on outright or release waivers within the next few days. He’s previously been outrighted in his career, so he’d have the right to refuse a minor league assignment and test free agency if he goes unclaimed.

Diamondbacks Select Jake Hager

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The D-Backs announced tonight they’ve selected infielder Jake Hager onto the big league roster. Nick Ahmed has been placed on the COVID-19 injured list in a corresponding move.

Hager is up for the first time this season. The righty-hitting utilityman reached the big leagues last year, appearing in 14 games between the Mets and D-Backs. The Snakes outrighted him off their 40-man roster in September, and he reached minor league free agency after the season. Arizona brought him back via non-roster deal, and he’s spent the year with Triple-A Reno.

In 21 games for the Aces, Hager has a .239/.363/.380 line with one home run. He hit .240/.311/.461 in 344 Triple-A plate appearances a season ago. The 29-year-old doesn’t have a great offensive track record in the minors, but he’s played quite a bit of shortstop in his pro career. He’ll give manager Torey Lovullo some middle infield cover while Ahmed’s out.

It’s not clear for how long that’ll be, as the team hasn’t specified whether the shortstop tested positive for the virus. Ahmed, who began the year on the IL because of a right shoulder problem, is hitting .231/.259/.442 with three homers through 17 games. Geraldo Perdomo is getting the start at shortstop tonight against the Dodgers and figures to be the primary option there while Ahmed’s sidelined.

Minor MLB Transactions: 12/01/21

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Some recent minor moves from around baseball:

  • The Rockies have signed right-handed reliever J.D. Hammer to a minor league deal, according to Thomas Harding of MLB.com. In 23 2/3 innings at Triple-A this year in the Phillies’ organization, Hammer managed an ERA of 3.80 with a hefty 34.3% strikeout rate but also an elevated walk rate of 12.4%. At the big league level, he logged 20 innings with an ERA of 4.95, 23.4% strikeout rate and 11.7% walk rate. The Phils outrighted the 27-year-old at the end of the season and he elected free agency.
  • The Diamondbacks announced that they’ve returned infielder Jake Hager to the organization on a minor league deal. Hager started 2021 in the Mets organization and then was designated for assignment and claimed on waivers three times, bouncing to the Brewers, Mariners and Diamondbacks. Arizona then outrighted him in September. The 28-year-old didn’t hit much in the big leagues this year, but in a tiny sample of 30 plate appearances over 14 games. He played 82 Triple-A games in 2021 between those four organizations, hitting .240/.311/.461.
  • The Giants have agreed to a minor league deal with right-handed reliever Trevor Hildenberger, according to the MLB.com transactions tracker. Hildenberger logged 2 1/3 MLB innings for the Mets this year before being claimed and outrighted by the Giants. In 23 Triple-A innings for Sacramento River Cats, the 30-year-old put up an ERA of 4.70 with a strikeout rate of 22.5% and walk rate of 12.7%.
  • The Nationals have signed infielder Richard Urena to a minor league deal, per the MLB.com transactions tracker. The 25-year-old has played in 91 big league games in his career but hasn’t cracked the majors since 2019. In 2021, he played 92 Triple-A games in the Blue Jays’ system, hitting .272/.310/.438.
  • Outfielder Henry Ramos is joining the KT Wiz of the KBO, as relayed by Dan Kurtz of MyKBO.net. The 29-year-old had an unbelievable Triple-A season in 2021, slashing .371/.439/.582 over 294 plate appearances. He was selected by the Diamondbacks in September and got into 18 games, hitting .200/.255/.300 over 55 plate appearances. He was outrighted by the DBacks in October.

Diamondbacks Outright Jake Hager

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The Diamondbacks have outrighted Jake Hager to Triple-A Reno, thus removing the utilityman from the team’s 40-man roster.  Hager has spent much of his Arizona tenure in the minors, appear in only nine MLB games since the D’Backs claimed him off waivers from the Mariners on July 30.

The waiver wire has essentially been Hager’s second home for the last four months, as he has been a member of four different organizations in that time.  After beginning the season with the Mets, he has been designated for assignment and then claimed three times, going from the Mets to the Brewers to the Mariners before finally landing with the Diamondbacks.

Hager made his MLB debut this season while playing with the Mets, and the 28-year-old’s rookie season has seen him amass 14 games and 30 total plate appearances (batting .115/.233/.115) with New York and Arizona.  Drafted 32rd overall by the Rays back in 2011, Hager has hit .258/.313/.385 over 3508 career PA in the minor leagues, with the bulk of that time coming in Tampa and Milwaukee farm systems.

Deadline Day Roster Moves

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After what was arguably the wildest trade deadline in years with dozens of deals around the league, multiple teams made follow-up roster moves. Trades end up squeezing some players off of rosters, or creating holes that need to be filled. This post will itemize the many 40-man roster moves that teams made after a dizzying array of blockbuster deals earlier in the day.

AL East

AL Central

  • Pablo Sandoval was released by the Indians. This was just hours after he was acquired in the Eddie Rosario trade. Based on his release, it’s clear that he was only included as salary offset.
  • The Tigers selected the contract of reliever Ian Krol. The left-hander is back after being designated for assignment earlier in the week.

AL West

NL East

NL Central

NL West

  • The Diamondbacks claimed outfielder Jake Hager off waivers from the Mariners. This will be Hager’s fourth club on the season, having been previously designated for assignment by the Mets, Brewers and Mariners. Arizona also selected the contracts of infielder Drew Ellis and left-hander Miguel Aguilar.
  • The Dodgers announced that they claimed catcher Chad Wallach off waivers from the Marlins. Wallach was recently designated for assignment when Brian Anderson was reinstated from the IL.
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