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Kyle Dowdy

Orioles Sign Three Pitchers To Minor League Deals

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The Orioles announced the signing of three right-handers — Eduard Bazardo, Kyle Dowdy and Wandisson Charles — to minor league contracts this evening. All three are relievers who’ll add to Baltimore’s bullpen depth without requiring a spot on the 40-man roster.

Bazardo has spent his entire career in the AL East. A former international signee of the Red Sox, he played parts of seven seasons in the Boston system. The Venezuela native has primarily pitched at Triple-A Worcester over the last two years, tallying 68 2/3 innings of 4.33 ERA ball. Bazardo has fanned an average 23.1% of opposing hitters at that level against a solid 7.7% walk rate, securing fairly brief looks in the majors in each of the past two seasons.

The 27-year-old tallied 19 1/3 MLB innings over 14 appearances, allowing five runs. That’s a strong mark but wasn’t supported by a fairly modest 14:8 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Boston ran Bazardo through outright waivers in each of the last two years and he elected minor league free agency after going unclaimed in October. He averaged 94 MPH on his fastball and generated a decent number of whiffs on his low-80’s breaking ball in his limited big league look.

Dowdy pitched 22 1/3 innings as a Rule 5 draftee for the Rangers back in 2019, walking more batters than he struck out while posting a 7.25 ERA. Returned to the Cleveland system midseason, he spent the next couple years in the minor leagues. Dowdy returned to the bigs for a very brief stint with the Reds this September, making two appearances. He worked 6 1/3 scoreless innings for Cincinnati, albeit with just three strikeouts and walks apiece. Cincinnati non-tendered him at the end of the year to reallocate his spot on the 40-man roster to prospects they didn’t want to lose in the Rule 5 draft.

A University of Houston product, Dowdy turns 30 in February. He spent most of this year with the Reds highest affiliate in Louisville, pitching to a 3.96 ERA across 52 1/3 frames. Dowdy punched out 24% of opponents but issued walks at a significant 13.3% clip. Strike-throwing has been a consistent issue throughout his career, as he’s walked 12.7% of batters faced over four Triple-A seasons. He averaged a bit north of 96 MPH on his heater during his limited MLB look with Cincinnati.

Charles, 26, has yet to reach the majors. He secured a spot on the A’s 40-man roster over the 2020-21 offseason, which he held until this August. Oakland designated him for assignment and ran him through waivers amidst a grisly 2022 showing at Double-A Midland, and he reached free agency at season’s end. The native of the Dominican Republic posted an 11.43 ERA over 37 innings for the RockHounds, walking an untenable 18.8% of opponents with a 16.8% strikeout rate. The Orioles will hope a change of scenery can get him back on track. Prior to this year, Charles had garnered modest praise from prospect evaluators for a fastball that reaches the upper-90s.

National League Non-Tenders: 11/18/22

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The deadline to tender contract to arbitration-eligible players is tonight at 7:00pm Central. Here’s a rundown of the players on National League teams that have been non-tendered today. This post will be updated as more decisions are revealed. All players non-tendered go directly to free agency

MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected salaries for all arb-eligible players last month.

Later Updates

  • The Reds have non-tendered righty Daniel Duarte and minor league outfielder Allan Cerda, taking both off the 40-man roster. Neither had been eligible for arbitration, but Cincinnati will send both into free agency without having to place either on waivers. Duarte made three relief appearances this year, his first as a big leaguer. Cerda, 23 next month, has yet to reach the majors. He hit .198/.350/.401 in 257 plate appearances in Double-A. Cincinnati also announced that six players designated for assignment earlier this week — Aristides Aquino, Jared Solomon, Kyle Dowdy, Derek Law, Art Warren and Jeff Hoffman — were all let go. Both Duarte and Cerda have already agreed to re-sign with Cincinnati on minor league deals, reports Mark Sheldon of MLB.com (Twitter link).

