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Max Kranick

Mets Designate Max Kranick, Claim Yohan Ramirez

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The Mets announced Monday that they’ve claimed right-hander Yohan Ramirez off waivers from the Orioles, who recently designated him for assignment. In a corresponding move, the Mets designated right-hander Max Kranick for assignment. The move to claim Ramirez comes less than a month after the Mets themselves designated Ramirez for assignment and traded him to Baltimore in exchange for cash. Ramirez is out of minor league options, so he’ll head right to the big league bullpen.

The revolving-door act with Ramirez isn’t entirely new for the 2024 Mets. He’s the second reliever to be designated for assignment and traded for cash, only to eventually return via waiver claim, joining Michael Tonkin in that regard. The Mets followed a similar course with Tonkin, trading him to Minnesota and quickly reclaiming him. That pattern could continue throughout the season. The Mets have very few bullpen pieces with minor league options remaining and will need to regularly cycle through different names in the last couple spots due to that lack of flexibility.

Ramirez, who turns 29 today, has pitched in eight games between the Mets and O’s this season. He’s logged 11 1/3 innings in that time and been rocked for 11 runs, though that’s obviously a tiny sample. The hard-throwing righty entered the season with a career 3.99 ERA in 124 big league frames between the Mariners, Guardians, Pirates and White Sox.

Ramirez has fanned a roughly average 23.1% of his career opponents in the big leagues, but his 12.4% walk rate is bloated well beyond league-average levels.  He’ll give the Mets a fresh arm after using five relievers yesterday (the second straight day for Reed Garrett and Sean Reid-Foley). However, given the Mets’ handling of the final couple bullpen spots so far, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone if it’s a brief stay on the roster for Ramirez.

The Mets claimed Kranick, 26, off waivers from the Pirates back in January. He opened the season on the injured list due to a hamstring strain and was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse in late April upon being reinstated. Through his first seven innings in Triple-A this year, Kranick has allowed only two earned runs but has done so while issuing more walks (four) than strikeouts recorded (two). He’s also served up eight hits, including a pair of homers.

Coincidentally, both Kranick and Ramirez were with the Pirates last season — and at one point Ramirez was designated for assignment in order to make way for Kranick’s return to the roster after he’d recovered from 2022 Tommy John surgery. This time around, it’s Kranick giving way for Ramirez’s return to the pair’s current organization.

In 43 2/3 big league innings, Kranick has a 5.56 ERA. He’s fanned a below-average 17.9% of his opponents while issuing walks at a 10.9% clip that’s more than two percentage points north of the league average. A former 11th-round pick, Kranick has a solid track record in Triple-A, where he’s pitched in parts of four seasons and notched a 3.63 ERA through 24 appearances (23 of them starts). He’s fanned just 17.8% of opponents there as well but done so with much better command, evidenced by a 7.9% walk rate.

Kranick is in the last of his three minor league option seasons. He hasn’t had much big league success, but his optionability and Triple-A track record could earn him a look from a club in need of some rotation depth. In the next five days, Kranick will either be traded or placed on outright waivers or release waivers (both of which are a 48-hour process). He’s never been outrighted in the past, so if he clears waivers, the Mets will be able to assign him outright to Syracuse and retain his rights without needing to commit a 40-man roster spot to Kranick.

Max Kranick To Start Season On IL Due To Hamstring Strain

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The Mets informed reporters, including Tim Britton of The Athletic, that right-hander Max Kranick has a Grade 2 left hamstring strain. The righty will be shut down for seven to 10 days and will need time to build back up after that, which will lead to him starting the season on the injured list.

Up until a week ago, the Mets were set to open the season with righty Kodai Senga as their ace. With veterans like Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander having been traded at last year’s deadline, Senga vaulted himself to the front of the rotation with a 2.98 earned run average in his first taste of the majors last season. Unfortunately, it was reported last week that Senga has a posterior capsule strain in his throwing shoulder and will start the season on the IL.

