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Monte Harrison

Brewers Sign Monte Harrison To Minor League Deal

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The Brewers have signed outfielder Monte Harrison to a minor league deal, reports Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Harrison has received an invitation to major league Spring Training.

Harrison, 27, returns to his original organization, as the Brewers selected him in the second round of the 2014 draft. He drew a lot of attention as he moved up the minor leagues due to his speed-power-defense combination. He split 2017 between Class-A and High-A, hitting 21 home runs and stealing 27 bases. That was enough to get him onto Baseball America’s list of the 100 best prospects in the league and included in the Christian Yelich trade prior to 2018.

Unfortunately, mounting strikeout numbers have been an issue for Harrison since reaching the upper levels of the minors. He’s gone down on strikes in more than 30% of his Double-A and Triple-A plate appearances as well as getting punched out at a 48.7% rate in the majors. That latter number is in a small sample of just 76 trips to the plate but also highlights why he hasn’t been given an extended run of play there.

The Marlins released him in March of last year and he signed a minor league deal with the Angels. He did get 14 plate appearances in the big leagues for the Halos but spent most of his time in Triple-A. In 82 games down there, he hit nine homers and swiped 28 bags but struck out in 34.1% of his trips to the plate. He was outrighted in the middle of the season and elected free agency in October.

The Brewers have plenty of outfield options on the 40-man roster, with Yelich, Garrett Mitchell, Tyrone Taylor, Jesse Winker, Brian Anderson and Blake Perkins all in the mix. They also have some highly-touted prospects near the majors, such as Sal Frelick and Joey Wiemer, with Jackson Chourio not far behind. That will probably make it challenging for Harrison to work his way back to the big leagues, though the new rules could potentially work in his favor. The upcoming season will see bans on defensive shifts and limits on pick-off moves, with those changes theoretically making speed and defense more impactful. Should Harrison manage to get onto the roster, he’s out of options but he still has less than a year of service time, giving the club plenty of affordable control over his services.

19 Players Elect Free Agency

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Players hit minor league free agency on a daily basis during the postseason, as opposed to major league free agents who hit free agency following the World Series when their contracts expire. On Thursday, MLBTR covered 15 players who elected minor league free agency, and we will continue to provide occasional updates as players continue to hit the open market, as noted on the MiLB.com transactions log.

If a player is not on their organization’s 40-man roster at the end of the season, he will hit minor league free agency as long as he has at least 3 years of MLB service time, been assigned outright more than once in his career, and/or has played in the minor leagues for parts of seven or more seasons. Everyone on today’s list is part of that group of players, and most will search for another minor league deal this offseason, though a few may manage to latch onto a major league club and secure a bench or bullpen spot entering the 2023 season.

Infielders:

Outfielders:

Pitchers:

Angels Place Mike Trout On IL With Ribcage Inflammation

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The Angels have announced that Mike Trout has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to left ribcage inflammation. They also announced the previously reported claim of infielder Phil Gosselin, and that outfielder Monte Harrison has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Salt Lake.

At this point, there’s been no indication from the team as to how long they expect Trout to be out of action. He has missed some time recently due to back spasms, though the club avoided putting him on the IL until now. Perhaps they were waiting for the All-Star break, when the 10-day minimum absence would sting the least, though further word will surely come from the Angels in time.

Trout had been fairly healthy for the early portions of his career, playing in at least 114 games for the eight seasons from 2012 to 2019 and only coming in below 134 in one of those. He followed that up by getting into 53 of the club’s 60 games in the shortened 2020 season. Last year, however, he made it into only 36 contests, as a calf issue that didn’t initially seem serious eventually lingered and finished his season.

This year, he’s gotten into 79 of the club’s 92 games so far, already more than doubling his total from last year. He hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down in terms of overall production, hitting an excellent .270/.368/.599 for a 168 wRC+. He’s produced 3.8 wins above replacement already, according to FanGraphs.

Regardless of how much time he misses, it’s yet another disappointing setback in a season full of them for the Angels. Despite a hot start to the year wherein the club was 24-14 in mid-May, they’ve played at a miserable 15-39 pace since and are now 39-53 overall. The club is 10 1/2 games out of a playoff spot and seems more likely to sell than add at the deadline. Taking that into consideration, it makes sense to give Trout some time off to get healthy, rather than pushing him and potentially worsening the issue.