Earlier Moves

  • The Braves freed a pair of 40-man roster spots by non-tendering minor league pitchers Brooks Wilson and Alan Rangel. Rangel spent most of this past season in Double-A, while Wilson didn’t pitch in 2022. Atlanta also announced that three players non-tendered earlier this week — Guillermo Heredia, Jackson Stephens and Silvino Bracho — have been let go.
  • The Giants have non-tendered relievers Mauricio Llovera and Alex Young and infielder Donovan Walton, clearing three spots on the 40-man roster. Walton was acquired from the Mariners midseason and hit .158/.179/.303 in 24 games with San Francisco. Young made 24 appearances after his contract was purchased from the Guardians. Llovera pitched 17 times after signing a minor league deal last offseason. Additionally San Francisco non-tendered seven players who’d been designated for assignment earlier this week: Drew Strotman, Meibrys Viloria, Colton Welker, Jarlin Garcia, Dom Nunez, Sam Delaplane and Jason Vosler.
  • The Pirates non-tendered lefty Manny Banuelos and catcher Tyler Heineman. Both had been designated for assignment earlier this week.
  • The Diamondbacks non-tendered righty Reyes Moronta, the team announced. The reliever posted a 4.50 ERA in 17 outings with the Snakes after being claimed off waivers from the Dodgers.
  • The Padres announced they’ve cut loose catcher Jorge Alfaro and righty Efrain Contreras. Alfaro had been projected at a $3.6MM salary this season, a hefty amount after a .246/.285/.383 season. Contreras hasn’t pitched in the majors; he had a tough year in High-A and loses his 40-man spot spot as a result.
  • The Cubs have non-tendered center fielder Rafael Ortega, as well as minor league pitchers Brailyn Marquez and Alexander Vizcaino. Ortega has seen a decent amount of action the last two years and had a respectable .241/.331/.358 line through 371 plate appearances this past season. Nevertheless, the Cubs opted against a salary in the $1.7MM range for next year. Marquez has been a top pitching prospect but has battled injury issues for the past few years. Vizcaino was part of the Anthony Rizzo trade with the Yankees but didn’t pitch in the minors this year.
  • The Nationals non-tendered righty Tommy Romero. He’d been designated for assignment earlier this week. Washington confirmed the previously-reported decisions to part with Luke Voit and Erick Fedde.
  • The Brewers cut loose right-handers Trevor Gott, Jandel Gustave and Luis Perdomo. All three were part of Milwaukee’s middle innings mix, with Gustave’s 45 appearances the most among that group. Gott had a 4.15 ERA over 45 2/3 innings after signing a free agent deal last offseason.
  • The Rockies non-tendered infielder/outfielder Garrett Hampson, the club announced. The 28-year-old had been projected for a $2.1MM salary. A speedster with the ability to play anywhere up the middle, Hampson just hasn’t hit at the big league level. He’s coming off a .211/.287/.307 showing through 226 plate appearances.
  • The Mets announced they’ve non-tendered Sean Reid-Foley and confirmed they’re letting go of Dominic Smith, who’s non-tender was previously reported. This year, Reid-Foley made seven MLB appearances, tossing 10 innings of relief.
  • The Dodgers have non-tendered infielder Edwin Rios and utilityman Luke Williams, per a club announcement. Los Angeles also confirmed the previously reported non-tender of former MVP Cody Bellinger. Rios has shown some offensive promise in the past and owns a .212/.299/.492 line through 112 big league games. He missed a good chunk of this past season with a hamstring strain. Williams was claimed off waivers from the Marlins recently; the Dodgers could look to bring him back on a minor league deal.

Reds Select Elly De La Cruz, Noelvi Marte And Four Others, DFA Six Players

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The Reds have selected the contracts of top prospects Elly De La Cruz and Noelvi Marte, as well as Brandon Williamson, Levi Stoudt, Lyon Richardson and Ricky Karcher. As a result, they’ve DFA’d Aristides Aquino, Jeff Hoffman, Art Warren, Derek Law, Jared Solomon and Kyle Dowdy.

De La Cruz and Marte are certainly the most notable of the prospects added. De La Cruz is Cincinnati’s top overall prospect, and ranked 14th overall by MLB.com. Still just 20, De La Cruz made it as high as Double-A in 2022. As he has for most of his young career, De La Cruz mashed there, hitting .305/.358/.553 with eight home runs in 47 games while mostly appearing at shortstop. The Reds have been aggressive in moving their top prospect through the minors, and if he continues to rake into Triple-A next year, it won’t be long before he’s donning a Reds uniform.

