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Mets Sign José Rondón To Minor League Deal

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The Mets have signed infielder/outfielder José Rondón to a minor league deal, as listed on his transactions tracker at MLB.com. The infielder announced the move on Instagram last week.

Rondón, 30 in March, has 169 games of major league experience, getting part-time action in four different seasons from 2016 to 2021. He bounced around from the Padres to the White Sox, Orioles and Cardinals in that time, making 380 plate appearances. He hit .216/.274/.353 in that time while playing all four infield positions, the outfield corners and even tossing an inning on the mound.

He was non-tendered by the Cardinals after that 2021 campaign and headed into the open market. In April of 2022, it was announced by Major League Baseball that Rondón was one of three players who received an 80-game suspension after testing positive for the performance-enhancing substance Boldenone.

He didn’t end up signing with an affiliated club that year, but joined the Toros de Tijuana of the Mexican League for the 2023 season. In 72 games for that club, he slashed .286/.367/.465. He then joined Leones del Caracas of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League for winter ball, hitting .338/.413/.624 in 56 games for that club.

It appears those solid numbers in Mexico and/or the gaudy numbers in Venezuela attracted the attention of the Mets. It’s possible he’s more of an outfielder now, as that’s where he has been playing for the Leones, while the Toros only gave him brief time on the infield last year.

The Mets are set to have an outfield of Brandon Nimmo, Harrison Bader, Starling Marte and Tyrone Taylor this year, but all of them have dealt with significant injuries, either recently or in their career generally. DJ Stewart is on the roster but he’s considered a poor fielder and best suited for a designated hitter/bench bat role. Jeff McNeil could be in the outfield at some point but is slated to be the everyday second baseman for now.

To improve that depth, the Mets have signed guys like Trayce Thompson and Taylor Kohlwey to minor league deals but will now add Rondón into that mix as well. The Mets also have questions at third base, with Ronny Mauricio potentially missing the upcoming season due to a torn ACL. That leaves them with unproven younger players like Brett Baty and Mark Vientos alongside veteran utility guy Joey Wendle. If Rondón can still play the hot corner, that could be another path for him to get big league playing time if he can continue hitting the way he has been in winter ball.

Three Free Agents Suspended 80 Games After Testing Positive For PED

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Major League Baseball announced this afternoon that three players — reliever Richard Rodríguez, utilityman Danny Santana and infielder José Rondón — have each been suspended for 80 games after testing positive for the performance-enhancing substance Boldenone. All three are currently free agents. PED testing had been suspended during the lockout, but Jared Diamond of the Wall Street Journal reports (0n Twitter) that the trio tested positive before the work stoppage.

Rodríguez was one of the higher-profile remaining free agents, and today’s suspension offers insight into why he’s yet to sign. The 32-year-old isn’t far removed from being an excellent late-game option for the Pirates. Over three and a half seasons in Pittsburgh, he posted a 2.98 ERA in 196 1/3 innings of relief. Along the way, he punched out a strong 27.2% of batters faced while walking just 6.5% of opponents.

The rebuilding Bucs traded Rodríguez to the Braves at this past summer’s trade deadline. The 32-year-old’s performance dipped at the end of the year. While he managed a respectable 3.12 ERA in 26 innings as a Brave, he surrounded six home runs and struck out only nine batters in that time. Atlanta non-tendered Rodríguez at the end of the year. The Pirates were reported to have interest in a reunion in December, but it stands to reason the failed PED test put a damper on that pursuit.

Santana, 31, has appeared in the majors in each of the last eight seasons. Known for his speed and defensive versatility, the switch-hitting Santana has mixed in some solid showings at the plate but has an up-and-down overall track record. He’s coming off a tough year in which he hit just .181/.252/.345 with five homers and four steals over 38 games with the Red Sox.

Rondón has played in parts of four seasons, never tallying more than 157 plate appearances in a year. A right-handed hitting utility infielder, he owns a .216/.274/.353 slash in 380 career trips to the dish. Rondón had a respectable .263/.322/.413 showing in limited playing time with the Cardinals last season, but St. Louis non-tendered him in November.

National League Non-Tenders: 11/30/21

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We’ve now passed the deadline for teams to tender contracts to pre-arb and arbitration-eligible players. We’ll keep track of the more minor players non-tendered in the National League here. The American League non-tenders are available at this link.

