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Kendall Graveman

Diamondbacks Place Kendall Graveman On 15-Day IL

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The Diamondbacks announced that right-hander Kendall Graveman was placed on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to June 8) due to an impingement in his right hip.  Righty Christian Montes De Oca was called up from Triple-A Reno to take Graveman’s spot on the active roster.

After missing all of 2024 recovering from shoulder surgery, Graveman’s 2025 debut was delayed until May 13 due to a season-opening stint on the 15-day IL due to a lumbar strain.  Graveman then posted a 2.45 ERA over his first 7 1/3 innings and eight appearances for the Snakes before he struggled through a brutal outing in Saturday’s 13-1 Arizona loss to the Reds.  Graveman was charged with six earned runs over just one inning of work, shooting his ERA up from 2.45 to 8.64.

It is fair to wonder if this hip problem was to blame for Graveman’s rough game, though some other red flags were there even before he took the mound on Saturday.  Graveman has more walks (five) than strikeouts (three) over 8 1/3 total innings, and his 30% grounder rate is well below the 50.9% career groundball rate Graveman had posted over his nine previous big league seasons.  His signature sinker is averaging 94.6mph, which is down from a 95.9mph average in 2023, though an early-season velocity drop isn’t unusual for a pitcher just coming back from a long layoff.

Unfortunately for Graveman, that nightmare against Cincinnati will represent his last game for at least a couple of weeks.  This latest trip to the IL can hopefully allow the veteran to fully put his health issues behind him, and an in-form Gravement would sorely help a struggling D’Backs bullpen.  Given how Arizona has a 31-34 record, Graveman (who is only signed through the 2025 season, with a mutual option for 2026) would be an obvious trade chip as a rental player if the Diamondbacks can’t get back into contention.

In other unwelcome news on the pitching injury front, righty Cristian Mena’s right shoulder strain is specifically a teres major strain, as manger Torey Lovullo told Arizona Sports’ Alex Weiner and other reporters.  Mena was placed on the 15-day IL on Saturday, but Lovullo said Mena’s absence will be measured in “weeks, not days.”

The 22-year-old Mena made his MLB debut with one three-inning start with the D’Backs last season, and this year had allowed one run in 6 2/3 innings over three relief appearances.  Mena was a candidate for some turns in the rotation given all of the injury problems faced by Arizona’s starters, but the righty himself has now joined the IL for what might be a lengthy period of time.

Diamondbacks Designate Garrett Hampson, José Castillo For Assignment

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The Diamondbacks announced that they have recalled infielder Jordan Lawlar, a move that was previously reported. They also reinstated right-hander Kendall Graveman from the injured list. To open roster spots for those two, lefty José Castillo and infielder Garrett Hampson were both designated for assignment. The club’s 40-man roster count drops to 38.

Hampson, 30, inked a minor league deal in free agency and broke camp with the D-backs after hitting .283/.393/.348 in 56 trips to the plate this spring. He hasn’t been able to carry that production over to the regular season. He’s appeared in only 18 games and taken just 41 turns at the plate, batting .167/.359/.167 in that span. He’s been a pest for opposing pitchers in the sense that he’s taken 10 walks, but Hampson is also 5-for-30 (all singles) and has bottom-of-the-scale contact metrics when he’s put the ball in play.

Arizona is Hampson’s fourth team in four seasons. He spent the first five seasons of his career with the Rockies but since his final season there has had one-year stints with the Marlins, Royals and now D-backs. He hasn’t hit much in any of those spots, combining for a .237/.308/.323 slash in 750 plate appearances dating back to 2022. However, Hamspon is a plus runner (84th percentile sprint speed, per Statcast) who can be deployed virtually anywhere on the diamond. Even though he’s been seldom used with the D-backs, he’s still seen time at five positions: second base, shortstop, third base, left field and center field.

Castillo, 29, has spent the better part of the past half decade in injury rehab. Since a strong MLB debut with the 2018 Padres, the southpaw has been on the injured list due to a torn ligament in his pitching hand, a torn lat and Tommy John surgery. Just making it back to the majors in the wake of so many rapid-fire injuries is a feat, but Castillo’s brief time with the Snakes didn’t go well. He pitched 6 1/3 innings out of Torey Lovullo’s bullpen — already his most in a big league season since ’18 — and was pounded for eight runs on 10 hits and three walks with three strikeouts.

As a rookie, Castillo fired 38 1/3 innings of 3.29 ERA ball for the Friars, fanning a gaudy 34.7% of his opponents against an 8.1% walk rate. He was terrific in a small 5 1/3-inning sample in Triple-A Reno this year, allowing only a run on four hits and no walks with seven strikeouts and a 58% grounder rate. That performance could lead to some interest from other teams, although Castillo’s once-95-mph heater has understandably dipped to an average of 93.3 mph in the wake of all those injuries.

