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Matthew Boyd

Guardians To Activate Matthew Boyd

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The Guardians will reinstate left-hander Matthew Boyd from the 15-day injured list prior to tomorrow’s game, reports Mandy Bell of MLB.com. He’ll make his team debut when he starts for the Guards on Tuesday evening against the Cubs. Cleveland will only need to make a corresponding active roster transaction involving a pitcher, as Boyd is already on the 40-man roster.

Cleveland signed Boyd to a big league deal earlier this summer. He’s spent the season to date rehabbing from Tommy John surgery performed last June and is now ready to step back onto a big league mound. The longtime Tigers southpaw has been sensational during his minor league rehab stint. In 21 2/3 innings across three levels — Rookie ball, Double-A, Triple-A — he’s pitched to a 0.83 ERA with a mammoth 35.1% strikeout rate against a minuscule 2.6% walk rate. We’re looking at small samples against far, far less experienced competition, but Boyd certainly hasn’t shown much in the way of signs of rust.

Boyd’s appearance tomorrow will be his first major league outing since June 26 of last year. The elbow procedure ended what had been a return stint in Detroit. Boyd looked the part of a mid-rotation starter at times during his first run with the Tigers. The first stint also unfortunately concluded with an arm surgery, as Boyd required a flexor repair in September 2021. He was limited to 10 relief outings late in the ’22 campaign as a member of the Mariners. Boyd returned to the Motor City the ensuing winter, signing a $10MM free agent pact.

Even before the Tommy John surgery, Boyd didn’t get the results he wanted last season. He was tagged for a 5.45 ERA across 15 starts. An abnormally low 62% strand rate was the biggest culprit. Boyd had solid strikeout (24.1%) and walk (8.3%) numbers and induced swinging strikes on an excellent 14% of his pitches. He had a hard time keeping the ball in the yard, though, especially against right-handed opponents. That has been an issue throughout Boyd’s career. It’s perhaps the biggest reason he only has one full season with a sub-4.00 ERA despite a consistently strong strikeout and walk profile.

The Guardians signed Boyd in late June, one year to the day after Detroit announced he was headed for Tommy John surgery. The 33-year-old started a minor league rehab stint just after the All-Star Break. He built up to six innings and 63 pitches during his start with Triple-A Columbus last Wednesday. He’ll presumably be on a pitch count for his first couple appearances, but Cleveland will happily take whatever contribution they can get.

Cleveland took the final two games of their four-game weekend set with Minnesota, earning a split in the process. That pushed their division lead back to 3.5 games on the Twins and four up on the Royals. That’s despite their patchwork rotation. Tanner Bibee and, more surprisingly, Ben Lively have been their most reliable starters this season. Gavin Williams has made eight starts since returning from an extended IL stay to open the year. The Guardians welcomed deadline acquisition Alex Cobb back from injury for his team and season debut on Friday. Boyd can step into the rotation spot opened when Carlos Carrasco landed on the shelf that same day. Bibee, Williams and Cobb would probably line up as the top three in Cleveland’s ideal playoff rotation, but Boyd has a chance to push Cobb or Lively for a start in the middle of a series come October.

Latest On Guardians’ Rotation

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Ever since losing ace Shane Bieber to Tommy John surgery early in the season, the Guardians have employed something of a patchwork starting staff. In atypical fashion, Cleveland has succeeded this season not necessarily because of its strong rotation but rather in spite of its starting pitching; Guardians starters rank 24th in the majors with a collective 4.49 ERA in 2024. Over the past 30 days, Cleveland starters have a 4.74 ERA. Thanks to an elite bullpen and productive offense, however, Cleveland’s 66-42 record stands as the best mark in Major League Baseball.

Unfortunately for the Guards, there’s more ominous news on the starting pitching front. Right-hander Tanner Bibee, who leads the team in both starts (22) and innings pitched (121 1/3), will have his next start pushed back due to tightness in his right shoulder, per Mandy Bell of MLB.com. Right now, there’s no indication that a stint on the injured list is in the offing, but any delay due to shoulder or elbow problems are cause for at least some concern with pitchers.

