Yankees Designate Jim Miller For Assignment
The Yankees announced that they have designated right-hander Jim Miller for assignment in order to clear a 40-man roster spot for the recently acquired Brendan Ryan.
The 31-year-old Miller pitched in one game for the Yankees this season, yielding three runs in just 1 1/3 innings of work. He was much better for the Yankees' Triple-A affiliate, pitching to a 3.55 ERA with 13.1 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 in 63 1/3 innings of work.
Originally an eighth-round pick by the Rockies in 2004, Miller has spent time in the Orioles and Athletics organizations as well. The bulk of his Major League experience came last year with the A's, when he posted a 2.59 ERA in 48 2/3 innings for the AL West champions.
As always, you can track the status of Miller and other players who have been designated for assignment using MLBTR's DFA Tracker.
Outrighted To Triple-A: Miller, Beato, Nunez, Pearce
The latest outright assignments from around MLB…
- The Astros outrighted infielder Brandon Laird and outfielder Che-Hsuan Lin to Triple-A after the players cleared waivers, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports (on Twitter).
- The Yankees announced that they outrighted right-hander Jim Miller to Triple-A. They had designated him for assignment two days ago to create 40-man roster space for Ichiro Suzuki.
- The Red Sox outrighted Pedro Beato to Triple-A after he cleared waivers, Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal reports (on Twitter). The Red Sox designated the right-hander for assignment two days ago to create roster space for Ryan Dempster.
- The Diamondbacks outrighted shortstop Gustavo Nunez to Detroit's Triple-A affiliate, the Tigers announced. Nunez, a 2011 Rule 5 Draft selection, spent the 2012 season on the Pirates' disabled list recovering from right ankle surgery. The Diamondbacks claimed him off of waivers from Pittsburgh on October 26th before returning him to Detroit today.
- The Orioles announced that they outrighted outfielder Steve Pearce to Triple-A. The club now has one open 40-man roster spot.
- The Cubs announced that they outrighted Gerardo Concepcion to Class A Kane County after the left-hander cleared waivers. Chicago's 40-man roster now includes 39 players.
- The Blue Jays announced that they outrighted right-hander Mickey Storey to Triple-A Buffalo. Toronto had claimed Storey off of waivers earlier in the week.
Yankees Designate Jim Miller For Assignment
The Yankees have designated Jim Miller for assignment, the team announced. The move frees up a 40-man roster spot for Ichiro Suzuki, who has officially re-signed.
Miller, 30, appeared in 33 games for Oakland this past season. He posted a 2.59 ERA with 8.1 K.9 and 5.0 BB/9 in 48 2/3 innings. The Yankees claimed him off waivers from the Athletics late last month.
Yankees Claim Jim Miller
The Yankees claimed right-hander Jim Miller off of waivers from the Athletics, the A's announced. The A's had designated Miller for assignment ten days ago.
Miller, 30, appeared in 33 games for Oakland this past season. He posted a 2.59 ERA with 8.1 K.9 and 5.0 BB/9 in 48 2/3 innings.
A’s Designate Hicks, Miller For Assignment
The A's announced that they designated infielder Brandon Hicks and right-hander Jim Miller for assignment. They added Arnold Leon, Grant Green, Shane Peterson and Michael Ynoa to the 40-man roster in related moves.
Minor Moves: Jim Miller, Jeff Fiorentino
We'll keep track of today's minor moves here, with the latest up top…
- The Athletics have signed Jim Miller to a minor league contract, reports Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle. The 29-year-old righty reliever was outrighted by the Rockies last month after pitching to a 5.25 ERA in 72 innings at Triple-A. He appeared in six games for Colorado as well.
- Within the same link, Slusser reports that the Athletics have also signed outfielder Jeff Fiorentino to a minor league pact. Fiorentino, 28, spent last season in the Orioles' and Braves' minor league systems, hitting .255/.350/.405 in 360 plate appearances. He played in Japan in 2010, and got into two games for the 2008 Athletics.
Minor Moves: Rockies, Wise
The latest minor moves from around MLB…
- The Rockies outrighted Jose Morales, Matt Daley, Jim Miller, Greg Reynolds and Cory Riordan to Triple-A Colorado Springs, according to MLB.com's transactions page. Morales, a 28-year-old catcher, appeared in 22 games for the Rockies this year and Reynolds, the second overall pick in 2006, posted a 6.19 ERA with 5.1 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in 32 innings. Colorado's 40-man roster now stands at 35.
- Center fielder Dewayne Wise, who suited up for the Marlins and Blue Jays this year, elected free agency, according to the same transactions page.
Rockies Sign Two To Minor League Contracts
The Rockies have signed right-hander Jim Miller and left-hander Josh Muecke to minor league contracts, reports Jack Etkin of Inside The Rockies. It is unclear if either will receive an invite to Spring Training.
Miller, 28, was Colorado's eighth round pick in 2004, though the Rockies traded him to the Orioles for Rodrigo Lopez before the 2007 season. He made his big league debut with the O's in 2008, allowing just one earned run in 7 2/3 innings. Miller has yet to return to the show and posted a 4.84 ERA with 8.3 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in 57 2/3 relief innings for Baltimore's Triple-A affiliate this past season.
Muecke, 29, spent the 2010 season with the Rockies' Triple-A affiliate. He posted a 5.94 ERA in 119 2/3 innings (22 starts, three relief appearances), striking out 6.1 and walking 3.2 batters per nine innings, respectively. He was Houston's fifth round pick way back in 2003.
Orioles Roundup: Mora, Moeller, Datz
The Orioles have declined Melvin Mora's $8MM option for 2010, likely ending his successful tenure with Baltimore.
Mora struggled in 2009, hitting just .260/.321/.358 in 496 plate appearances this past season. He will be 38 years old, and will likely command far less than his option number as a free agent.
However, for teams looking for a third baseman, Mora might be a reasonable option. He is just a year removed from hitting .285/.342/.483, while his Ultimate Zone Rating was still 1.1 runs saved above average per 150 games in 2009.
Mora criticized Dave Trembley, Baltimore's manager, in August over a lack of playing time. Therefore, once Baltimore announced Trembley's return, it became far less likely the team would retain Mora, even at a lesser cost.
Mora hit 158 home runs with Baltimore after coming over from the New York Mets in a deal for Mike Bordick.
Other Baltimore moves this afternoon included declining the $850K option on catcher Chad Moeller and outrighting outfielder Jeff Fiorentino, pitchers Chris Lambert and Jim Miller and catcher Guillermo Rodriguez after each cleared waivers.
And last but not least, Jeff Datz was named bench coach, after spending 19 years in the Cleveland Indians' organization. Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com has some reaction from Trembley to the hire.