Both Castillo and Hampson can spend a maximum of one week in DFA limbo. The D-backs can look to trade them during that time or simply place them on outright waivers. Since waivers take 48 hours to process, the team has up to five days to orchestrate trades of either player, should there be a market. In the event that they’re placed on waivers and go unclaimed, both players have enough major league service time to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency.

Looking Ahead To Club Options: NL West

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Over the coming days, MLBTR will look at next offseason’s option class. Steve Adams will highlight the players who can opt out of their current deals, while we’ll take a division-by-division look at those whose contracts contain either team or mutual options. Virtually all of the mutual options will be bought out by one side. Generally, if the team is willing to retain the player at the option price, the player will decline his end in search of a better free agent deal.

Arizona Diamondbacks

Arizona signed the veteran righty, who missed all of last season after undergoing shoulder surgery in January 2024. Graveman was hobbled by back discomfort this spring and began the year on the 15-day injured list. He has thrown a few bullpen sessions but has yet to begin a rehab assignment. During his most recent healthy season, Graveman worked to a 3.12 ERA across 66 1/3 innings between the White Sox and Astros.

Grichuk posted big numbers in a short-side platoon role for the Snakes in 2024. Arizona brought him back on a $5MM free agent deal. He’s making only a $2MM salary and will collect a $3MM buyout on his option at the end of the season. Grichuk hasn’t gotten much playing time, starting six of Arizona’s 19 games (all but one as the designated hitter). He’s out to a decent start, batting .240 with five doubles over 28 plate appearances.

Colorado Rockies

Farmer has been a rare bright spot in what has been a terrible Colorado lineup. The veteran utilityman has started 15 of their 18 games. He’s playing mostly second base and is hitting .345 with nine doubles, the second-most in MLB. Farmer isn’t going to keep hitting at this pace, but it’s an excellent start for a player who signed for $3.25MM after a down year (.214/.293/.353) with Minnesota.

Kinley signed a three-year extension during the 2022-23 offseason. The slider specialist had a brilliant first half to the ’22 campaign, but that was cut short in July by elbow surgery. Kinley hasn’t been the same pitcher since returning. He allowed more than six earned runs per nine in both 2022 and ’23. He has given up five runs (four earned) with seven strikeouts and six walks across 7 2/3 innings this season. Kinley owns a 6.03 ERA while walking more than 11% of opposing hitters over 88 frames since signing the extension.

The option comes with a $5MM base value. It would escalate by $500K apiece if Kinley finishes 20, 25, and 30 games — potentially up to $6.5MM. He has finished two contests in the early going. While the option isn’t especially costly, this is trending towards a buyout.

Stallings produced the best offensive numbers of his career for the Rox in 2024. He returned on a $2.5MM deal early in the offseason. Stallings has been more of the 1-b catcher behind Hunter Goodman. He has started seven games and caught 59 innings. It’s been a slow start, as he’s batting .125 with 12 strikeouts in 27 trips to the plate.

Note: Thairo Estrada’s one-year deal contains a ’26 mutual option, but he’s excluded from this exercise because he would remain eligible for arbitration if the option is declined.

Los Angeles Dodgers

  • Max Muncy, 3B ($10MM club option, no buyout)

This could end up being a borderline call. The Dodgers can keep Muncy around for what’d be his ninth season in L.A. on a $10MM price tag. That’s not an exorbitant sum for baseball’s highest-spending team. Muncy has generally been an excellent hitter in the middle of Dave Roberts’ lineup. He’s a career .230/.355/.482 hitter in Dodger blue. He remained as productive when he was healthy last season, posting a .232/.358/.494 slash over 73 games. An oblique strain cost him three months.

Muncy is out to a much slower start this year. He has yet to connect on a home run in 18 games. He’s batting .193 with 25 strikeouts in 68 plate appearances (a 36.8% rate). It’s very early, of course, but he’ll need to pick things up. Muncy turns 35 in August. NPB third baseman Munetaka Murakami will be posted for MLB teams next offseason. The Dodgers will very likely be involved on the 25-year-old slugger, so it’s possible they’d prefer to keep the position open early in the winter.

Taylor is in the final season of his four-year, $60MM free agent deal. He was coming off an All-Star season in 2021, when he hit .254/.344/.438 with 20 homers. His offense has trended down over the course of the contract, especially sharply over the past two years. Taylor fanned at a near-31% clip last season, batting .202/.298/.300 in 246 plate appearances. He has only been in the starting lineup three times this season.