Bibee, in particular, has been vital to Cleveland’s success. He’s not only the staff leader in terms of workload, he’s been the most consistent and most effective arm on the staff in 2024. Journeyman Ben Lively has a narrow edge in ERA (3.42 to Bibee’s 3.48), but Bibee sports the better strikeout and walk rates and has been far more effective at keeping the ball in the yard.

Of last year’s three vaunted top prospects who made the jump to the majors in short succession, Bibee is the only one who has taken another step forward in 2024. Fellow righty Gavin Williams has spent most of the season on the injured list and only just returned last month. Left-hander Logan Allen was optioned to Triple-A Columbus earlier this summer after posting a 5.67 ERA and yielding 1.85 HR/9 through 87 1/3 innings.

The Guardians can hope there’s help on the horizon. Trade acquisition Alex Cobb has been out all season due to recovery from winter hip surgery and some setbacks that occurred along the way. He’s nearly done with a rehab assignment, however. His next and likely final rehab appearance will come tomorrow in Columbus, writes Chris Assenheimer of the Chronicle-Telegram.

Cobb, 36, is in the final season of a contract originally signed with the Giants in the 2021-22 offseason. San Francisco picked up a $10MM club option on him, but his return from that hip procedure has taken longer than anticipated due to a shoulder flare-up and some blister troubles. He’s been quite sharp when healthy over the past three seasons, logging a 3.79 ERA, 22.8% strikeout rate and 6.9% walk rate in 394 1/3 innings between the Angels (2021) and Giants (2022-23). If Cobb can produce anywhere near that level in Cleveland, he’ll be a boon for a starting staff that has lacked a steadily productive veteran all season.

While Cobb was the only trade acquisition for Cleveland, he’s not the only midseason addition to the staff. Cleveland signed former Tigers and Giants southpaw Matthew Boyd to a big league deal earlier in the summer as he works his way back from Tommy John surgery. Boyd, 33, isn’t far from a potential debut himself. He’s now made four rehab starts, most recently tossing 3 2/3 innings with Columbus just yesterday. Boyd breezed through five innings on 64 pitches in Double-A during his third rehab stint and needed 63 pitches to get through yesterday’s 3 2/3 frames in Triple-A. He’s now pitched at three levels in Cleveland’s system and carries a pristine 1.15 ERA and 20-to-2 K/BB ratio in 15 2/3 innings.

Guardians Activate Eli Morgan, Designate Zak Kent

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The Guardians announced some roster moves today, including the official signing of Matthew Boyd to a Major League deal, and then Boyd’s placement on the 15-day injured list as he continues to recover from Tommy John surgery.  Right-hander Eli Morgan was also activated from the 15-day IL, while righty Darren McCaughan was optioned to Triple-A and righty Zak Kent was designated for assignment.

Debuting in the majors as a starter in 2021, Morgan has found a lot more success since moving to the bullpen, posting a 3.54 ERA in 145 innings for the Guardians from 2022-24.  That includes a 1.64 ERA in 11 innings this year, though that impressive number is heavily tempered by a 5.47 SIERA, as Morgan’s secondary metrics include an 11.1% walk rate and a 15.6% strikeout rate.  That K% is well below his 26.5% mark from 2022-23, though Morgan might be able to more fully get on track now that he has recovered from a month-long bout of elbow inflammation.

Cleveland acquired Kent from the Rangers this past March, in a trade that sent some extra international bonus pool money to Texas.  Kent had spent his entire career in the Rangers’ system since being a ninth-round pick in the 2019 draft, but his time with Triple-A Columbus has consisted of just three appearances.  Kent hasn’t pitched since April 14 due to a right elbow strain, so today’s transaction is likely a way for the Guards to move Kent off their 40-man roster and potentially move him to the big league 60-day IL.

This would give Kent the first MLB service time of his career, as he has yet to make his proper on-field big league debut.  The righty has some solid minor league numbers (including a 2.73 ERA over 66 career Triple-A frames), but he has been hampered by injuries in each of the last three seasons.

Guardians, Matthew Boyd Agree To Major League Deal

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The Guardians and left-hander Matthew Boyd have agreed to a deal, according to Jon Heyman of The New York Post on X. It’s a major league deal for the Boras Corporation client, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com on X. The Guardians will need to open a roster spot whenever the deal, which is pending a physical, becomes official.