As for Harrison, he was signed to a minor league deal in the offseason after being released by the Marlins. Despite once being a highly-rated prospect, strikeout issues have kept him from living up to his athletic potential. Despite a 35% strikeout rate in the minors this year, he was selected to the big league for some bench/pinch running/defensive replacement duties. He played nine game but got just 14 plate appearances, striking out in eight of them, before being DFA’d. Having been previously outrighted in his career, he has the ability to reject the outright assignment and elect free agency, though it’s not yet clear which path he’s taken.

Angels Designate Monte Harrison For Assignment, Recall Jo Adell

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The Angels announced that they have recalled outfielder Jo Adell. To make room for him on the active roster, outfielder Monte Harrison has been designated for assignment.

Harrison, 26, was signed by the Angels to a minor league deal in April. He hit .213/.305/.368 for a wRC+ of just 67, but did steal 2o bases in 50 games. He was selected to the big league club about three weeks ago but has been used sparingly, getting into just nine games and stepping up to the plate just 14 times.

Once considered one of the top prospects in the sport, Harrison was part of the return the Marlins received in the Christian Yelich trade. Unfortunately, a propensity for strikeouts has prevented him from truly becoming a useful player thus far. He struck out in 35% of his plate appearances in Triple-A this year and then 57.1% in that limited MLB showing.

Since he’s out of options, the only way for the Angels to get him off the roster was to designate him for assignment. The Angels will have a week to trade him, pass him through waivers or release him. Should he clear waivers, he would have the ability to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency.

As for Adell, this is the latest step in what has become a pattern for him wherein he mashes in the minors but struggles in the majors, before getting sent down and starting the process over again. He got his first call-up in 2020 but hit just .161/.212/.266 for a wRC+ of 27. Optioned to Triple-A to start the 2021 campaign, he hit .289/.342/.592 for a 122 wRC+. He got recalled in August but produced a tepid line of .246/.295/.408 in the majors, wRC+ of 90. Here in 2022, he made the Opening Day roster but hit .215/.227/.400 through the beginning of May and got optioned. Outside of a six-day stretch in June, he’s been in Triple-A since then, hitting .239/.333/.587 for a wRC+ of 116.

The recall of Adell seems to at least be partially motivated by the fact that Mike Trout is dealing with back spasms. Before tonight’s game, he told reporters, including Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times, that he has been experiencing discomfort for over a week and that it got worse last night. He is out of tonight’s lineup, though he says he doesn’t expect to go on the IL and should be fine to participate in next week’s All-Star game.

Angels Designate Juan Lagares For Assignment

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Angels outfielder Juan Lagares has been designated for assignment, per an announcement from the team. His spot on the active and 40-man rosters will go to fellow outfielder Monte Harrison, whose contract has been selected from Triple-A Salt Lake.

Selected to the big league roster late last month for his second stint with the Halos, Lagares has appeared in 20 games this year but managed only a .183/.210/.250 batting line. While he’s always been a defensive-minded outfielder, Lagares’ production at the plate has taken a major downturn over the past several seasons; dating back to the 2019 campaign, he carries a .222/.267/.341 output in 674 trips to the plate.

The Angels will have a week to trade Lagares, pass him through outright waivers or release him. He’d have the ability to reject an outright assignment to Salt Lake if he clears waivers.

Harrison, 26, once rated as one of the best outfield prospects in all of baseball. One of four players traded from Milwaukee to Miami in the lopsided Christian Yelich blockbuster, he made his MLB debut in 2020 but has yet to make much of an impact in the big leagues, where he’s batted .175/.230/.263 in a tiny sample of 62 plate appearances.

Harrison’s prospect sheen began to fade as he faced mounting strikeout concerns in the upper minors. He’s fanned in a whopping 35.1% of his plate appearances at the Triple-A level, including exactly 35% of his 200 trips to the plate this season. Harrison is only hitting .213/.305/.368 in Salt Lake this season, but he’s nevertheless gone 20-for-23 in stolen base attempts and will bring some speed, defense and a right-handed bat to the Angels’ bench. Scouting reports on Harrison, at his peak, praised his plus raw power, but he’s never topped 21 home runs in a single season.

Angels Sign Monte Harrison To Minors Deal

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The Angels have signed Monte Harrison to a minor league deal, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He had been released by the Marlins last month.