The Dodgers have kept Taylor throughout his offensive struggles. They clearly place a lot of value on him as a clubhouse presence and appreciate the defensive versatility he provides off the bench. Still, it’s hard to imagine them paying the extra $8MM to exercise the option since he’s essentially the final position player on the roster. The option price would increase by $1MM if Taylor is traded or in the unlikely event that he reaches 525 plate appearances and/or makes the All-Star Game.

Note: Alex Vesia’s arbitration contract contains a ’26 club option, but he’s excluded from this exercise because he would remain eligible for arbitration if the option is declined.

San Diego Padres

Díaz finished last season in San Diego after being released by the Rockies. He re-signed on a $3.5MM deal as the Padres went with the affordable veteran catching tandem of Díaz and Martín Maldonado. He’s hitting .206 in 13 games, though he has taken seven walks against eight strikeouts.

  • Kyle Hart, LHP ($5MM club option, $500K buyout)

Hart, a soft-tossing lefty, returned to the majors after an excellent year in Korea. He signed a $1.5MM guarantee with a ’26 team option that has a $5MM base salary. The option price could climb as high as $7.5MM. It would jump $250K if Hart reaches 18 starts this year, $500K at 22 starts, $750K at 26 starts, and $1MM if he starts 30 games.

San Diego has given Hart a season-opening rotation spot. He has allowed seven runs over his first 11 2/3 innings. Hart has walked five with eight strikeouts and a below-average 8.3% swinging strike percentage.

King’s option is purely an accounting measure. He agreed to push $3.75MM of this year’s $7.75MM guarantee back to the end of the season in the form of a buyout — potentially buying the Padres a bit of flexibility for in-season trade acquisitions. Barring a major injury, he’s going to decline his end of the option and will be one of the top pitchers in next year’s class.

Wade agreed to a $1MM club option as part of a deal to avoid a hearing in his final year of arbitration. He was squeezed off the roster during Spring Training. Wade cleared waivers, accepted an assignment to Triple-A, then came back up last week. He’s playing center field with Jackson Merrill and Brandon Lockridge on the injured list. The option price is barely above the league minimum, but Wade is on the roster bubble and no guarantee to stick in the majors through the end of the season.

San Francisco Giants

San Francisco added Murphy on a two-year deal during the 2023-24 offseason. The veteran catcher has had a difficult time staying healthy throughout his career, and that’s continued in San Francisco. He played in only 13 games last year because of a knee sprain. He started this season on the shelf with a herniated disc that is going to keep him out for at least the first two months. This looks like a buyout.

NL West Notes: Graveman, Seidler, Murphy

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Diamondbacks right-hander Kendall Graveman has been battling some back tightness in camp and still hasn’t appeared in a Spring Training game. Manager Torey Lovullo tells Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports that the issue cropped up again yesterday after throwing live batting practice. Weiner relays that Graveman appears to be questionable for Opening Day.

The Snakes signed Graveman to a one-year, $1.35MM deal less than a month ago. The modest price is a reflection of the fact that Graveman missed the 2024 season recovering from shoulder surgery. The D’Backs have made a modest bet that he could bounce back to his pre-surgery form. From 2021 to 2023, he tossed 187 1/3 relief innings with a 2.74 earned run average, 24.5% strikeout rate, 10.4% walk rate and 48.9% ground ball rate.

If healthy, Graveman would be one of the club’s key leverage relievers, alongside guys like A.J. Puk, Kevin Ginkel and Justin Martínez. This back issue doesn’t seem to be a major concern but isn’t the ideal way for him to start down the comeback trail. Opening Day is still two weeks away, which gives him some time, but it will be a situation to watch for the Diamondbacks and their fans.

More notes from around the National League West…

  • John Seidler is now officially the control person of the Padres, reports Dennis Lin of The Athletic. The brother of the later Peter Seidler, John was approved by the league as control person over a month ago. Despite the league approval, it was noted at that time that the transfer would not become official until all the paperwork was complete on John becoming the trustee of Peter’s trust. Lin relays that the process with the trust is now complete, making John the official control person. After Peter’s death, the duties of control person were handled by his previous business partner Eric Kutsenda on an interim basis. There is an ongoing legal dispute over control of the club in the wake of Peter’s passing, with his widow Sheel filing suit against his brothers.
  • Giants catcher Tom Murphy continues to be on the shelf. The club informed reporters, including Justice delos Santos of The Mercury News, that Murphy would require another epidural injection this week. He’ll be doing rehab only for the next two weeks, meaning no baseball activities. That makes him a lock for the injured list to start the season. That’s not a shock, since it was reported in late February that he has a herniated disc in his mid-back area and would be getting an epidural injection that would sideline him for weeks. He’s now getting a second shot and is still not close. Murphy has flashed a potent bat in his career but injuries have often stood in the way. He has nine MLB seasons but only appeared in 50 or more games in two of those. The Giants have Patrick Bailey as their primary catcher. With Murphy out, the backup job could fall to Sam Huff. Non-roster options in camp include Logan Porter and Max Stassi.