Matthew BoydBoyd, 33, has had some good results in his career but he has been on and off the mound in recent years due to various health issues. He required flexor tendon surgery in September of 2021 and missed most of the following season, making ten relief appearances for the Mariners in September of 2022. He made 15 starts with the Tigers last year before requiring Tommy John surgery at the end of June.

Due to those injuries and the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Boyd has been limited to 223 1/3 innings since the end of the 2019 season. His results have been fairly inconsistent in that time, which is probably not surprising given the many interruptions. His earned run average is an even 5.00 in that period, with strikeout and walk rates around league average.

Prior to this recent health odyssey, he was a solid contributor at the back end of the Detroit rotation for many years. From 2016 to 2019, he logged 588 frames over 109 appearances. In that stretch, he had a 4.67 ERA, 23.4% strikeout rate and 7.3% walk rate. His best performance was arguably back in 2019, when he struck out 30.2% of batters faced and gave out walks at just a 6.3% clip over 32 starts. His 4.56 ERA that year doesn’t look especially strong, but he allowed 39 home runs during what is now known as the “juiced ball” season, so his 3.61 SIERA might be more reflective of how he performed that year.

It’s now been almost exactly a year since Boyd underwent his Tommy John procedure. He is healthy enough to get on the mound, as he threw for clubs earlier this month, but he’ll presumably need some time to fully ramp up. Though he’s signing a major league deal, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he agreed to be optioned to some minor league affiliate for a few weeks, effectively a delayed Spring Training.

The Guardians have been surprising in many ways this year. The rotation has often been a strength for the club but has been a clear weakness this year. Shane Bieber required Tommy John surgery earlier in the season and is done for the year. Gavin Williams has been on the IL all year so far. Tanner Bibee has been good but the rest of the group has been flimsy behind him. Each of Triston McKenzie, Logan Allen and Carlos Carrasco have an ERA above 4.65. Ben Lively’s ERA is down at 3.03 but with a modest 21.4% strikeout rate and fortunate strand rate of 87.3%.

Despite those rotation struggles, the club is 51-27, the best record in the American League. They will probably be on the lookout for rotation upgrades prior to the July 30 deadline but there will be plenty of competition. There are few clear sellers at the moment thanks to some wide-open Wild Card spots and the few clubs that are clearly out of it have been getting hit hard by injuries. The Angels just lost Patrick Sandoval to season-ending surgery while the Marlins have each of Sandy Alcántara, Jesús Luzardo, Ryan Weathers, Edward Cabrera, Braxton Garrett and Eury Pérez all on the IL. Getting a pitcher from the White Sox would likely be a challenge since they share a division with the Guardians.

Given those question marks, it’s sensible for them to take a dice roll on Boyd. Financial details of the agreement haven’t yet been reported but it’s likely a fairly modest guarantee after he’s missed so much time lately. The Guardians will have roughly a month to get a look at him and see if he can help bolster their current group. They also have Williams currently on a rehab assignment, potentially giving them two rotation reinforcements in the coming weeks. How they decide to attack the deadline a month from now will likely be determined by developments in the coming weeks.

Matthew Boyd Throws For Clubs

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Free agent lefty Matthew Boyd threw for representatives of 17 of MLB’s 30 clubs yesterday, as reported by Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Boyd remains unsigned just under one year after he underwent Tommy John surgery last June, prematurely ending his 2023 campaign with the Tigers.

Boyd, now 33, has long intrigued teams thanks to his ability to post high strikeout rates as a left-handed starter. The southpaw struck out a whopping 30.2% of batters faced for Detroit in 2019 while posting roughly league average run prevention numbers (104 ERA+), but has not completed a wire-to-wire 162-game season since then thanks a variety of injuries, including both flexor tendon surgery and the aforementioned Tommy John surgery.

Those injury woes have limited him to just 163 innings of work in the majors since the start of the 2021 season, but the results were those of a decent back-of-the-rotation arm despite the injury woes: he posted a 4.36 ERA and 4.12 FIP across 40 appearances (30 starts), both of which were roughly league average figures during that period. He struck out  22.1% of batters faced while walking a slightly elevated 8.1% and allowing 10.3% of is fly balls to leave the yard for home runs. That’s generally consistent with his performance even dating back to the 2018 season, with the shortened 2020 campaign standing out as Boyd’s only performance in his past half decade of work that fell below his roughly league average standard.