As a reminder, you can view MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz’s projected salaries for arbitration-eligible players here:

  • The Cardinals announced they’ve non-tendered utilityman José Rondon. The right-handed hitting infielder tallied 90 plate appearances this past season while suiting up at a handful of position.
  • The Giants announced they’ve non-tendered outfielder Luis González, right-hander Sam Delaplane and southpaw Joe Palumbo. None of that trio was arbitration-eligible, and all three were recently acquired via minor transactions. It wouldn’t be a surprise if San Francisco attempts to work out minor league pacts with one or more of that group now that they’ve been removed from the 40-man roster.
  • The Phillies have non-tendered southpaw Kyle Dohy and re-signed him to a minor league contract, per a team announcement. He’ll remain in the organization but no longer occupies a spot on the 40-man roster. Dohy made on major league appearance in 2021.
  • The Padres announced they’ve non-tendered relievers José Castillo, Trey Wingenter, and Matt Strahm. Castillo and Wingenter haven’t pitched since 2019 because of arm injuries that necessitated Tommy John surgeries. Strahm was limited to just 6 2/3 frames in 2021 by health issues himself.
  • The Cubs are non-tendering reliever Jason Adam, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. The southpaw missed much of the season after suffering a gruesome ankle fracture in Triple-A in May, but he made a triumphant late-season return to the big leagues. Adam ultimately tossed 10 2/3 innings over 12 outings. Chicago also announced they’ve non-tendered outfielder Michael Hermosillo, who made a late-season appearance on the big league roster.
  • The Mets have non-tendered outfielder Mark Payton, per a club announcement. The left-handed hitter was acquired from the Reds midseason but never suited up for New York at the major league level.
  • The Reds have non-tendered righty Brandon Bailey, per a team announcement. The 27-year-old made five appearances with the Astros in 2020. He missed all of 2021 recovering from Tommy John surgery, the second such procedure of his career. Bailey is re-signing on a minor league deal with a Spring Training invitation but will no longer occupy a spot on the 40-man roster, reports C. Trent Rosecrans of the Athletic.
  • The Nationals announced three non-tenders: relievers Wander Suero and Ryne Harper and first baseman Mike Ford. Suero is the most notable of the group, having been an effective set-up option at times during his four-season run in D.C. He struggled to a 6.33 ERA across 42 2/3 innings in 2021, though.
  • The Mets have non-tendered reliever Stephen Nogosek, reports Robert Murray of FanSided (on Twitter). The right-hander made just one three-inning appearance at the big league level in 2021. He worked 35 innings of 5.14 ERA ball with Triple-A Syracuse.
  • The Diamondbacks are non-tendering reliever Taylor Clarke, reports Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (on Twitter). The 28-year-old has pitched with the D-Backs in each of the past three seasons. The left-hander worked to a 4.98 ERA over 43 1/3 innings this past season, showing solid control but posting a 20.1% strikeout rate that was about four percentage points below the league average mark for bullpen arms.
  • The Dodgers have non-tendered southpaw Andrew Vasquez, tweets Fabian Ardaya of the Athletic. Vasquez wasn’t eligible for arbitration, but Los Angeles decided to bump him off the 40-man roster without placing him on waivers. Acquired in a minor trade with the Twins, Vasquez made two appearances for the Dodgers in early September. The 28-year-old struck out a massive 37.4% of batters faced in Triple-A in 2021.
  • The Pirates have non-tendered right-hander Chad Kuhl, reports Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link). A productive back-of-the-rotation arm at times, Kuhl has developed escalating control problems over the past couple seasons. The 29-year-old throws in the mid-90s and has posted decent strikeout numbers, but he’s coming off a 4.82 ERA/4.89 SIERA over 28 appearances (including 14 starts)
  • The Mets have non-tendered reliever Robert Gsellman, reports Tim Healey of Newsday (on Twitter). The right-hander has appeared with New York in each of the past six seasons, moving to the bullpen full-time in 2018. While Gsellman showed quite a bit of promise over seven starts as a rookie, he’s yet to find much consistent success in the years since. The 28-year-old did manage a solid 3.77 ERA with a 49.5% ground-ball rate over 28 2/3 innings in 2021, but he also missed a couple months because of a lat strain and only punched out 14.3% of batters faced.

Latest Cardinals Roster Moves

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The Cardinals made a number of roster moves today, as reported by MLB.com’s Jeff Jones (Twitter links). Counter to yesterday’s report that Jose Rondon would be released to participate on Venezuela’s Olympic team, Rondon instead has had his contract selected to join the Cardinals’ Major League roster. Rondon last appeared in the Majors in 2019. He owns a .206/.260/.336 line across 290 career plate appearances with the Orioles, Padres, and White Sox.

The Cardinals are adding Rondon as a response to Max Moroff suffering left shoulder subluxation, an injury that will land him on the 10-day injured list. Moroff was just 1-for-16 in six games this season.