The D-backs’ Closing Competition

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The Diamondbacks entered the offseason in search of a new first baseman, a closer and some right-handed thump in the lineup, among other items on the to-do list. They’ve broadly succeeded, acquiring Josh Naylor from the Guardians to replace free agent Christian Walker and re-signing Randal Grichuk. The Snakes haven’t found a slam-dunk closer, but they signed a new (co) ace, shocking the industry with their signing of Corbin Burnes for six years and $210MM.

While there’s still one marquee free agent reliever on the market — David Robertson has yet to sign — it appears increasingly likely that the Diamondbacks will largely go with the arms who are already in camp as they look to sort out the ninth inning. Arizona’s payroll is already projected for a franchise-record $195MM. That’s a new highwater mark by a measure of nearly $30MM. We can always adopt the “never say never” mentality as long as there are a few viable closing options on the free agent and trade markets, but the D-backs may already have their closer in house. At present, A.J. Puk and Justin Martinez appear to be the front-runners.

Puk, acquired at the deadline from the Marlins in exchange for young slugger Deyvison De Los Santos and outfielder Andrew Pintar, enjoyed a quietly dominant season in 2024. His cumulative 3.15 ERA looks more good than great, but it’s skewed by a failed experiment wherein the Marlins tried to stretch him back out as a starter early in the season. Puk was clobbered for 17 runs in 13 2/3 innings. He moved back to the bullpen, and from that point forth was arguably the best reliever in the sport.

After giving up 17 earned runs in his four starts, Puk only allowed 11 more earned runs for the entire season. He posted a 1.72 ERA out of the bullpen in 2024, fanning a colossal 35% of his opponents against a terrific 5.1% walk rate. Opponents averaged only 86.6 mph off the bat against him in that time with a middling 32.6% hard-hit rate. Per Statcast, only five of his opponents’ batted balls in that time were barreled. Puk allowed a run in his second appearance with the D-backs and then went on a run for the ages, rattling off 23 2/3 scoreless innings with a 38-to-4 K/BB ratio. He punched out 44.7% of opponents in that career-best run.

Martinez was nearly as dominant for the early portion of the 2024 season. The young flamethrower posted a 1.60 ERA with a 27.5% strikeout rate and mammoth 64.5% grounder rate in his first 50 innings of work. His exit velocity and hard-hit rate were nearly identical to Puk’s marks as a reliever. An 11.5% walk rate was in clear need of improvement, but for a 22-year-old who averaged better than 100 mph on both his four-seamer and sinker, it’s hard to draw up a more promising start.

That run of dominance didn’t last the full season, however. While Martinez remained a solid reliever, his 3.90 ERA over the final 27 2/3 innings of his season was far less eye-catching. The young righty’s strikeout rate actually ticked up during that span, perhaps due to roughly doubling the usage of his four-seamer at the expense of his sinker, but his grounder rate fell sharply. There was surely some poor fortune in play, as Martinez was hampered by a .388 BABIP during this stretch despite continuing to limit hard contact (and allowing only one home run).

Whether in the ninth inning or working in a setup capacity, both Puk and Martinez will be in high-leverage roles this season. They were two of the D-backs’ top five arms in terms of their average leverage index — but not the top two. Paul Sewald’s departure in free agency subtracted one of Arizona’s top leverage arms, but it was actually righty Ryan Thompson who found himself most frequently in high-leverage spots, followed by Martinez and then by fellow righty Kevin Ginkel.

The 32-year-old Thompson isn’t the prototypical power arm often associated with pressure-packed, late-inning situations. He’s a sidearming righty who averages just 91 mph on his sinker and 92.5 mph on his lesser-used four-seamer. Thompson’s 19.1% strikeout rate was well below the 23.4% league average among relievers. However, he boasts a 61% grounder rate, rarely issues walks (5.5%) and posted nearly identical results versus righties (.254/.299/.377) and lefties (.254/.293/.377). He picked up two saves and 24 holds.

Ginkel, 30, has quietly emerged as a key arm in Phoenix. He was never a top prospect and didn’t truly establish himself as a reliable reliever until his age-28 season, in 2022. Over the past three seasons, he’s tossed 164 2/3 innings with a 2.95 ERA. It’s not necessarily flashy, as Ginkel is more good-than-great in terms of strikeout rate (26.5%), walk rate (7.3%), swinging-strike rate (12.5%), ground-ball rate (47.1%) and fastball velocity (96 mph average) in that time. Even with the lack of one standout area in which he truly excels, his above-average rates across the board have made him a consistent and reliable late-inning option for manager Torey Lovullo.