That sort of back-end rotation help would surely be greatly appreciated by a number of clubs as teams around the league have found themselves ravaged by starting pitching injuries this season. It’s not clear which teams were at Boyd’s showcase, although the Astros, Giants, Padres, Red Sox, Brewers, and Diamondbacks are among the many clubs that have multiple key pieces of their expected rotation currently on the shelf. For clubs in that situation, the idea of bringing Boyd in as a potential depth option on a low-deal deal is surely appealing particularly at a time when trade season is unlikely to begin in earnest for several more weeks.

Of course, it’s possible that clubs will view Boyd with caution thanks to his lengthy injury history and difficult 2023 season; prior to his surgery last year, the southpaw posted a lackluster 5.45 ERA in 15 starts with Detroit. It also remains unclear how close Boyd is to being able to impact a big league pitching staff, although Heyman notes that the southpaw was throwing in the 92-93 mph range during his showcase yesterday. That’s a tick above Boyd’s career 91.8 mph fastball velocity in the majors, which would seem to indicate that he’s fairly far along on the road to recovery.

Even if he’s nearly ready to return to pitching in games, however, the lefty would surely need time to build up his pitch count in the minor leagues before he could be a realistic option to start games at the big league level. Despite those potential question marks, it would hardly be a surprise to see a pitching-hungry team take a shot on Boyd with a minor league deal in hopes of shoring up their rotation depth ahead of the second half.

Matthew Boyd Undergoes Tommy John Surgery

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JUNE 28: Boyd underwent successful surgery in Dallas this morning, Stavenhagen tweets.

JUNE 27: The Tigers have informed reporters, including Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic, that left-hander Matthew Boyd will require Tommy John surgery. The club also announced a slate of moves, with right-hander Matt Manning activated from the 60-day injured list and left-hander Anthony Misiewicz recalled from Triple-A Toledo. Boyd has been placed on the 60-day IL while right-hander Will Vest has been placed on the 15-day IL with a right lower leg strain.

The news comes as a very unfortunate development for both Boyd and the Tigers. The left-hander already missed a significant chunk of time in recent seasons as he required flexor tendon surgery in September of 2021 which forced him to miss roughly a full year. He returned in September of last year and was able to toss 13 1/3 innings down the stretch.

The Tigers took a chance on Boyd being able to return to form, signing him in the offseason to a one-year, $10MM deal. The club was coming off a nightmare 2022 season wherein they went 66-96 and lost pitchers like Casey Mize and Tarik Skubal to surgeries that would keep them out well into the 2023 season. They were undoubtedly hoping that Boyd could serve as a stabilizing force and perhaps turn into a trade candidate by midseason if they were again out of contention.

He made 15 starts with an elevated 5.45 ERA, though that was likely inflated by a 62% strand rate. Due to his 24.1% strikeout rate and 8.3% walk rate, his 4.36 FIP and 4.16 SIERA indicate he deserved better results. Given the pitching injuries around the league, plenty of clubs would have looked past the ERA and called up Detroit for trade talks but none of that will happen now. Boyd will miss the remainder of the 2023 season and much of the 2024 campaign as well.

On a personal level, it has to be incredibly frustrating for Boyd. From 2016 to 2019, he was a serviceable rotation member in Detroit, tossing 588 innings with a 4.67 ERA. But he then struggled in 2020 and has since endured three straight injury-shortened campaigns, with next year sure to be a fourth.

For the Tigers, this is the latest in a brutal succession of serious surgeries required for their starting staff. Each of Boyd, Mize, Skubal and Spencer Turnbull have required either Tommy John or flexor tendon surgery in the past few years. In addition to that, pitchers like Manning, Eduardo Rodriguez, Alex Faedo and Beau Brieske have dealt with other ailments that have pushed them to the injured list.

Manning is at least able to return today with Skubal and Rodriguez not too far behind him. That group will join a rotation mix that also consists of Michael Lorenzen, Joey Wentz and Reese Olson, though Lorenzen could find himself on the trade block this summer as he’s an impending free agent with a 3.97 ERA. The Tigers have a 34-43 record and would make sense as sellers, though they are only 4.5 games out in the weak American League Central. The mounting injuries will make it hard for them to stay in the race but the impending returns of some of those injured players could perhaps help them stay afloat.