Senga’s absence left the club with a rotation mix of José Quintana, Sean Manaea, Luis Severino and Adrian Houser, with one spot available. The options for that fifth spot would have included Kranick alongside Joey Lucchesi, Tylor Megill and José Butto. Another depth option, David Peterson, will also start the season on the IL due to hip surgery. The news today of Kranick’s strain means that the Mets will start the season without three of their potential rotation options.

Kranick would have been a long shot to win a job ahead of those other hurlers. Claimed off waivers from the Pirates in January, he’s hardly pitched in the last two years due to undergoing Tommy John surgery in June of 2022. He made his MLB debut in 2021 and posted an unimpressive ERA of 6.28 in his nine starts that year, but he averaged 94.2 miles per hour on his fastball, had a 13.1% swinging strike rate and did a good job avoiding barrels and hard contact.

If there’s one silver lining about today’s news, it’s that the Mets will get a chance to look at Kranick in the minors once he’s ready for a rehab assignment. He’s now out of options and was perhaps looking at being squeezed off the roster on Opening Day if he wasn’t able to secure a spot at the back of the rotation or as a long reliever. But he’ll now focus on his health and then the Mets will have some time to decide on his future after some minor league outings. It’s also possible that his chances at a roster spot might increase as the season rolls along if other injuries crop up.

Mets Claim Max Kranick From Pirates

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The Mets have claimed right-hander Max Kranick off waivers from the Pirates, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. The righty was designated for assignment by the Bucs a week ago when they needed a roster spot to sign Martín Pérez. The Mets have a full roster and will need to make a corresponding move for Kranick, and will need to open another when they make their signing of Sean Manaea official.

Kranick, 26, will now join just the second organization of his career. He was drafted by the Pirates and has been a part of that organization until this transaction. He made his major league debut with nine starts in 2021, posting a 6.28 earned run average in 38 2/3 innings. He made two relief appearances for the club in 2022 but required Tommy John surgery in June of that year, wiping out the rest of the season and most of 2023. He was healthy enough to return to the mound late in 2023, making a few minor league starts in August and September.

There’s obviously not much major league track record to go on and the surgery has prevented him from pitching meaningful innings in the minors of late. But he has thrown 344 1/3 innings on the farm overall with a 3.55 ERA. He has only struck out 19.5% of minor league hitters but has only given out walks at a modest 6.2% clip.

He is now out of options, which suggest the Mets are either planning to keep him on their active roster or will attempt to run him through waivers in the future. The Mets already have a rotation composed of Manaea, Luis Severino, Kodai Senga, José Quintana and Adrian Houser, with Tylor Megill and Joey Lucchesi on hand as optionable depth. David Peterson will be in the mix once he recovers from his hip surgery. Given that rotation picture, perhaps the Mets will keep Kranick in the bullpen and see if he can find some extra strikeouts with his stuff playing up in shorter stints.

The Mets are taking something of a step back this year and have limited themselves to fairly modest moves. Manaea got a two-year deal but with an opt-out after the first season. Severino got a one-year deal, as did Harrison Bader, Joey Wendle, Jorge López, Austin Adams and Michael Tonkin. The club has also claimed Penn Murfee, Zack Short, Tyler Heineman and Cooper Hummel and now Kranick off waivers.

Taken together, those moves have filled out the pitching staff and bench as the club will look to go into 2024 with more depth. Perhaps that will help them avoid the pitfalls they fell into last year when a batch of injuries knocked them out contention, or perhaps it will simply allow someone in that batch to break out and take a step forward this year. If the club falls out of contention again and winds up engaging in another deadline selloff, they can give some extra innings or plate appearances to someone showing signs of development.

Pirates Designate Max Kranick For Assignment

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The Pirates have designated right-hander Max Kranick for assignment. The move opens a 40-man roster spot for Martín Pérez, whose reported one-year deal has been finalized.