Harrison was a second round pick of the Brewers in 2014 and impressed prospect evaluators in his first few seasons in the minors. Baseball America ranked him the 75th best prospect in baseball in 2018, around the same time that Harrison was included in the blockbuster trade that sent Christian Yelich from the Marlins to the Brewers.

Unfortunately, Harrison struggled as he reached higher levels of competition. In 2019, he cracked Triple-A for the first time, putting up a respectable line of .274/.357/.451, though that came with a worrisome strikeout rate of 29.9%. In 2020, with the minor leagues cancelled, Harrison made it to the big leagues and got into 32 games in the shortened season. His line of .170/.235/.255 and 51% strikeout rate showed that he clearly needed some more seasoning, leading to another year primarily spent in the minors. In 2021, he played 74 Triple-A games and hit .242/.331/.446. Despite a wRC+ of 108, strikeouts were a problem again, as he was K’d in 39.3% of his plate appearances.

Having exhausted his option years, the Marlins finally gave up on Harrison and designated him for assignment last month, eventually releasing him. For the Angels, there’s no harm in taking a flier on Harrison to see if he can right the ship. He’s only 26 years old and at least offers speed, having stolen more than 20 bases in the minors in each of the past four seasons in which they were played. He’s also been praised for his elite center field defense, a rare skill that means he wouldn’t need to be an excellent hitter to be valuable. If he can cut down on the strikeouts and earn his way back onto the big league roster, he has less than a year of MLB service time, meaning the Angels would have to ability to keep him around for years to come.

The club is currently heading into the season with Mike Trout, Jo Adell and Brandon Marsh slated to be their regular outfielders, though all three of those come with question marks. Trout only played 36 games last year due to a calf injury, making his future uncertain. Even if he can have better health this year, the Angels will likely give him occasional breathers in order to not push him too hard. As for Marsh and Adell, they each have less than 80 games of big league experience and haven’t truly established themselves just yet. In the event of injuries or underperformance, Harrison could have a path back to the big leagues.

Marlins Release Monte Harrison

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TODAY: The Marlins have released Harrison, according to MLB.com’s Christina De Nicola (Twitter link).

MARCH 24: Harrison has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Jacksonville, the team informed reporters (including Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald). He’ll remain in the organization without requiring a 40-man roster spot.

MARCH 18: The Marlins announced a trio of roster moves Friday, designating outfielder Monte Harrison for assignment, claiming righty Yoan Lopez off waivers from the Phillies, and signing veteran outfielder Delino DeShields Jr. to a minor league contract.

Harrison, a second-round pick in 2014 and former top-100 prospect, was one of the key pieces sent from Milwaukee to Miami in the Christian Yelich blockbuster. The 26-year-old appeared in just 40 games with the Marlins over the course of his time in the organization, batting .175/.230/.263 in a tiny sample of 62 plate appearances. Of course, Harrison also never really forced his way onto the big league roster with standout performances in the minors, either. He logged a .715 OPS in an admittedly pitcher-friendly Double-A setting in 2018 — his first in the Marlins organization — and wasn’t able to push that OPS even as high as .800 in any of the three years he spent in the system.

Harrison did post a .242/.331/.446 batting line that checked in slightly above league-average production in Triple-A last year (108 wRC+), but he did so with a staggering 39.3% strikeout rate that surely didn’t give the team any confidence he was beginning to turn a corner. Now out of minor league options and squarely behind Avisail Garcia, Jesus Sanchez, Bryan De La Cruz and others on the outfield depth chart, Harrison finds himself jettisoned from the 40-man roster. The Marlins will have a week to trade Harrison, place him on outright waivers, or release him. The latter of those three scenarios seems highly unlikely; Harrison will either be traded/claimed by another club, or he’ll pass through outright waivers unclaimed and remain in the Marlins organization.

Taking Harrison’s spot on the 40-man roster, at least for now, is the 29-year-old Lopez — a former high-profile Diamondbacks signing out of Cuba. He’s spent parts of four seasons in the big leagues but, after a decent start with Arizona, has seen his numbers tank in recent years. Lopez throws hard (96.2 mph average fastball in his career) and has better-than-average marks in terms of walk rate (7.7%) and ground-ball rate (46.8%).