Also entering the mix is 34-year-old Kendall Graveman, who signed a one-year, $1.35MM deal after missing the 2024 season due to shoulder surgery. With 24 saves and 56 holds from 2020-23, Graveman is no stranger to late-inning work. After moving to the bullpen in Sept. 2020 with the Mariners, Graveman rattled off 197 1/3 innings with a 2.78 ERA, 24% strikeout rate, 10.3% walk rate and 49.2% grounder rate. At his best, Graveman averaged better than 96 mph on his heater and offered a Ginkel-esque blend of above-average strikeout, walk and ground-ball rates while sitting around 96 mph with his main offering. Whether he can return to that form in the wake of last year’s shoulder surgery is an open question.

However it shakes out, the Snakes look to have a solid quintet of arms rounding out the late-inning group at Chase Field. Lefty Joe Mantiply offers a solid middle-inning complement who has picked up around 12 holds per year over the past four seasons. A starter who doesn’t make the rotation (e.g. Jordan Montgomery, Ryne Nelson) could hold down another spot. Bryce Jarvis, Kyle Nelson and non-roster candidates like Shelby Miller, Scott McGough, John Curtiss and Josh Winder (among others) will vie for what’s likely one open spot.

There’s enough left on both the trade and free agent markets that it’s not impossible to envision a change still impacting Lovullo’s bullpen composition. Signing Robertson might be too pricey, likely pushing the D-backs into $200MM+ payroll territory for the first time, but if GM Mike Hazen ultimately finds a trade partner for Montgomery, any savings could make Robertson feel likelier. The Padres have been open to offers on Robert Suarez. Trading within the division probably isn’t either team’s first choice, though. A Ryan Helsley trade before next offseason feels virtually inevitable but also seems likelier to happen in-season at this point.

In any bullpen, there’s almost always room for one more addition. But, if this is the group the D-backs take into the season, they can still feel good about an impressive breadth of experienced late-inning arms who have the makings of a strong overall unit.

Diamondbacks Designate Seth Martinez For Assignment

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The Diamondbacks announced that right-hander Seth Martinez has been designated for assignment. That’s the corresponding move for their signing of fellow righty Kendall Graveman, which is now official.

Martinez, 30, has never suited up for the Snakes. He was just claimed off waivers from the Astros in November, shortly after the World Series. He lasted on the roster through most of the winter but has been nudged off today.

All of his major league experience has been with Houston thus far. He was added to that club’s roster late in 2021 and spent several years as a fringe member of the bullpen, getting optioned to the minors 12 times since getting that roster spot.

Around those trips on the shuttle, he tossed 137 1/3 major league innings for the Astros, allowing 3.93 earned runs per nine. His 20.7% strikeout rate, 9.2% walk rate and 39.6% ground ball rate to this point are all close to average but a bit worse than the mean. He also tossed 105 minor league innings over the past four years with more intriguing numbers. He had a 2.66 ERA in that work, along with a 31.5% strikeout rate and 10% walk rate.

He exhausted his final option year in 2024, which means he’ll be less valuable from a roster flexibility standpoint going forward. That likely played a role in the Astros bumping him off their roster. The Diamondbacks were presumably intrigued enough by his minor league strikeouts to claim him and hang onto him for a while but he’s been squeezed off a roster yet again.

Martinez will now be in DFA limbo for a maximum of seven days. He will likely be put back on waivers, which is a 48-hour process, so the Diamondbacks could explore trade interest for the next five days. If any club acquired Martinez, he has a bit more than two years of service time, meaning he still hasn’t qualified for arbitration and can be theoretically controlled for four seasons. However, his aforementioned out-of-options status will give him a bit of a challenge in sticking somewhere.

Diamondbacks Sign Kendall Graveman

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February 17: The Graveman signing is now official, with righty Seth Martinez designated for assignment as the corresponding move.

February 14: The Diamondbacks are reportedly in agreement with veteran reliever Kendall Graveman on a one-year, $1.35MM deal. The signing is still pending a physical. Graveman, a client of Sports One Athlete Management, will earn $1.25MM this season and has a $100K buyout on a $5MM mutual option for the 2026 season. The deal includes another $1.95MM in performance bonuses. Arizona will need to create a 40-man roster spot when the deal is finalized.

Graveman, 34, missed the 2024 season while recovering from shoulder surgery but had a strong run between the Mariners, Astros and White Sox across the three prior seasons. The former starter moved to a relief role late in the 2020 season after returning from Tommy John surgery and found fast success in a high-leverage role. From 2021-23, Graveman pitched 187 1/3 innings with a 2.74 ERA, 51 holds, 24 saves, a 24.5% strikeout rate and a 10.4% walk rate.