Tigers Sign Matt Boyd To One-Year Deal

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December 14: The Tigers have officially announced that they’ve signed Boyd to a one-year deal.

December 1: The Tigers and left-hander Matt Boyd are in agreement on a deal to bring him back to Detroit. Boyd will make a $10MM salary with $1MM in performance bonuses available to him. The deal is pending a physical.

Boyd, 32 in February, was drafted by the Blue Jays and made his MLB debut with them, but he went to the Tigers in the 2015 David Price trade and has spent the bulk of his career there. Boyd then established himself as a solid member of the rotation over the next four years, getting into 109 games over the 2016-2019 stretch. His 4.67 ERA wasn’t elite, but he limited walks to a 7.3% rate and struck out 23.4% of batters faced.

Matthew BoydThat latter number was boosted by a strong 30.2% strikeout rate in 2019, which was among the top 10 among qualified pitchers that year. With the Tigers enduring a miserable season, Boyd was frequently mentioned in trade rumors but the club never found an acceptable deal and held onto him. There was no real rush to secure a deal as they still had years of control over Boyd’s services. However, his performance nosedived in the shortened 2020 season, as the lefty posted a 6.71 ERA over 12 starts that year. He posted better results in 2021 but then dealt with arm injuries that eventually led to flexor tendon surgery in September.

The Tigers could have held onto Boyd for 2022 via arbitration but decided to non-tender him given that he was going to miss at least part of the season. He signed on with the Giants, who gave him a $5.2MM guarantee. As this year’s trade deadline rolled around, Boyd was still working his way back from that surgery and the Giants had slipped from contention. They flipped him to Seattle alongside catcher Curt Casali for a couple of prospects. Boyd ended up returning to a big league mound in September and pitched 13 1/3 innings for Seattle down the stretch. He posted a 1.35 ERA in that time with a 24.5% strikeout rate but a 15.1% walk rate in that small sample.

The Tigers clearly felt encouraged enough by Boyd’s return to take a flier on him. Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press has reported that the club intends to use Boyd out of the rotation. Boyd averaged 92.6 mph on his four-seam fastball in 2022, which matches his career high. He was pitching in relief this year and hasn’t proven himself capable of maintaining that velocity as a starter, but it’s possible he can continue building strength as he gets further from the surgery. He also struggled with control in his time this year, but it’s often said that is the last thing to return to a pitcher after a lengthy absence.

There’s risk involved in this signing, but it’s a fairly logical risk for a team in Detroit’s position. They hoped to return to contention in 2022 but just about everything went wrong and they finished 66-96. One of the major factors in their disappointing season was a parade of pitching injuries that they will still be dealing with next year. Casey Mize required Tommy John surgery in June and will likely miss most of the upcoming campaign. Tarik Skubal underwent flexor tendon surgery in August and seems likely to miss time as well. Spencer Turnbull should be able to return after missing all of 2022 due to Tommy John, but he’s an unknown after an entire year off.

There are question marks all over the roster that will make it difficult for the Tigers to compete in 2023, but they will still need some arms to fill out the rotation. Boyd should slot next to Eduardo Rodriguez, Matt Manning and Turnbull in four of the spots. The final position could go to internal options like Joey Wentz, Beau Brieske, Alex Faedo or others, though the club could also seek to find further additions. If Boyd returns to health and effectiveness, he can provide a stabilizing veteran presence for a group with a lot of uncertainty. If the Tigers are out of contention when the deadline rolls around again, Boyd and his one-year deal could perhaps finally net them the trade return they’ve failed to recoup in previous years, with Skubal or Mize perhaps ready to retake their positions by that time. Boyd’s salary brings the club’s commitments to $118MM, per Roster Resource. Last year’s Opening Day figure was $135MM, per Cot’s Baseball Contracts.

Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported the two sides were in agreement. Jon Heyman of The New York Post first reported the $10MM ballpark figure. Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press first laid out the $10MM salary with performance bonuses. Heyman added that the bonuses can be worth $1MM.