Kranick, 26, made 11 MLB appearances (nine starts) between 2021-22. The 6’3″ hurler worked to a 5.56 ERA with a middling 17.9% strikeout percentage and a 10.9% walk rate in 43 2/3 innings. Kranick underwent Tommy John surgery in June 2022, an unfortunately timed procedure that essentially cost him a year and a half.

The Bucs reinstated the Scranton, PA native from the injured list on September 1. They optioned him to Triple-A Indianapolis. He spent the remainder of the year there, allowing five runs over 16 1/3 frames. Kranick struck out 12 and walked six in that limited time.

Pittsburgh will trade Kranick or put him on waivers within the next week. While he has never been a high-strikeout pitcher, he owns a 3.55 ERA over parts of seven seasons in the minors. Kranick has been a plus strike-thrower on the farm, walking 6.2% of opponents in his minor league career. He’ll be out of options in 2024, however, so a team would have to carry him on the MLB roster or again designate him for assignment if they acquire him from Pittsburgh.

Pirates Designate Calvin Mitchell, Yohan Ramirez For Assignment

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The Pirates announced some roster moves today, including the previously-reported selection of Miguel Andujar. They also reinstated righty Carmen Mlodzinski from the 15-day injured list to take the second extra spot on today’s expanded roster. Additionally, right-hander Max Kranick was reinstated from the 60-day injured list and optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis. To open spots on the 40-man for Andujar and Kranick, right-hander Yohan Ramirez and outfielder Calvin Mitchell were designated for assignment.

Mitchell, 24, was selected to the Pirates’ roster last year after a strong performance in Triple-A. He hit just .226/.286/.349 in his first 69 major league games and got optioned back down to the minors, but finished 2022 with a Triple-A batting line of .339/.391/.547. He’s only played two major league games this year, spending the majority of his season at Triple-A, where he’s had an unfortunate step back. He is hitting .264/.338/.426 for a wRC+ of 90 while striking out in 29.3% of his plate appearances, more than double the 14.6% rate he had in Triple-A last year.

Ramirez, 28, was acquired from the Guardians in a cash deal last summer. He had a tidy 1.25 earned run average through June 6 of this year but allowed 11 earned runs in 12 2/3 innings since then. In 22 1/3 innings at the Triple-A level this year, he has a 4.43 ERA. Control has generally been an issue for him, walking 12.5% of hitters in his major league career. He kept that to 9% in the majors this year but it’s been 12.4% in Triple-A.

The Bucs will place both players on waivers in the coming days. Mitchell is a former second-round pick who had a strong campaign last year. He still has another option year remaining after this one and less than a year of service time. Ramirez has been able to pair strikeouts with ground balls for much of his career but has struggled with the free passes. He can be optioned for the rest of this year but will be out of options next year. He can be retained for four seasons beyond this one but will have less roster maneuverability going forward.

Rangers Trade Mark Mathias To Pirates

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March 11: The Rangers announced they’re getting right-hander Ricky DeVito from the Pirates as the player to be named later. DeVito, 24, was acquired from Atlanta in the Richard Rodriguez deal, and worked to a 5.40 ERA across 70 innings at High-A last season (six starts, 29 relief appearances).

March 8: The Rangers announced Wednesday that they’ve traded infielder/outfielder Mark Mathias to the Pirates in exchange for a player to be named later. Texas designated Mathias for assignment over the weekend in order to open a 40-man roster spot for newly signed reliever Will Smith. The Pirates announced that righty Max Kranick, who’s recovering from Tommy John surgery, has been transferred to the 60-day injured list to open a spot on the 40-man roster.

Mathias, 28, comes to the Pirates with a minor league option and five years of team control remaining. He’s seen action in part of two big league seasons — 2020 with the Brewers and 2022 with Milwaukee and Texas. He’s logged just 127 plate appearances in that time but carries a solid .256/.307/.462 batting line (114 wRC+) with six homers, six doubles, a 7.1% walk rate and a more troubling 29.1% strikeout rate.