Though last season was lost to shoulder troubles, Graveman was cleared to begin throwing late last summer. He progressed through a normal offseason throwing and conditioning program and is ready for spring training.

When he’s been healthy, Graveman has relied upon a power sinker sitting north of 96 mph, pairing that offering with an upper-80s slider and a lesser-used changeup that sits 89-90 mph. That heavy sinker has allowed him to consistently post ground-ball rates comfortably north of 50%. The right-hander lost a bit of life on all those pitches in 2023 and saw his command erode considerably in the season’s second half, following a trade from the White Sox back to the Astros.

It’s possible shoulder issues contributed to both those red flags, of course. It’ll be telling how he looks early in camp and early in the season. If Graveman is back to 96-98 mph with his sinker and can get his walk rate back down to the 9% range — it was at 12.4% in 2023 — he’ll be a formidable piece in what should be a strong Diamondbacks bullpen.

D-backs general manager Mike Hazen has been open about his desire to add a closer this offseason. While Graveman may not be handed the role out of the gate, he adds a talented and experienced option for manager Torey Lovullo to consider. If he can get back to 2021-23 form, it’s easy to see Graveman factoring into the ninth inning. Prior to this agreement, the Snakes appeared likely to lean on some combination of A.J. Puk, Justin Martinez and Kevin Ginkel in save opportunities.

The addition of Graveman pushes the Diamondbacks’ payroll a bit north of $195MM, per RosterResource. That’s a franchise-record mark by a wide margin, shattering the previous highwater mark of $163MM, set just last year. Prior to the 2024 season, the D-backs had never opened the season higher than $132MM. They’ve been heavily involved in both the trade and free agent markets in each of the past two offseasons, however, with no bigger strike coming than the club-record $210MM investment in newly signed ace Corbin Burnes.

Since Graveman only bumps the payroll by $600K over a league-minimum player, it’s at least feasible that the D-backs could remain engaged in the market for additional bullpen help. David Robertson and Kyle Finnegan both remain unsigned and have ample closing experience. Craig Kimbrel and Hector Neris are both still out there as well and looking to rebound from shaky 2024 campaigns, while Daniel Bard is an even more extreme rebound candidate as he looks to rebound from flexor tendon surgery that cost him all of the 2024 campaign with his 40th birthday looming in June. The trade market presents additional possibilities, of course, but Hazen said just yesterday that any forthcoming bullpen acquisitions would likely be made via free agency.

ESPN’s Jesse Rogers first reported the D-Backs and Graveman had a one-year deal. MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert was first with the $1.35MM guarantee. Rogers reported the maximum $3.3MM value after incentives, while Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reported the mutual option/buyout.

Kendall Graveman Generating Interest

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Right-hander Kendall Graveman missed the entire 2024 season due to shoulder surgery, but ESPN’s Jesse Rogers reports that the veteran reliever is now healthy and generating interest in free agency as the bullpen market continues to pick up steam late in the winter. MLBTR’s Steve Adams adds that Graveman was cleared to begin throwing late last season and has had a normal offseason program. He’s expected to be ready for spring training and Opening Day.

A team signing Graveman would be betting on a bounceback. He was a solid starter earlier in his career but missed the 2019 season recovering from Tommy John surgery and converted to a relief role after that. He had a strong run prior to his most recent injury. From 2021-22, he threw 121 innings for the Mariners, Astros and White Sox, allowing 2.53 earned runs per nine. He struck out 25% of batters faced, gave out walks to 9.1% of opponents and generated grounders on a hefty 54.3% of batted balls.

His 2023 was a bit uneven. Starting the year with the White Sox, his 10.8% walk rate with Chicago was a bit elevated, but not alarmingly so. He pitched to a 3.48 ERA with the Sox, tallied eight saves and eight holds, and punched out a roughly average 22.6% of batters faced. After getting dealt back to the Astros in exchange for catcher Korey Lee, he walked 16.7% of opponents down the stretch. His 25% strikeout rate and 2.42 ERA were both sharp, but the command was clearly lacking. Beyond the uncharacteristically high number of free passes, his ground ball rate was only 38.7%, a big drop from the previous seasons.

The Astros left him off their ALDS roster due to some right shoulder discomfort. In January of 2024, it was announced that he required surgery on the shoulder and would likely miss the entire season. In hindsight, perhaps that injury explains some of this 2023 struggles, as the velocity on all his pitches dropped relative to 2022.

Graveman is now 34 years old. He missed all of last year and didn’t post his best numbers the year prior. There’s certainly risk in signing a pitcher in this position, but it could turn into a nice upside play if he’s able to stay healthy and get back to his previous form.

