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Maikel Garcia

IL Transactions: Matz, VerHagen, Lynch, De Jong

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The Cardinals activated left-hander Steven Matz off the 15-day injured list today, as Matz was slated to start the Cardinals’ game against the Reds before the contest was rained out.  Matz will now have to wait until after the All-Star break to make his official return to the field, as he has been sidelined since May 22 due to a shoulder impingement.  With the Cards in need of rotation help, a healthy and effective Matz would be a major boost to the team, as both sides must hope that this two-month absence can essentially be a restart on Matz’s season.  After signing a four-year, $44MM free agent deal with St. Louis in November, Matz stumbled out of the gate with a 6.03 ERA over his first 37 1/3 innings in a Cardinals uniform.

To create room on the active roster, St. Louis placed right-hander Drew VerHagen on the 15-day IL with a right hip impingement.  A similar injury sent VerHagen to the injured list for a little over three weeks earlier this season, and the righty was just activated from another IL stint (due to shoulder problems) earlier this week.  With all of these health issues, it perhaps isn’t surprising that VerHagen has only a 6.65 ERA over 21 2/3 innings, with walks and home runs being particular issues for the 31-year-old.  VerHagen is another offseason signing for the Cards, joining the team on a two-year, $5.5MM deal after spending the previous two seasons pitching in Japan.

More comings and goings off the injured list from around the league…

  • The Royals placed left-hander Daniel Lynch on the 15-day IL, as Lynch is again dealing with a blister problem.  Lynch had already been sent to the IL with that same blister issue on June 24, and he was activated earlier this week and made two abbreviated starts before returning to the sidelines.  It has been a difficult season for Lynch, who has a 5.05 ERA and a wealth of troubling Statcast metrics over 15 starts and 71 1/3 innings.  Lynch’s IL placement was part of a busy day of roster moves for the Royals, who sent 10 players (Angel Zerpa, Nick Pratto, Gabe Speier, Collin Snider, Brewer Hicklen, Michael Massey, Freddy Fermin, Nate Eaton to Triple-A; Sebastian Rivero and Maikel Garcia to Double-A) to the minors in the aftermath of their series in Toronto.  This clears the way for the return of 10 Kansas City players, who were placed on the restricted list due to their non-vaccinated status.
  • The Pirates placed righty Chase De Jong on the 15-day IL due to tendinitis in his left knee, and Bryse Wilson (today’s starting pitcher against the Rockies) was called up from Triple-A in the corresponding move.  Another knee injury is perhaps a red flag for De Jong, who underwent surgery on that same left knee last year.  The surgery cut short De Jong’s first season in Pittsburgh, but after signing another minor league deal with the Bucs this past winter, De Jong has rebounded to post a 2.06 ERA over 35 relief innings in 2022.

Royals Add Nick Pratto, Seven Others To Major League Roster

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The Royals announced Thursday that they’ve recalled top first base prospect Nick Pratto from Triple-A Omaha as one of eight players joining the Major League roster. Also coming to the Majors are catcher Sebastian Rivero, infielder Maikel Garcia and lefty Angel Zerpa, who’ve been recalled from Double-A Arkansas. Additionally, the Royals selected the contracts of infielder/outfielder Nate Eaton, catcher Freddy Fermin, outfielder Brewer Hicklen and infielder Michael Massey from Omaha.

The deluge of additions comes in conjunction with the previously announced slate of ten current Royals heading to the restricted list in advance of the team’s road series against the Blue Jays, where travel restrictions prevent unvaccinated athletes from entering Canada. Andrew Benintendi, Dylan Coleman, Hunter Dozier, Cam Gallagher, Kyle Isbel, Brad Keller, MJ Melendez, Whit Merrifield, Brady Singer and Michael A. Taylor are all now formally on the restricted list.

As MLB.com’s Anne Rogers tweets, the roster spots of starting pitchers placed on the restricted list (i.e. Singer, Keller) cannot be filled until four days after they last pitched, per MLB rules, which explains the discrepancy between eight players being added versus the ten who went on the restricted list.

The Royals indicated in today’s announcement that they expect to add “up to two more players” to the big league roster over the course of the series. They’ll make another addition tomorrow and another on Sunday. Any players whose contracts were selected to the 40-man roster for this series can be returned to Triple-A without first needing to clear waivers, due to their status as Covid-19-related replacements.

