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Athletics Designate Austin Allen For Assignment, Outright Mickey McDonald

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The A’s announced they’ve designated catcher Austin Allen for assignment. Reliever Jake Lemoine was also optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas as the team trimmed its active roster count from 28 to 26. Additionally, Oakland announced that outfielder Mickey McDonald, who was designated for assignment over the weekend, has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Las Vegas.

Like most of the players who have been DFA in recent days, Allen is out of minor league option years. That meant Oakland was left to either carry him on the active roster or take him off the 40-man and risk losing him to another club. With the roster cutdown necessitating sending two players out, the A’s have decided on the latter course of action.

Oakland acquired Allen from the Padres over the 2019-20 offseason in the deal that sent utilityman Jurickson Profar to San Diego. He has been on the 40-man roster in the two and a half years since then, although he’s only tallied 56 MLB plate appearances over 23 games. The lefty-hitting backstop spent most of the 2020 campaign at the alternate training site, then spent the bulk of last year at Las Vegas.

Stashing Allen as minor league depth wasn’t an available course of action this time around. He spent a few days on the restricted/COVID-19 lists but otherwise has been on the active roster, primarily as the #3 catcher. Sean Murphy is the obvious #1 backstop in Oakland. Christian Bethancourt, who signed a minor league deal and was selected to the majors when Allen hit the restricted list, has gotten into 13 games between catcher, first base and designated hitter; Allen has suited up just five times, an indication that Bethancourt had surpassed him as the #2 option. Veteran Stephen Vogt is currently on the injured list with a knee sprain but will be in that mix once he’s healthy.

Allen, 28, has only mustered a .195/.252/.288 line with a 37% strikeout rate in 127 MLB plate appearances. He’s never really had an extended opportunity to settle in, though, with his 34 games for San Diego in 2019 marking a career-high. The Missouri native has a massive .323/.365/.623 line in nearly 600 Triple-A plate appearances, including a .317/.351/.584 mark with the Aviators last year.

Vegas’ extreme hitter-friendly environment no doubt played a role, but it’s possible Allen’s strong minor league resume will convince another team to take a look. Prospect evaluators have generally not been enthused with his defense, but a team that views him as a capable gloveman behind the dish could be willing to devote him a roster spot as a bat-first depth option. Oakland will have a week to trade Allen or try to run him through waivers.

McDonald made his MLB debut last month, tallying six plate appearances over four games. He didn’t collect a hit but drew a pair of walks. McDonald has never previously been outrighted, so he’ll have to report back to Las Vegas and try to earn another look in the big leagues. The 26-year-old hit .333/.423/.438 in 228 Triple-A plate appearances last season, but he’s struggled in ten games there this year.

A’s Claim Domingo Tapia From Royals, Designate Mickey McDonald For Assignment

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The A’s have claimed right-hander Domingo Tapia off of waivers from the Royals and optioned him to Triple-A Las Vegas, the team announced. To make room on the 40-man roster, the Athletics designated Mickey McDonald for assignment.

Tapia, 30, has not appeared with the Royals this season. He appeared with the Royals, Mariners, and Red Sox over the past two seasons, however. Tapia owns a career 2.61 ERA over 38 innings between the three teams, notching most of that experience with the Royals last season.

McDonald, 27, has walked twice but failed to notch a base hit in his first six plate appearances. The switch-hitter doesn’t hit for power, but he did put together a .305/.402/.390 line in 430 plate appearances with Double-A and Triple-A last season. He’s likely to pass through waivers and return to the A’s Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas.

A’s Announce Several Roster Moves

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3:40pm: Martin Gallegos of MLB.com relays more information about Smith’s injury, which initially came without designation. It’s a bone bruise that Smith incurred during a slide on Monday night. He’ll be in a walking boot for an undetermined amount of time before returning to baseball activity.

1:39pm: The Athletics announced a series of roster moves this afternoon, with lefty A.J. Puk being reinstated from the Covid IL. Outfielder Mickey McDonald was selected from Triple-A Las Vegas. Infielder Kevin Smith went to the 10-day IL while southpaw Zach Logue was optioned to Las Vegas.

Puk was one of six A’s players who landed on the Covid IL on Monday, with no indication given at that time as to which players had actually tested positive and which were just close contacts or experiencing symptoms. With Puk being the first of that group to return, it’s possible that he was just a close contact and not one of the positive cases. Players who test positive are subject to a 10-day absence, though it’s possible to reduce that if the player has gone 24 or more hours without a fever, received a pair of negative PCR tests, and been given approval from a team physician and the MLB/MLBPA joint committee (a panel of one league-appointed and one union-appointed physician). Players who are experiencing symptoms but do not test positive can return in shorter order if their symptoms abate. The lefty had a rough season in 2021 but has started off well this year, throwing 4 innings with a 2.25 ERA, 31.3% strikeout rate and 6.3% walk rate.

As for McDonald, as soon as he gets into a game, it will be his MLB debut. Selected by the A’s in the 18th round of the 2017 draft, he was recently ranked as the #32 prospect in the Oakland system by Baseball America. BA’s report on the 26-year-old (27 in June) notes that he “fits the A’s mold as an older, under-the-radar performer without an obvious carrying tool.” They note that he gave up switch-hitting to hit exclusively as a lefty in 2021, with excellent results. In 106 games last year between Double-A and Triple-A, he hit .305/.402/.390 for a wRC+ of 113. He’s never hit more than two homers in a minor league season, but has made up for that lack of pop with good plate discipline and some speed (18 steals last year). He can play all three outfield positions and even a bit of third base. For an Oakland club that traded away many of their established players, McDonald will join the group of inexperienced guys getting an audition to see what they can do.

Smith and Logue were both acquired by the A’s from the Blue Jays as part of the Matt Chapman trade. Smith is hitting .161/.212/.226 over 33 plate appearances so far this year. Logue has thrown 1 1/3 scoreless innings in his first taste of MLB action.

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