Mathias lost the entire 2021 season to a torn labrum that required shoulder surgery. It was the second shoulder surgery for Mathias, who also had a procedure performed back in his college days. He returned to post a huge .318/.421/.518 batting line in 50 Triple-A games with the Brewers in 2022. Milwaukee also carried him on the big league roster for six games, but Mathias was traded to Texas prior to the deadline in the deal that sent righty Matt Bush to the Brewers.

The versatile Mathias could crack the Pirates’ Opening Day roster in a bench role, though his remaining minor league option means he’s not a lock to do so. Still, he’s played all four infield positions and all three outfield spots in his professional career, albeit with just one lone inning in center field with the Brewers in 2020. He’s moved around the diamond consistently in the Majors, with no more than 51 innings played at any single position (despite a total of 292 defensive innings under his belt).

While he’s never been regarded as a plus defender at any position, Mathias can play pretty much anywhere. He doesn’t have huge power, but he’s a career .286/.377/.466 hitter in 715 Triple-A plate appearances and has stacked up 21 homers, 41 doubles, three triples and 26 steals (in 31 attempts) in 173 total games at that level.

Second base has been Mathias’ most frequent position in the minors, and that happens to be the Pirates’ least-settled spot in the lineup, so he’s a particularly sensible add for Pittsburgh at a low cost of acquisition. He’ll compete with Rodolfo Castro, Ji Hwan Bae and Nick Gonzales for playing time there throughout the remainder of camp.

Players That Could Move To The 60-Day IL Once Spring Training Begins

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Just about every baseball team has a full 40-man roster now, with the Astros the only team with an open spot at the moment. That means that just about every transaction, be it a free agent signing or a waiver claim, requires a corresponding move.

However, that could soon change as the injured list is coming back soon. There’s no IL from the end of a season until pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training for the next campaign, which they will do next week. That means some clubs could potentially gain a bit of extra roster flexibility at that time, since players on the 60-day IL don’t count against a team’s roster total. However, it’s worth pointing out that the “60 days” don’t start until Opening Day, which is March 30 this year. That means, though a team can transfer a player to the 60-day IL next week, they will likely only do so if they aren’t expecting the player back until end of May or later.

With some notable free agents still unsigned like Jurickson Profar, Andrew Chafin, Michael Wacha, Elvis Andrus and many others, it’s possible that teams interested in their services might try to hold off on getting a deal done until next week. Or perhaps clubs that have players they would like to sneak through waivers will try to do so now, before rival clubs gain that extra roster flexibility with the IL opening up. Then again, some clubs will need to keep in mind non-roster players they are planning to promote by Opening Day and might hold off on making a move until that time.

Here are some players who are expected to miss some significant time and could find themselves transferred soon, sorted by division.

AL East

Hyun Jin Ryu/Chad Green

The Blue Jays have a pair of pitchers on their 40-man roster who are returning from Tommy John surgery. They should be on a similar timeline, as they each underwent the procedure in June of last year, though Green will most likely return first since relievers generally require less time to build up arm strength compared to starters. Regardless, the recovery time period for TJS is about 12-18 months, meaning neither pitcher is likely to return until midseason at the earliest. Ryu recently said he was targeting a July return.

Trevor Story

The Red Sox shortstop recently underwent an internal brace procedure on his throwing elbow, a similar operation to Tommy John. Though he’s confident he’ll return at some point, he’s slated to miss most of the upcoming season and is certainly headed for the injured list.

John Means

The Orioles lefty underwent Tommy John surgery in late of April of 2022. With the 12-18 month recovery window for TJS, he could theoretically return in the first couple of months of the season, so the O’s may not want to transfer him to the injured list until they have some clarity about his timeline.