Pratto’s promotion is the most notable of the bunch. The 14th overall pick in the 2017 draft, the California high school product slowly progressed up the minor league ladder. He had an awful 2019 showing in High-A, and the cancelation of the following minor league season dealt his prospect stock a hit heading into 2021. The lefty hitter rebounded in a huge way last year, blasting 36 home runs in a season split between the minors top two levels. That came with some alarming strikeout numbers, but Pratto’s combination of power and huge walk totals was enough to put him firmly in top prospect consideration. He entered the season as Baseball America’s #43 overall farmhand.

Assigned to Omaha to open this year, Pratto has essentially picked up where he left off. He’s hit 17 more longballs and drawn walks at a massive 15.1% clip, but he’s fanned in over 30% of his trips to the plate. The end result — a .240/.374/.484 line through 337 plate appearances — is still excellent. The Royals nevertheless brought up fellow top prospect Vinnie Pasquantino ahead of Pratto, seemingly preferring he get a long leash to iron out the strikeout concerns in the upper minors. It’s very possible he’ll head back to Omaha after the Jays’ series, but Kansas City fans will at least get their first glimpse at a player they hope eventually develops into a middle-of-the-order bat.

It’ll almost certainly be a brief stint for the group of players temporarily added to the 40-man roster. Hicklen was called up briefly as a COVID replacement earlier in the season. Fermin, Massey and Eaton all have opportunities to make their big league debuts in the coming days. Fermin, a former international signee out of Venezuela, is hitting .242/.357/.422 with Omaha this season.

Massey, a fourth-round pick out of Illinois in 2019, was recently named the #8 prospect in the Kansas City system by Baseball America. He owns a .348/.408/.630 line with six homers in 24 games since being bumped up to Omaha last month, and he’ll almost certainly land a permanent 40-man roster spot by next offseason (when Kansas City would need to add him to keep him from being selected in the Rule 5 draft). Eaton is a former 21st-round pick out of VMI. BA recently slotted him 29th in the farm system in recognition of his .329/.388/.591 showing with the Storm Chasers.

Royals To Promote Maikel Garcia

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The Royals are preparing to promote shortstop Maikel Garcia from Double-A to the majors, El Extrabase’s Daniel Alvarez-Montes reports (Twitter link).  Garcia was added to the 40-man roster last year, but a corresponding move will need to be made to fit Garcia into the active roster, unless he is joining Kansas City as the extra 27th man for Monday’s doubleheader against the Tigers.

The timing of Garcia’s addition could be related to Whit Merrifield’s early exit from today’s game, as the infielder had discomfort in his right toe.  Kansas City manager Mike Matheny told reporters (including MLB.com’s Anne Rogers) that the club was awaiting MRI results on Merrifield, though initial x-rays were negative.  At the very least, it doesn’t seem like Merrifield will be available for tomorrow’s doubleheader, so Garcia can provide some extra infield depth.

With the All-Star break coming up, the Royals could be considering placing Merrifield on the 10-day injured list for at least precautionary reasons, so Merrifield can return fresh for the second half (and perhaps be dangled as a trade candidate in advance of the August 2 deadline).  If Merrifield does require an IL stint, Garcia might get more time to show what he can do in his first taste of MLB action.

An international signing out of Venezuela in 2016, Garcia has some family ties to the K.C. organization, as his cousin is longtime former Royals shortstop Alcides Escobar.  Baseball America ranks Garcia as the 15th-best prospect in the Royals farm system, while MLB Pipeline has him 18th.  The 22-year-old had never even played Double-A ball prior to this season, though he has hit .283/.362/.395 over 348 plate appearances.

Since the start of the 2019 season, Garcia has shown some ability to hit for average and get on base, which is critical considering his lack of power.  Baseball America’s scouting report noted that Garcia has added more pop in the form of doubles power this year in Double-A, and he profiles as a line-drive hitter who makes a lot of solid contact.  Garcia’s baserunning is also a plus, as he has 27 steals in 30 chances this year, and is 110-for-137 over his five pro seasons.