Marte, 21, came across in the Luis Castillo deadline blockbuster. He hit .293/.397/.443 with four home runs in 30 games at High-A, and would seem likely to start next year at Double-A. He played shortstop during the minor league season, but has been exclusively at third base in the Arizona Fall League. While Marte is a bit behind De La Cruz, Reds fans can certainly start to dream of the pair of them playing infield in the not-too-distant future.

Of the other prospects added, Brandon Williamson is the only top ten prospect in their system, per MLB.com. He’s a left hander who made 13 starts at Triple-A, pitching to a 4.39 ERA. There’s a good chance he features at some point in 2023 in the big leagues. Elsewhere, Stoudt and Karcher are both pitchers who featured at Triple-A in 2022, while neither had dominant results, there’s a chance both would have been called upon anyway as pitching depth. Richardson is a hard-throwing right hander who’s struggled with injuries of late, but even though he’s not pitched above High-A, the Reds clearly feel his arm has enough talent to avoid risking losing him in the draft.

Aquino is the most high profile of the players cut loose by the Reds. He hit a staggering 14 home runs during August in 2019 for a .320/.391/.767 line in that period, but hasn’t hit much since. In 2022, he posted a line of just .197/.246/.363 while striking out more than a third of his plate appearances. Hoffman pitched to a 3.83 ERA across 44 2/3 innings out of the bullpen. Both players were arbitration eligible and non-tender candidates, so it’s not surprising to see them cut loose to open up valuable 40-man spots.

Solomon, Law, Dowdy and Warren all pitched a handful of innings each out of the Reds’ bullpen, but none had much success, and all seemed like near-certain DFA candidates as the Reds look to make room for their young prospects.

Reds Select Kyle Dowdy

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The Reds announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Kyle Dowdy. He has been appointed the club’s “29th man” for today’s doubleheader. The club already had a vacancy on their 40-man roster, meaning no corresponding move will be required.

Dowdy, 29, has 22 1/3 innings of MLB experience on his résumé, which all came back in 2019 with the Rangers. Texas has claimed him off waivers from the Mets, who had nabbed Dowdy from Cleveland in the Rule 5 draft. He stuck with the Rangers through the end of July but was eventually returned to Cleveland after posting a 7.25 ERA over 22 1/3 innings.

He signed a minor league deal with the Reds in December of last year and has been with the Louisville Bats for all of 2022 so far. In 48 2/3 innings on the season, he has a 4.25 ERA, 24.2% strikeout rate and 38.2% ground ball rate. However, that’s come with a concerning 13.2% walk rate, something that’s been an issue for Dowdy in recent years. He also registered a 14.7% walk rate in Triple-A last year, in addition to a 16.4% rate in his time in the majors.

Despite those control issues, Dowdy has made it back to the big leagues for the first time in over three years. He has a full slate of options and less than a year of MLB service time, meaning he could potentially provide the Reds with a depth arm that can be moved between the majors and minors as long as he retains his spot on the 40-man roster.

Reds Sign Kyle Dowdy To Minor League Deal

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The Reds have signed right-hander Kyle Dowdy to a minor league contract with an invitation to Major League Spring Training, per a team announcement.

Dowdy, 28, has 22 1/3 innings of big league experience under his belt — all coming with the 2019 Rangers after he’d been plucked from Cleveland in the Rule 5 Draft. He struggled to a 7.25 ERA in that time, however, issuing more walks (18) than strikeouts recorded (17) before being designated for assignment and returned to his original club upon clearing waivers.

This past season, Dowdy spent the year in Triple-A Columbus, where he worked to a 4.80 ERA with a 23.1% strikeout rate against an ugly 14.6% walk rate. The righty does average better than 95 mph on his heater, and he posted a respectable 12.1% swinging-strike rate in Triple-A this past season.

From a results standpoint, Dowdy’s numbers don’t stand out, but the raw stuff has been intriguing enough for the Indians to trade for him in 2018 and for two teams to take a look at him during his Rule 5 season; the Mets first selected Dowdy in the Rule 5 Draft, and Texas picked him up on waivers after he was cut from Mets camp near the end of Spring Training.

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