Every Team’s Initial September Call-Ups

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Each season as the calendar flips to September, we see a flurry of transactions around Major League Baseball. Active roster sizes jump from 26 to 28 for the season’s final month, with teams permitted to bring up no more than one additional pitcher. We’ve already covered a host of transactions with 40-man roster implications throughout the day at MLBTR. Here’s a full round-up of teams’ initial September roster moves.

American League West

Houston Astros:

Los Angeles Angels:

Oakland Athletics

Seattle Mariners

  • Reinstated LHP Matthew Boyd from 60-day injured list
  • Recalled OF Taylor Trammell from Triple-A Tacoma
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Texas Rangers

  • Selected contract of RHP Jesus Tinoco from Triple-A Round Rock
  • Recalled OF Nick Solak from Triple-A Round Rock
  • Corresponding move: Transferred RHP Josh Sborz to 60-day injured list

American League Central

Chicago White Sox

  • Recalled OF Adam Haseley from Triple-A Charlotte
  • Recalled RHP Matt Foster from Triple-A Charlotte
  • Corresponding move: None required

Cleveland Guardians

Detroit Tigers

Kansas City Royals

  • Selected contract of RHP Daniel Mengden from Triple-A Omaha
  • Recalled OF Nate Eaton from Triple-A Omaha
  • Corresponding move: None required

Minnesota Twins

  • Added LHP Austin Davis (previously claimed off waivers from Red Sox) to active roster
  • Selected contract of OF Billy Hamilton from Triple-A St. Paul
  • Corresponding move: Transferred OF Trevor Larnach to 60-day injured list

American League East

Baltimore Orioles

  • Selected contract of 1B Jesus Aguilar from Triple-A Norfolk
  • Recalled LHP DL Hall from Triple-A Norfolk
  • Corresponding move: Designated INF Richie Martin for assignment

Boston Red Sox

New York Yankees

  • Recalled SS Oswald Peraza from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre
  • Activated INF Marwin Gonzalez from paternity list
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Tampa Bay Rays

  • Reinstated RHP Matt Wisler from the 15-day injured list
  • Recalled INF Jonathan Aranda from Triple-A Durham
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Toronto Blue Jays

  • Recalled RHP Casey Lawrence from Triple-A Buffalo
  • Added OF Bradley Zimmer (claimed off waivers from Phillies this week) to active roster
  • Corresponding moves: None required

National League West

Arizona Diamondbacks

Colorado Rockies

  • Recalled INF Alan Trejo from Triple-A Albuquerque
  • Recalled RHP Chad Smith from Triple-A Albuquerque
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Los Angeles Dodgers

  • Reinstated LHP Clayton Kershaw from 15-day injured list
  • Recalled 3B Miguel Vargas from Triple-A Oklahoma City
  • Corresponding moves: None required

San Diego Padres

  • Recalled INF Matt Beaty from Triple-A El Paso
  • Recalled RHP Reiss Knehr from Triple-A El Paso
  • Corresponding moves: None required

San Francisco Giants

National League Central

Chicago Cubs

  • Selected contract of RHP Jeremiah Estrada from Triple-A Iowa
  • Recalled INF David Bote from Triple-A Iowa
  • Corresponding move: Transferred Wade Miley from 15-day injured list to 60-day injured list

Cincinnati Reds

Milwaukee Brewers

  • Recalled RHP Luis Perdomo from Triple-A Nashville
  • Recalled OF Esteury Ruiz from Triple-A Nashville
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Pittsburgh Pirates

  • Recalled RHP Johan Oviedo from Triple-A Indianapolis
  • Recalled OF Calvin Mitchell from Triple-A Indianapolis
  • Corresponding moves: None required

St. Louis Cardinals

  • Selected contract of OF Ben DeLuzio from Triple-A Memphis
  • Recalled RHP James Naile from Triple-A Memphis
  • Corresponding moves: None required

National League East

Atlanta Braves

  • Reinstated IF Orlando Arcia from 10-day injured list
  • Added recently-claimed RHP Jesse Chavez to active roster
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Miami Marlins*

New York Mets

Philadelphia Phillies

  • Selected contract of RHP Vinny Nittoli from Triple-A Lehigh Valley
  • Recalled C Donny Sands from Triple-A Lehigh Valley
  • Corresponding moves: None required