In other moves, Junior Fernandez has been recalled from Triple-A, while Johan Oviedo has been optioned to Triple-A, though he will remain with the team on the taxi squad, per the team. Fernandez was just optioned yesterday, but he’s able to re-join the team because of the Moroff injury. The 24-year-old has just two appearances this season covering 3 2/3 innings.

Oviedo, meanwhile, has appeared five times, starting four games. He has posted a 5.40 ERA/6.02 FIP across 20 innings with a 47.4 percent groundball rate, 17.4 percent strikeout rate and 16.3 percent walk rate. The Cardinals will want to see significant improvement from Oviedo in those strikeout and walk rates, though with just 20 innings, we’re still in the small sample size category for the 23 year old.

Cardinals Sign Jose Rondon To Minor League Deal

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The Cardinals announced that they’ve signed infielder Jose Rondon to a minor league contract Friday. He’s been invited to Major League Spring Training.

Rondon, 27 in March, appeared in 106 games between the Padres, White Sox and Orioles from 2016-19, mostly with the White Sox. He’s a career .201/.260/.336 hitter with nine homers in 290 plate appearances. Rondon has appeared at all four infield positions and at left field in the Major Leagues, albeit just 16 combined innings at left field and in first base. Shortstop has been his primary position throughout his pro career, though Rondon hasn’t graded out well in an admittedly tiny sample of 217 MLB frames at the position. His marks at second base and third base are better.

Rondon gives the Cardinals some infield depth after the club decided to decline second baseman Kolten Wong’s $12.5MM club option back in November. Even if he were to make the roster, Rondon would presumably serve as a bench piece, with Tommy Edman slotting in as the primary second baseman and Matt Carpenter getting a chance to rebound at the hot corner. The Cards currently have Edmundo Sosa and Elehuris Montero as additional infield options on the 40-man roster, and St. Louis recently added Max Moroff on a minor league deal with a non-roster invite — the same type of deal received by Rondon.

In parts of four Triple-A seasons, Rondon is a .258/.301/.448 hitter.

East Notes: Phillies, Werth, Harper, Mets, Gimenez, Orioles, Martin

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Jayson Werth was not surprised when his bromantic partner Bryce Harper signed with the Phillies exactly a year ago yesterday, per Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia. After years of traveling together, yukking it up from stadium to stadium, Werth knew Harper’s feelings about the league about as well as could be expected, and given his own positive feelings about his time in Philly (he won a ring there in 2008), Harper taking a shine to his mentor’s former club definitely tracks. Werth impacted both franchises in their most recent championship endeavors, directly for the Phils as he hit .309/.387/.582 during their ’08 run. For the Nats, he provided legitimacy to the franchise at the outset of their current run of competency. The Nationals have posted a winning record in each of the last eight seasons back to 2012, Werth’s second year with the club. That’s enough reminiscing for today. Let’s stay in the NL East and check in on some spring training news…

  • New York Mets prospect Andres Gimenez added a leg kick to his swing this winter in an effort to get more lift, per Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News. Gimenez will have to push the envelope to make his presence felt at the major league level this season, but he’s breathing down Amed Rosario’s neck. Robinson Cano is owed big money over the next four seasons, but there’s certainly the possibility that one of the Mets’ young shortstops could eventually move to the keystone. Despite some uncertainty regarding Rosario’s performance at the big league level, shortstop is a deep positional field for the Mets organizationally. Gimenez is the Mets’ 2nd-ranked prospect, per Fangraphs, behind only Ronny Mauricio, who trails Gimenez in timeline by roughly the same margin between Gimenez and Rosario. For now, Rosario, 24, will keep the position warm until Gimenez, 21, can take it. That is, until Mauricio, 19 in April, can get to it first. 
  • Jumping to the junior circuit, the Baltimore Orioles expect 2020 to be a development year for Richie Martin – out of the spotlight. With defensive wizard Jose Iglesias in-house to hold down shortstop – until July at least – Martin can make up for lost time in Triple-A. Last year’s Rule-5 selection from the A’s, Martin was pushed into a full season with the big league club last year, and his naïveté showed. Martin put up -0.6 rWAR and a 50 wRC+ in 2019 as their more-or-less everyday shortstop. Still, Martin isn’t giving up the possibility of winning a job at second base or in a utility role, per MASN’s Roch Kubatko. The team lacked middle infield depth last season, but they at least have more players vying for those roles this spring – likely leaving Martin on the outside looking in on opening day. Hanser Alberto has his name on one roster spot, while Andrew Velazquez and Ramon Urias are contenders for utility roles, while Stevie Wilkerson, Pat Valaika, Jose Rondon, and Dilson Herrera are all in camp as non-roster invitees. 