Scott Effross/Luis Gil/Frankie Montas

Effross is a lock for the Yankees’ injured list as he underwent Tommy John in October and will likely miss the entire 2023 campaign. Gil had the same surgery but in May, which means he’ll likely be out until midseason. The situation with Montas is a bit less clear, as he’s dealing with shoulder inflammation that is expected to keep him out for the first month of the season. Unless he suffers some sort of setback, he probably won’t be placed on the 60-day IL right away.

Shane Baz/Andrew Kittredge

The Rays have a couple of hurlers bound for the IL as Baz underwent Tommy John in September while Kittredge had the same surgery in June. They’re both going to miss the first half of the year, with Baz potentially missing the entire season.

AL Central

Casey Mize/Tarik Skubal

Mize underwent Tommy John surgery in June and should be placed on the Tigers’ IL at some point. Skubal’s case is a bit less certain after he underwent flexor tendon surgery in August. The club hasn’t provided a timeline for his recovery but some recent comparables can give us some idea. Danny Duffy underwent the procedure in October of 2021 and was hoping to return by June of 2022, though a setback prevented him from pitching at all on the year. Matthew Boyd went under the knife for flexor tendon surgery in September of 2021 and didn’t return to a big league mound until September of 2022.

Garrett Crochet/Liam Hendriks

Crochet of the White Sox underwent Tommy John surgery in April of last year but was already stretched out to throwing from 120 feet in November. Whether he’s able to return in the early parts of 2023 or not will depend on his continued progression in that recovery process. In a less conventional situation, Liam Hendriks announced last month that he’s beginning treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. It’s unknown how long his treatment will take but general manager Rick Hahn said they don’t expect updates “prior to Opening Day at the very earliest.”

Chris Paddack/Royce Lewis

Paddack was recently extended by the Twins though he underwent Tommy John in May of last year and likely won’t be ready to return until the middle of the upcoming campaign. Lewis tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in June of last year, the second year in a row that he suffered that unfortunate injury. At the time, his recovery timeline was estimated at 12 months, which likely puts him on the shelf until midseason as well.

AL West

Brett Martin

It was reported last month that the Rangers lefty will require shoulder surgery. It was said that the timeline will become more clear in the aftermath of the procedure but he’s likely to miss the entirety of the upcoming season.

NL East

Bryce Harper

The Phillies superstar underwent Tommy John surgery in November and the club has announced they expect him to be out of action until around the All-Star break in July.

Huascar Ynoa/Tyler Matzek

Both these Braves pitchers underwent Tommy John last year, with Ynoa going under the knife in September and Matzek in October. That makes them both long shots for appearing at all this year, but especially not in the first half.

Max Meyer/Anthony Bender/Sixto Sanchez

The Marlins have a couple of arms that will certainly miss time this year and one more that’s a wild card. Meyer and Bender both underwent Tommy John in August and will miss most of the upcoming campaign. Sanchez underwent arthroscopic shoulder surgery in October with the club announcing at that time they expected him back by spring. It was reported last month that Sanchez is already throwing bullpens, which perhaps points against an IL stint. However, after the shoulder issues completely wiped out his 2021 and 2022 seasons, it’s hard to know how much to rely on his health going forward.

Danny Mendick

The Mets signed Mendick after he was non-tendered by the White Sox. The infielder/outfielder tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in June of last year and missed the second half of the season. There haven’t been any updates on his status recently, but further clarity will likely come when camp gets rolling.

Tanner Rainey/Stephen Strasburg

The Nationals have one fairly straightforward case in Tanner Rainey, who underwent Tommy John in August and will likely miss most of the upcoming season. What’s less clear is the situation surrounding Strasburg, who’s hardly pitched at all over the past three years due to thoracic outlet syndrome and various issues seemingly related to that. He made one appearance in the big leagues last year, pitching 4 2/3 in one start in June but went on the IL right after and never returned. He spoke about the issue in September, saying he hadn’t thrown in months and that he is “not really sure what the future holds.”