Washington Nationals

  • Recalled C Tres Barrera from Triple-A Rochester
  • Recalled RHP Mason Thompson from Triple-A Rochester
  • Corresponding moves: None required

*Marlins moves reported by Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald (Twitter link)

Mariners Reinstate Evan White, Expected To Activate Matthew Boyd

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The Mariners announced this afternoon that first baseman Evan White has been activated from the 60-day injured list and optioned to Triple-A Tacoma. Left-hander Matthew Boyd seems on the verge of following White in returning from the IL, as Chris McCosky of the Detroit News reports that he’ll be active for the M’s series in Detroit that kicks off tomorrow.

White has yet to play in the majors this season. The former first round pick underwent sports hernia surgery in March, and he’s spent the year on the IL. White initially began a minor league rehab assignment in mid-May, but he suffered a setback and was pulled off the assignment on two separate occasions. It wasn’t until the second week of August that he was able to get back into game action, returning to Tacoma on August 9.

Position players are allotted up to 20 days on rehab stints, so the Mariners had to activate White once that window closed. He still has all three minor league option years remaining, though, so they can keep him in Tacoma even as he reclaims his spot on the 40-man roster. White has struggled in 22 Triple-A games this season, although that’s largely to be expected as he tries to regain his timing after an extended absence. He underwent season-ending surgery on his left hip last July. The 26-year-old hasn’t had a consistent run of playing time since May 2021, so it’s only naturally he’d battle some rust in the early going.

The Mariners signed White to a $24MM guarantee in November 2019, committing to the then top prospect before he’d ever played a major league game. The club clearly believed he’d be their everyday first baseman for an extended stretch, moving to buy out three potential free agent years. That hasn’t transpired, as White has stumbled to a .165/.235/.308 line with a massive 37.6% strikeout rate in 306 MLB plate appearances between 2020-21. Ty France has long since passed him on the depth chart, but White is still guaranteed $18MM over the next three seasons. He’d only appeared in eight Triple-A games before this season, so he figures to be in line for an extended stretch against upper minors pitching now that he’s back to health.

Boyd has also yet to play in the big leagues this season, and his first appearance will be his team debut. The left-hander has spent the bulk of his career with the Tigers. He was a generally durable member of the rotation between 2017-20, starting 25+ games in all three full seasons and taking a full slate of 12 turns during the abbreviated 2020 campaign. Boyd struck out over 30% of opponents in 2019 and emerged as an in-demand trade candidate that summer, but the Tigers never found an offer to their liking and held onto him.

That didn’t pan out, as Boyd was hit hard in 2020. He looked on his way to a bit of a bounceback last year, but he began battling arm discomfort in June. An August return proved short-lived, and Boyd underwent flexor tendon surgery last September. That led Detroit to non-tender him after the season, and the Giants added him on a $5.2MM guarantee over the offseason. San Francisco intended for him to contribute to a playoff push, but the Giants struggled enough they dealt a few veterans at this summer’s trade deadline. Boyd was part of the sell-off, joining Curt Casali in heading to Seattle for a pair of minor leaguers.

While Boyd never suited up in black and orange, he’s now in position to pitch in a pennant race. Boyd has allowed just two runs with 14 strikeouts and no walks in eight innings of relief for Tacoma on a rehab stint in the past few weeks. He’ll step into a Seattle bullpen that skews extremely right-handed, giving manager Scott Servais a southpaw complement. The Washington native will look to help the Mariners snap their two-decade playoff drought while showing well in advance of a return trip to the open market.

The Mariners had a pair of vacancies on the 40-man roster, so no additional move was necessary to accommodate White’s reinstatement. The club will only need to make an active roster transaction to finalize Boyd’s return.

Mariners Acquire Curt Casali, Matthew Boyd From Giants

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The Mariners added a backup catcher and strengthened their pitching depth just prior to Tuesday’s deadline, acquiring catcher Curt Casali and lefty Matthew Boyd from the Giants in exchange for minor league righty Michael Stryffeler and catcher Andy Thomas. The Casali and Boyd were initially reported separately but were announced by the teams as part of the same swap. Seattle announced that left-hander Tommy Milone has been released to make room on the 40-man roster for Casali. Boyd is on the 60-day injured list and does not yet require a roster spot.