That said, Lopez’s 19.1% strikeout rate is well shy of the MLB average, particularly among relievers, and he’s been overwhelmingly homer-prone. In 101 2/3 innings at the MLB level, he has a 4.25 ERA but a sky-high 1.77 HR/9. Lopez’s four-seamer has above-average velocity but bottom-of-the-scale spin rate, which has allowed hitters to square it up with regularity. On 251 occasions, Lopez has finished a big league plate appearance by throwing a fastball, and opponents have posted a .280/.333/.511 batting line in those instances. Lopez’s career 5.3% swinging-strike rate on his four-seamer is one of the lower marks you’ll come across.

As for the veteran DeShields, he’ll replenish some of the center-field depth lost by designating Harrison for assignment but do so without requiring a 40-man roster spot. The 29-year-old is a generally known commodity know, having logged big league time in each of the past seven seasons (including three years as the primary center fielder in Texas). DeShields has never shown much in the way of power but has well above-average speed and is capable of playing all three outfield spots. He’s a lifetime .247/.326/.342 hitter in 2114 trips to the plate at the MLB level.

Marlins Looking For Center Fielder

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5:40pm: Joe Frisaro of Man On Second Baseball tweets that Jorge Soler is the “most realistic free agent still possible” for the Marlins, though he also adds that trade talks with several teams are ongoing.

8:04am: The Marlins have been quiet on the free agent front since the lockout lifted. General Manager Kim Ng has expressed a desire to add another bat, particularly one who can play center field, but she’s not prepared to rush to make an addition that might not be the right fit, per MLB.com’s Christina De Nicola.

While the rest of the division has been busy making re-shaping their rosters, the Marlins have settled for backup plans in the form of minor league deals to fill their biggest need. Delino DeShields and Roman Quinn both have extensive experience in center, and if the Marlins aren’t able to find a more permanent solution, either speedster could factor into the Major League roster with a strong spring.

Otherwise, their big pre-lockout free agent signing, Avisail Garcia, will be one of the internal candidates to captain the outfield, along with Bryan De La Cruz, Jesus Sanchez, and utilityman Jon Berti. None are natural options for a full-time gig in center, however.

Monte Harrison, who might otherwise have been an option, was designated for assignment this week. The 26-year-old could still return, but he has yet to establish himself as a viable regular option anyhow. Lewis Brinson and Magneuris Sierra, two of the part-time players at the position in recent years, were released this offseason and now play for the Astros and Angels, respectively.

In the minors, 24-year-old JJ Bleday and 25-year-old Victor Victor Mesa are the most well-known prospect names that could potential play themselves into the mix at some point this season. Neither have appeared higher than Double-A, however.

But the fact is, center field is perhaps the toughest position to field these days. Free agency doesn’t offer much by way of regular options, with veterans like Kevin Pillar, Brett Gardner, Billy Hamilton, Brian Goodwin, Jarrod Dyson, and Juan Lagares making up the bulk of the remaining free agent pool with center field experience.

Thus, if the Marlins are going to find themselves a new center fielder, they’ll probably have to do so through trade routes. Ng can dangle third baseman/outfielder Brian Anderson as a potential trade chip, per Barry Jackson and Andre Fernandez of the Miami Herald. The offseason acquisition of Joey Wendle makes Anderson somewhat expendable, though likely only at the cost of filling their need in center.

Anderson should be an intriguing option for a team in need of some offensive pop. Anderson owns a career 111 wRC+ heading into his age-29 season, and he brings experience at third base and right field. Given his position on the defensive hierarchy, however, it’d likely take more than just Anderson to net the Marlins a comparable center fielder.

If the Marlins can’t find that player in the trade market, they could turn to adding another corner outfielder like Jorge Soler or Michael Conforto, notes De Nicola. Either one would fit comfortably into the corner outfield mix while pushing De La Cruz and Garcia into more regular playing time in center. The designated hitter role is also available to the Marlins, though they seem content with letting Jesus Aguilar and Garrett Cooper split time there, as well as at first base.

Marlins Discussed Trades Involving Bryan Reynolds, Brandon Marsh

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Prior to the trade deadline, the Marlins were looking for outfield help, and explored what would have been a pair of major deals.  Barry Jackson and Craig Mish of The Miami Herald report that the Marlins checked in with the Pirates about All-Star center fielder Bryan Reynolds, and also discussed a fascinating deal with the Angels that would have seen Miami acquire outfielder Brandon Marsh in exchange for Max Meyer, the third overall pick of the 2020 draft.