Orioles Announce Multiple Minor-League Signings

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The Orioles have announced a variety of minor-league signings. Among the notable players is outfielder Mason Williams, who received a brief look in the majors last September after a strong Triple-A season.

A few other players with MLB experience are heading to the Baltimore organization in hopes of earning a new shot at the majors. Southpaws Hunter Cervenka and Rob Zastryzny have appeared in multiple big-league campaigns. Likewise, infielders Jose Rondon and Jesmuel Valentin have seen the Show.

It’s possible to imagine a path back for each of those players. Williams will face stiff competition but obviously has impressed the club to an extent. The O’s clearly like the idea of creating some competition in camp for the left-handed side of their bullpen. Present top options include Richard Bleier, Paul Fry, and Tanner Scott. And the middle infield corps could be an area of change depending upon what the club does with Jonathan Villar and Hanser Alberto. The former could be a trade or non-tender candidate; it’s possible to imagine the latter drawing trade inquiries as well.

Here’s the rest of the slate of announced signings:

Orioles Release Nate Karns, Outright Jose Rondon

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The Orioles announced Wednesday that they’ve released right-hander Nate Karns and outrighted infielder Jose Rondon to Triple-A Norfolk. Both players cleared waivers; Karns, however, has the requisite service time to elect free agency.

Karns will head back to free agency after missing the bulk of the 2019 season due to forearm issues. He’d made it back to the mound prior to his DFA, pitching in three rehab appearances between July 12 and July 23. The 31-year-old Karns tossed 5 1/3 innings with the O’s and yielded only one unearned run early in the season, but he was tagged for 10 runs in 10 1/3 innings of work across two rehab stints this season (the first of which was halted after a late-April setback). Injuries, most notably thoracic outlet surgery, have largely wiped out the past four seasons for Karns, making 2015’s 147 innings of 3.67 ERA ball for the Rays feel like a distant memory.

Rondon, 25, received just one plate appearance with the O’s after being claimed off waivers out of the White Sox organization. He’d previously batted .197/.265/.282 in Chicago before being designated for assignment. Rondon is a versatile infield defender but hasn’t received strong grades for his small sample of innings at shortstop. He’s a lifetime .264/.300/.463 in 508 plate appearances at the Triple-A level.

Orioles Claim Ty Blach, Designate Jose Rondon

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The Orioles have claimed left-hander Ty Blach, MLBTR’s Steve Adams reports. Blach was designated for assignment by San Francisco a week ago. INF Jose Rondon was designated for assignment to make room.

Blach, 28, was a reasonably productive swingman for the 2016-18 versions of the club, with numbers slightly inflated (per fWAR and other metrics that rely heavily on park factors) by the enormous dimensions of SF’s Oracle Park. The lefty, who’s posted the league’s lowest strikeout total since his debut in late 2016, threw up a solid 3.84 FIP in 47 appearances (13 starts) for the Giants last season, a performance that ostensibly wasn’t enough to curry favor with the new regime. He’s spent much of the this season trying to survive in the PCL, where his 5.93 ERA/5.26 FIP are actually respectable totals in the harrowing offensive climate that dots the league’s landscape.

It’s possible the soft-tosser steps right into an embattled Baltimore rotation, which treats cast-offs, fringe prospects, and former stalwarts all the same. Blach’s career 50% grounder rate should play well in the miniaturized dimensions of Camden Yards, though he won’t be afforded the same heavy-air cushion he was at Oracle. Still, it’s as good of opportunity as could be hoped for 28-year-old, who’d likely have returned to Triple-A in most organizations around the league.

Rondon, 25, was a promising utility prospect in the Padres system from 2014-17, but hit the skids in the high minors and couldn’t steady himself after transitioning to the AL with the White Sox. Rondon did post a solid 102 wRC+ in limited action for the Pale Hose last season, but his .197/.265/.282 ’19 line wasn’t enough to keep him in the organization. He appeared in just a single game for the Orioles; the club’ll obviously hope he clears waivers and can be outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk.

Orioles Claim Jose Rondon

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The Orioles have claimed infielder Jose Rondon off waivers from the White Sox, per a club announcement. The corresponding active roster move isn’t yet known, but someone will have to be moved off of the 25-man to make way for the out-of-options Rondon.

It seems possible that this move will connect to another, as-yet-unknown transaction. Rondon would be a possible roster replacement for several of the O’s trade candidates.

The 25-year-old Rondon has struggled quite a bit this year in Chicago, compiling an ugly .197/.265/.282 batting line in 156 trips to the plate. He fared better in a smaller sample last year, and did swat 18 long balls at Triple-A in 2018, but generally does not have an especially promising minor-league track record with the bat. Rondon comes with a reputation for quality glovework, though metrics haven’t been overly impressed to this point.

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