NL Central

Ethan Roberts/Codi Heuer/Kyle Hendricks

Roberts underwent Tommy John in June and likely won’t be available for the Cubs until midseason. Heuer had TJS in March but the latest reporting suggests he won’t return until June or July. The status of Hendricks is less clear, with the righty trying to recover from a capsular tear in his shoulder. The club is hoping to have him back by Opening Day but also said they won’t rush him. He recently said that he’s expecting to be on a mound by March 1.

Vladimir Gutierrez/Tejay Antone

Gutierrez, a Reds righty, underwent Tommy John in July and should miss the first few months of the upcoming season at least. Antone was rehabbing from a Tommy John of his own when he suffered a flexor strain in his forearm. He announced today he’s received a platelet-rich plasma injection to treat the issue and suggested he might miss the first half of the season.

Max Kranick

The Pirates right-hander required Tommy John in June and will miss the first half of the upcoming campaign.

NL West

Antonio Senzatela/Tyler Kinley

The Rockies have a couple of murky situations on their hands with these hurlers. Senzatela tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee last year and required surgery in August. The timeline at that point was given at 6-8 months, which would place his return somewhere in the February-April window. Whether he’ll require a lengthy IL stint will depend on if his recovery is still on that track. Kinley was diagnosed with an elbow strain and a flexor tear in his forearm in June of last year. He underwent surgery in July with the club announcing they expected him to miss one calendar year, which should prevent him from pitching early in the campaign.

Walker Buehler/Blake Treinen/J.P. Feyereisen

The Dodgers have a trio of pitchers that are likely to miss most or perhaps all of the upcoming season. Buehler required Tommy John in August and could potentially return very late in the year. Treinen underwent shoulder surgery in November with an estimated recovery time of 10 months. Feyereisen underwent shoulder surgery in December and won’t be able to begin throwing until four months after that procedure, or around April. His eventual return to game shape will depend on how long it takes him to progress from simply throwing to getting up to full game speed.

Luke Jackson

The Giants signed the right-hander in free agency, despite Jackson undergoing Tommy John in April. President of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi told reporters last month that there was a chance Jackson begins the year on the 60-day IL, though that doesn’t seem to indicate any kind of setback. “He’s doing great in his rehab, so we’re going to wait and see how he’s doing in spring training,” Zaidi said.

Pirates Outright Six Players

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The Pirates have outrighted Peter Solomon, Beau Sulser, Jason Delay, Blake Cederlind, Eric Stout and Zack Collins off their 40-man roster, per a team announcement. Both Stout and Collins have elected free agency. The made the moves after reinstating Canaan Smith-Njigba, Colin Holderman, Yerry De Los Santos, Cederlind and Max Kranick off the 60-day IL.

Solomon, 26, was claimed off waivers from the Astros in September. He never made it to the majors in Pittsburgh, staying at Triple-A for his brief stint with the Bucs. Across both team’s Triple-A affiliates he threw 109 2/3 innings of 5.58 ERA ball, striking out eight batters per nine innings and walking 4.4. He did make it to the majors in 2021 for the Astros, throwing 14 innings of 1.29 ERA ball, although that was held together by an 88.9% LOB rate.

Sulser was a tenth round draft pick in 2017, and made it to the majors for the first time in 2022. He had a 3.72 ERA across 9 2/3 innings in Pittsburgh, before the Orioles claimed him off waivers in May. There, he spent much of the year in the minors but threw 12 2/3 innings of 3.55 ERA ball in the bigs. Altogether, Sulser would strike out 19.1% of major league batters and walk 9.1% in 2022.

The Pirates used no fewer than eight catchers in 2022, and despite Delay spending the first few months of the season at Triple-A, he wound up as their starter by season’s end and his 57 games at catcher were the most on the team. Across those appearances, he hit just .213/.265/.271 with one home run. The bat was never Delay’s strength, and he does grade out well defensively behind the plate.