The last time Graveman was a free agent, in the 2021-22 offseason, he signed a three-year, $24MM deal with the White Sox. Based on what has happened over the past couple of years, he’ll surely be limited to something far less this time around — likely a low-cost one-year deal with incentives based on innings pitched (and possibly games finished).

The relief market has picked up significantly this month. The Cubs and Reds acquired Ryan Pressly and Taylor Rogers, respectively, in trades over the past week. Six different free agent relievers have signed eight-figure deals in the past few weeks: Tanner Scott, Jeff Hoffman, A.J. Minter, Kirby Yates, Andrew Kittredge and José Leclerc. Another six relievers signed in the $3-8MM range: Tommy Kahnle, Paul Sewald, Chris Martin, Ryne Stanek, Caleb Ferguson and Jorge López.

Pitchers like Kenley Jansen, David Robertson, Kyle Finnegan and others are still out there but likely to earn notable salaries, to varying degrees. Others, including Robert Suarez, Ryan Helsley and Camilo Doval, could be available in trade, though acquiring any one of them would require giving up young talent and/or taking on money. Graveman represents a more affordable alternative — one with far less certainty than the bulk of available arms but also a good bit more upside than most of the relievers who’ve yet to sign. In total, from 2021-23, he posted a 2.74 ERA with 51 holds, 24 saves, a 24.5% strikeout rate, a 10.4% walk rate and a 48.9% grounder rate.

West Notes: Eovaldi, Scherzer, Gurriel, Musgrove, Graveman

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The Rangers are heading to Boston for a series with the Red Sox beginning tomorrow, but Nathan Eovaldi and Max Scherzer are both going to Texas for injury-related checkups, GM Chris Young told the Associated Press and other reporters.  Eovaldi left his start Saturday after three innings due to tightness in his left side, though the meeting with team doctor Keith Meister is seen as precautionary since Eovaldi “thinks he can pitch through” the issue, Young said.  “He’s so important to us that we’re not sure we want to push him.  We may end up pushing him back or skipping a start.  We don’t think it’s an IL at this point, but we will clearly decide that once he sees Dr. Meister.”

Scherzer was placed on the 15-day injured list on July 31 due to right shoulder fatigue, and Young said the veteran “just hasn’t turned the corner with his shoulder.  Our hope is that maybe we get back and explore some other diagnostic measures and get him back on the mound.  But I don’t know what the timetable is going to be.”  Between this IL stint and an extended absence at the start of the season while recovering from back surgery and a nerve issue in his thumb, Scherzer has pitched only 39 1/3 innings over eight starts.

More will be known about both pitchers’ situations after the tests are complete, but there is clear cause for concern given how both Eovaldi and Scherzer have checkered injury histories.  For Scherzer in particular, his situation is worrisome given how much time he has already missed, and whether or not his abnormal ramp-up this year simply kept him from being fully ready to pitch.  If either Scherzer or Eovaldi are revealed to have more serious issues, it could put the rest of their seasons in jeopardy, as the Rangers might consider shutdowns if the team continues to fall back in the playoff race.

Some other notes from both the AL and NL West divisions…

  • Lourdes Gurriel Jr. left the Diamondbacks’ 12-5 win over the Phillies today due to left hamstring tightness, but manager Torey Lovullo downplayed the injury in postgame comments to MLB.com and other media.  Lovullo said the removal was precautionary and that Gurriel is day-to-day, plus the outfielder isn’t even being sent for any tests at this time.  Gurriel is hitting .269/.302/.414 with 14 homers over 453 plate appearances as the team’s regular left fielder, translating to a 98 wRC+ in the first season of the three-year, $42MM contract he signed to rejoin the D’Backs last offseason.
  • The Padres will be activating Joe Musgrove from the 60-day injured list to start tomorrow’s game against the Pirates, after bone spurs in his right elbow cost him about two and a half months on the shelf.  Talking with Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune, Musgrove made changes to his mechanics and delivery in order to help manage the injury.  “The spur is going to be there, the structure of the elbow is not going to change unless I get an operation,” Musgrove said.  “So [I’m] trying to find a way to be able to throw and still execute and still have good stuff.  Hopefully it will alleviate some of the stress on the elbow is kind of the goal….I felt great in this build back.”  Between this injury and a previous elbow-related stint on the IL, Musgrove has thrown only 49 1/3 innings this season, with a shaky 5.66 ERA.
  • Kendall Graveman wasn’t expected to pitch in 2024 after a shoulder surgery last January, but his hopes at an in-season comeback gained some momentum Saturday when he threw a 10-pitch bullpen session.  Astros manager Joe Espada told reporters (including Matt Kawahara of the San Diego Union-Tribune) that Graveman hit 86-87mph in his first time throwing off a mound since the surgery.  As Kawahara notes, there might simply be not enough time left in the season for Graveman to get fully ramped up and then complete a minor league rehab assignment, but that won’t stop the veteran from trying.