It’s probably safe to assume that almost every team in baseball at least asked the Pirates about Reynolds, who has delivered great results in two of his three MLB seasons.  Reynolds has rebounded from a sophomore slump to hit .309/.388/.525 with 18 homers over 425 plate appearances this season, with an .385 xwOBA that ranks among the league’s best.

Reynolds turns 27 in January and is controlled through the 2025 season, making him one of the few assets that the rebuilding Pirates weren’t looking to move in general, and certainly not for anything short of a huge return.  “Pittsburgh wanted more than the Marlins were willing to consider,” Jackson/Mish write, so talks ultimately didn’t pan out.

As for the negotiations with the Angels, other players may have been involved in the proposed deal, so it wouldn’t have been only a straight Marsh-for-Meyer swap.  Such major trades of top prospects are rare, though this particular move would have addressed needs for both clubs.  It isn’t any secret that the Angels are looking to add young arms, as evidenced by their two deadline day trades that netted five minor league pitchers, or their 20-player draft class consisting of nothing but hurlers.

Meyer might already be pretty close to the majors, after throwing three years of college ball and making his pro debut this year at Double-A.  The right-hander has a 1.93 ERA over 70 innings for Double-A Pensacola and ranks 38th on Baseball America’s midseason top 100 prospects list.

As impressive as Meyer has been, he is only one of several impressive pitchers at both the MLB and minor league levels of Miami’s organization.  With this surplus in mind, Jackson/Mish write that the Marlins are looking to deal a pitcher for “a front-line offensive prospect” like Marsh, who made his Major League debut earlier this month.

Marsh had an even higher placement on BA’s midseason list, ranking as the 26th-best prospect in all of baseball.  His first taste of Triple-A ball was limited to 24 games due to shoulder inflammation, but he hit well over that limited playing time and earned his first look at the MLB level.  Seen as a center fielder of the future, Marsh would be a natural replacement for Starling Marte up the middle in Miami, and the Angels might be willing to move such a player for premium pitching talent since L.A. has another big outfield prospect in Jo Adell.

Between Marte, Adam Duvall, and Corey Dickerson, the Marlins have traded three veteran outfielders in a little over a month’s time, making the position a target area for the offseason.  Jesus Sanchez and the newly-acquired Bryan De La Cruz will be in the mix as potential starters, though Jackson/Mish write that Lewis Brinson and Monte Harrison aren’t seen as long-term options.  For Harrison, “his future with the organization is uncertain” after an internal matter that reportedly involved Harrison having to be restrained after an argument with Marte.

NL Notes: Padres, Clevinger, Lamet, Marlins, Marte

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Padres manager Jayce Tingler spoke to the media regarding injured starters Mike Clevinger and Dinelson Lamet, saying that both hurlers are playing catch but not yet throwing bullpen sessions. Their official status remains day-to-day, per The Athletic’s Andy McCullough. With the NLDS consisting of 5 games over 5 consecutive days this season, the Padres don’t have the luxury of using a roster spot on a pitcher who’s not going to be ready to throw. Clevinger and Lamet will likely be healthy enough to start, or they won’t be on the NLDS roster. The Padres will set their NLDS roster on Tuesday, per Dennis Lin of the Athletic (via Twitter).

  • Miami will likewise take as much time as possible before making a decision on Starling Marte. In the meantime, per Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald (via Twitter), it’s “Rest. Recovery. Treatment.” The Marlins will likely start Magneuris Sierra if Marte isn’t on the roster. Unlike with the Padres’ starters, there is a scenario where Marte is available to pinch-hit, but not to start. Sierra had just 53 plate appearance during the regular season, but he’s a burner who put together some nice at-bats against the Cubs in the wild card round.
  • Game one, of course, would likely pit the Marlins against southpaw Max Fried. In that case, Monte Harrison or Lewis Brinson would be more likely to get the nod. Brinson saw the most playing time during the season, slashing .226/.268/.368 across 112 plate appearances in 47 games. Brinson started 28 of the Marlins 60 games in the outfield, but he saw more time in the corners than in center. For what it’s worth, Brinson’s triple slash jumped to .260/.315/.480 in his 54 plate appearances against left-handers in 2020.
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