Cederlind came through the Pirates system as a strong relief pitcher, but injuries have derailed his career in recently. After making his major league debut in 2020 and tossing four innings out of Pittsburgh’s bullpen he underwent Tommy John surgery in early 2021. That is never a quick recovery, but Cederlind had to undergo a second surgery this year to remove loose bodies from his elbow, and as such never pitched in either 2021 or 2022.

Pittsburgh purchased Stout from the Cubs midway through the 2022 campaign, and wound up throwing 18 2/3 innings out of their bullpen. His 5.79 ERA doesn’t show much promise, and Stout will need to find a way to limit the walks, after he gave up 15 free passes this season in Pittsburgh.

The sixth man to be outrighted was Collins, a former top-100 prospect out of the White Sox system. It never worked out for the catcher in Chicago, and the White Sox shipped him to the Blue Jays for Reese McGuire at the start of the season. He struggled there, hitting .194/.266/.417 with four home runs across 79 plate appearances. The Pirates claimed him off waivers in September, but he picked up just a solitary hit across 29 plate appearances.

After these moves, and Pittsburgh’s earlier acquisition of first baseman Ji-Man Choi from the Rays, their 40-man roster is full.

Pirates’ Max Kranick Undergoes Tommy John Surgery

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Pirates right-hander Max Kranick underwent Tommy John surgery yesterday, Jason Mackey of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.  As per the usual 12-15 month recovery timeline, Kranick will miss the rest of the 2022 season and is in jeopardy of being sidelined for all the 2023 campaign.

It’s a rough turn of events for the 24-year-old, who only just made his MLB debut last season.  As Mackey notes, Kranick has been battling soreness in his forearm and elbow area for much of the year, dating back to Spring Training.  As a result, Kranick was limited to five innings of Major League action and 8 2/3 frames in the minors before he was placed on the Triple-A injured list last month.  Unfortunately for Kranick, he won’t even bank any big league service time during his absence, as he was in the minors when he went on the IL.

Kranick is a Pennsylvania native (born in Scranton) who was selected by the Pirates in the 11th round of the 2016 draft.  With a 3.50 ERA and 5.85% walk rate over 323 2/3 career innings in the minors, Kranick emerged as a rotation candidate, even if his 19.67% strikeout rate left something to be desired.  Kranick started nine games for Pittsburgh last season and struggled to a 6.28 ERA over 38 2/3 innings, before tossing five scoreless innings of relief work over his two MLB appearances in 2022.

Pirates Recall Rodolfo Castro, Reinstate Duane Underwood Jr., Option Cole Tucker and Max Kranick

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After already claiming right-hander Tyler Beede from the Giants and designating right-hander Beau Sulser for assignment this morning, the Pirates announced a series of further moves this afternoon, optioning shortstop Cole Tucker and right-hander Max Kranick to Triple-A Indianapolis, recalling shortstop Rodolfo Castro from Indianapolis, and reinstating right-hander Duane Underwood Jr. from the 10-day IL.

Tucker’s demotion is arguably the most notable element of all this, given his former prospect pedigree. Selected by the Pirates 24th overall in the 2014 draft, he instantly became one of the club’s most intriguing prospects. Baseball America ranked him #8 in the system the following year and Tucker would stay in the top 10 for four further years after that, gaining particular praise for his speed and defensive abilities.

However, since making his MLB debut in 2019, his performance at the plate has undermined his abilities elsewhere. In 154 career games in the big leagues, he has a batting line of .211/.259/.314, producing a wRC+ of 53. He has one option year remaining, so today’s demotion will make him out of options next year, assuming he spends at least 20 total days in the minors on the season.

Underwood, 27, was acquired from the Cubs and did yeoman’s work for the Pirates last year. In 43 games, he logged 72 2/3 innings, putting up a 4.33 ERA with a 20.3% strikeout rate, 8.4% walk rate and 43.5% ground ball rate. This year, he faced one batter before a hamstring strain put him on the shelf.

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