Astros Notes: France, Bloss, Caratini, Graveman

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Rotation depth has been an issue for the Astros throughout the season, and they’re still getting unwelcome updates on that front. General manager Dana Brown said yesterday in an appearance on SportsTalk 790 AM that righty J.P. France, who’s on the minor league injured list due to a shoulder injury, had a recent setback after building up to long-tossing (X link via Brian McTaggart of MLB.com). There’s presently no timetable for France’s return to the mound.

The 29-year-old France was an out-of-the-blue rotation savior in Houston for much of the 2023 season. He started 23 games for the ’Stros, posted a sharp 3.83 ERA, and wound up finishing fourth on the team in innings pitched (136 1/3) as Houston navigated several injuries. France appeared to fade down the stretch, however, yielding five or more runs in three of his final six starts — including a 10-run drubbing at the hands of the Red Sox in late August. He also turned in an ERA north of 7.00 in his first five starts of the current season, bringing his overall ERA in his past 11 big league starts to 7.71.

That rocky stretch notwithstanding, the ongoing injury trouble for France is a notable hit to Houston’s rotation depth. He was quite strong through his first 17 starts last season, and for a club that entered the year with Justin Verlander, Luis Garcia and Lance McCullers Jr. all on the injured list, France represented an important fifth or sixth option on the staff. Instead, he’s been limited to just 29 innings between the majors and minors combined, and it’s not clear when or whether he’ll pitch his way back into the team’s plans.

There’s better news on right-hander Jake Bloss, who exited his major league debut this weekend after 3 2/3 innings and was subsequently placed on the injured list with discomfort in his right shoulder. Manager Joe Espada said yesterday in his pregame media session that an MRI revealed only inflammation in the young right-hander’s shoulder (video link via SportsTalk 790). He’ll go “a few” days without throwing, but the absence of any structural damage is a welcome relief for the organization.

The 23-year-old Bloss was Houston’s third-round pick just last summer and raced through the minors — in part because of the team’s litany of rotation injuries but also because of outstanding performance. In a dozen minor league starts between High-A (four starts) and Double-A (eight starts) prior to his promotion, Bloss posted a 1.74 ERA through 62 innings.

Bloss’ placement on the injured list brings Houston back down to four healthy starting pitchers on the 40-man roster, however. He joins Verlander, Garcia, McCullers, Cristian Javier and Jose Urquidy on the major league injured list (plus France in Triple-A). Framber Valdez, Hunter Brown, Ronel Blanco and Spencer Arrighetti are locked into spots for the moment, but the Astros will still need to stretch further to bring up another arm or rely on a bullpen game or two while Bloss and Verlander mend. Verlander, Espada noted yesterday, has yet to resume throwing. There’s no firm timetable for when he might begin a throwing program or return to the Houston roster.

Elsewhere on the injury front, it seems backup catcher Victor Caratini will be out at least three to four weeks (per Brown in that same SportsTalk 790 appearance). He hit the injured list with a left hip flexor strain last week, which prompted the Astros to bring up catcher Cesar Salazar from Triple-A Sugar Land. That timeline from Brown could put Caratini roughly in line with the All-Star break, barring any setbacks.

Caratini has quietly been a solid option backing up young Yainer Diaz. His .248/.287/.400 batting line is right in line with the league average after weighting for his home park (by measure of wRC+). That level of production outpaces even most starting catchers around the league, leaving Caratini looking like a nice pickup on the two-year, $12MM contract he signed over the winter.

Lastly, righty Kendall Graveman tells Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle that he’s not giving up hope of a late-season return following his January shoulder surgery. While Graveman acknowledged the possibility is “remote,” he’s midway through a throwing program and could begin throwing off a mound sometime in early August. He’s currently throwing on flat ground from a distance of 90 feet.

Graveman, 33, also offered further specifics on the nature of his surgery. (The team did not provide any details at the time of their announcement.) The right-hander had a pair of anchors installed in his labrum in addition to a cleanup of his rotator cuff. Graveman provides further details and offers plenty of quotes on his outlook and mindset that Astros fans, in particular, will want to check out in full.

In 66 1/3 innings between the White Sox and Astros last season, Graveman pitched to a combined 3.12 ERA with a 23.4% strikeout rate, 12.8% walk rate, 13 holds and eight saves. While Brown suggested at the time of the surgery that Graveman’s likely season-ending injury wouldn’t intensify his team’s bullpen pursuit in free agency, the Astros signed Josh Hader to a five-year contract just three days after announcing that Graveman had undergone his procedure.

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