Casali adds some depth behind Seattle starter Cal Raleigh. The 33-year-old backstop has had a nice showing in limited playing time with the Giants this season. Through 102 plate appearances, Casali is hitting .231/.325/.370, connecting on four homers and a trio of doubles. That’s a nice blend of power and patience from a depth catcher, even when paired with Casali’s typically lofty level of swing-and-miss. He’s also plenty familiar with newly acquired ace Luis Castillo from the pair’s days together in Cincinnati.

Seattle’s No. 2 backstop Luis Torrens has underwhelmed this year, hitting .208/.262/.225 in 42 games. Torrens can’t be optioned to the minor leagues, so Casali’s addition could conceivably squeeze him off the 40-man roster entirely. Raleigh will continue to play most days amidst a breakout season, and the M’s may not want to carry three backstops on the active roster. Casali is currently on the injured list after suffering an oblique strain last month, but he’s on a rehab assignment and should be reinstated to the majors shortly. Casali is making $2.6MM this season, around $928K of which has still to be paid. He’ll be a free agent at season’s end.

Boyd, 31, inked a one-year, $5.2MM deal with the Giants after a mostly solid four-year run with the Tigers. A brutal showing in 2020 skewed his numbers in his final few seasons with Detroit, but Boyd often flashed quality bat-missing ability and typically posted low walk rates throughout his time in the Detroit rotation. He twice looked as though he may be among the more appealing arms available at a trade deadline — first in 2019 when he was sitting on a 3.95 ERA and 152 strikeouts in 114 innings and again in 2021 when he’d posted a similar ERA and reduced home-run rate (albeit with a diminished strikeout rate).

The Tigers held onto Boyd both times, however, declining to move him in ’19 because they (justifiably) set a huge asking price given Boyd’s three-plus remaining seasons of club control. The 2020 season brought little opportunity to move Boyd, thanks to the aforementioned struggles (6.71 ERA in 12 starts), and by the time last year’s deadline rolled around, Boyd’s season was in jeopardy due to that forearm issue.

It’s unlikely that Boyd will be able to return and build up to a starter’s workload this season — but the Mariners, particularly after landing Castillo, don’t really need Boyd to step into the rotation anyhow. He could, however, provide them with an experienced left-hander to plug into the bullpen. Seattle hasn’t had much luck with its left-handed bullpen arms this season, so taking what’s surely a low-cost flier on Boyd is a sensible enough peripheral move at this stage of deadline season.

Stryffeler is a 26-year-old reliever who’s spent the 2022 campaign in Double-A. A right-hander, he owns an excellent 2.27 ERA through 35 2/3 frames. Stryffeler has fanned an elite 37.7% of batters faced but walked an elevated 12.6% of opponents. The Lake Erie college product will be eligible for the Rule 5 draft this winter if he’s not added to San Francisco’s 40-man roster.

Thomas, meanwhile, was the Mariners’ fifth-round draft pick just last summer. He’s had a nice start to the season in High-A, where he’s posted a strong .264/.400/.444 with nine homers, a dozen doubles and a huge 16.2% walk rate. Thomas was a senior sign out of Baylor University, it should be noted, so he’s already 23 and is playing against notably younger competition. Time will tell how he fares against more advanced opponents, but the early results are promising. From a defensive perspective, he’s caught a roughly average 27% of attempted base thieves, but Baseball America questioned his overall receiving skills at the time of the draft.

Milone, 35, had been in his second stint with the Mariners. The journeyman southpaw has carved out a 12-year big league career, at times enjoying solid runs as a starter (2012-15, in particular) and as a reliever. The past several seasons have been a struggle for the soft-tosser, however, as evidenced by a 6.33 ERA in 69 2/3 frames. Milone was on the 15-day injured list due to a cervical sprain, but if he’s healthy in the season’s final couple months, he could latch on as a depth arm with another club.

In 944 1/3 innings at the big league level, Milone has a 4.60 ERA with a below-average 17.5% strikeout rate but an excellent 5.6% walk rate.

Robert Murray of FanSided first reported that Casali was headed to Seattle in exchange for Stryffeler (Twitter link). Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported that Boyd was going to Seattle as well.

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