Defensively, pundits feel his glove is more than ready for the big leagues, and Garcia’s plus fielding might be his best tool.  Bobby Witt has the shortstop position locked up for the foreseeable future in Kansas City, but Garcia has played some second base, and would probably be able to make a pretty smooth transition to the keystone or possibly third base, since he has a good throwing arm.  If Merrifield does have to miss time, the Royals could use Garcia in the second base/third base mix with Nicky Lopez and Emmanuel Rivera.

Royals Release Kyle Zimmer

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NOVEMBER 22: The Royals announced Monday afternoon that they’ve placed Zimmer on release waivers.

NOVEMBER 19: The Kansas City Royals have added six players to their 40-man roster, per Anne Rogers of MLB.com. Making the move to the 40-man roster are some highly touted players, namely catcher MJ Melendez, first baseman Nick Pratto, shortstop Maikel Garcia, and right-handed pitchers Jonathan Bowlan, Collin Snider, and Nathan Webb. Right-handed pitcher Kyle Zimmer has been designated for assignment in order to accommodate these transactions, as the team’s 40-man roster is now full.

The 30-year-old Zimmer was a mainstay on top prospect lists for years following his fifth overall selection in the 2012 amateur draft. Frequent injuries ultimately dampened the hype surrounding the talented right-hander, but a very encouraging showing at the Major League level in 2020 gave some hope for optimism. A move to the bullpen yielded promising results in 2020 but that wasn’t true for the two seasons surrounding it, as Zimmer struggled to command the strike zone in the Major leagues either season. All told, Zimmer carries a 5.19 ERA through 95 innings at the game’s highest level. Teams will likely be lining up to take a flyer on a player who has shown flashes of brilliance when healthy enough to take the mound.

In one of the more obvious selections of the day, MJ Melendez finds himself on the 40-man squad after a monstrous showing in the minors. The 22-year-old catcher had only once seen his name appear on a Top 100 prospect list, back before a dismal 2019 season dimmed his star considerably. A .285/.372/.628 showing in Double-A this year turned into an even better .293/.413/.620 line at Triple-A however, putting him right back on the map as one of the more promising prospects in baseball. Positive reviews for his defense and 41 home runs in a minor league season should lead to a Major League promotion for Melendez soon.

The left-handed Pratto practically mimicked Melendez’s 2021 performance en route to a no-doubt 40-man roster selection. The fourteenth overall pick in the 2017 draft, Pratto struggled to live up to the hype in 2019 before the canceled 2020 minor league season allowed him to revamp his approach. Between Double-A and Triple-A Pratto hit a robust .265/.385/.602, with 36 home runs and 12 steals (in 17 tries).

By placing Maikel Garcia on their roster the Royals are protecting a more unheralded member of their organization. The 21-year-old has yet to show up on prospect lists or hit for much power, but the shortstop did show promise across two levels this past season. Garcia managed a solid .291/.380/.405 slash line across at the A and high-A levels, swiping 35 bags in 41 tries along the way.

Like the other Royals players listed here, 24-year-old Jonathan Bowlan found success in the 2021 season by pitching to a 1.59 ERA at the Double-A level. Unfortunately, that success came across just 17 innings before an elbow injury and subsequent Tommy John surgery wiped out his season. Bowlan’s second-round pedigree and strong 2019 season was clearly enough for the Royals to worry a rival team would pounce on a Rule 5 draft selection, even if Bowlan spends a portion of 2022 recovering from surgery.

A 26-year-old reliever, Collin Snider wasn’t listed among the Royals top 30 prospects in the eyes of MLB.com. After a solid Double-A showing looked to be upping his stock, Snider ran into Triple-A trouble. Across both levels and 66 innings Snider turned in a 4.48 ERA, with strong groundball rates but a strikeout rate that nosedived after the promotion. Kansas City likely views Snider as a player who more closely resembles the player he was in Double-A and may soon entrust him with a Major League gig with additional seasoning.

Nathan Webb is another relief prospect who showed enough in the minors this past season to warrant protection by the Royals. The 34th-rounder punched out 89 batters in just 59 innings, and saw both his command and groundball tendencies improve following a promotion to the High-A level.  The resulting 3.94 is hardly elite, but rival teams may have been intrigued by a talented 24-year old who could pitch out of their bullpen for very little investment.

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