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Rays, Brendan McKay Agree To Two-Year Minor League Deal

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The Rays are in agreement with left-hander Brendan McKay on a two-year minor league contract, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link). Tampa Bay has also agreed to traditional one-year minor league deals with catcher Nick Dini and reliever Colten Brewer.

McKay is a former fourth overall pick who has spent his entire career with the Rays. A two-way superstar in college, he increasingly focused on pitching as a professional. An excellent strike-thrower, he moved quickly through the minor leagues and reached the majors by 2019. McKay started 11 of 13 games during his rookie season, showing promising strikeout and walk marks through 49 innings.

Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to throw a single major league pitch in the four years since then. He missed the shortened 2020 season on account of a shoulder problem that eventually required surgery. The rehab from that procedure kept him out of action until late June 2021. Just a few outings into a minor league rehab stint, McKay suffered a flexor strain in his forearm that again proved to be season-ending. He was then diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome and underwent surgery to correct that issue last November.

McKay spent most of 2022 on the injured list recovering from the TOS procedure. He set out on a rehab assignment in mid-July and spent his allotted 30-day window pitching back to Triple-A. The Rays then formally reinstated McKay from the IL but kept him in Durham on an optional assignment. A few days later, he suffered a UCL injury while pitching with the Bulls. Tampa Bay announced in September he’d require Tommy John surgery, an injury that’ll cost him the entire 2023 season.

At the end of this year, the Rays outrighted McKay off their 40-man roster. They released him the following week, a quirk of the minor league service system. He’s spent parts of six seasons in the minors, and he’ll have reached a seventh in 2023. After the ’23 campaign, he’d have qualified for minor league free agency if not added to the 40-man roster anyhow. By releasing him and subsequently re-signing him to a two-year deal, Tampa Bay can keep him in the organization for the 2024 season without a 40-man spot, giving them a chance to reevaluate him after a hopefully successful rehab.

Brewer, 30, pitched in the majors in four straight seasons from 2018-21. He split that time between the Padres and Red Sox, with his most extended work coming for Boston in 2019. The righty has tallied 91 innings over 81 major league appearances, working to a 5.04 ERA. Brewer signed with the Royals for the 2022 campaign. He spent the season at Triple-A Omaha, pitching to a 4.76 ERA over 39 2/3 innings. He struck out a quarter of opponents with a higher than average 10.7% walk rate.

Dini has sparse major league experience, having suited up 20 times for the Royals in 2019. The right-handed hitting catcher played in the Kansas City organization through the 2021 campaign, after which he signed with the Mets. Dini spent the season at Triple-A Syracuse, putting up a .232/.323/.446 line with 11 home runs in 201 trips to the plate.

Royals Release Jorge Bonifacio

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Nov. 27: Bonifacio has cleared waivers and is now a free agent. Additionally, the team announced that catcher Nick Dini and right-handers Conner Greene and Arnaldo Hernandez, who were designated for assignment at the same time as Bonifacio, have cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Omaha.

Nov. 25: The Royals announced that they’ve requested unconditional release waivers on outfielder Jorge Bonifacio. He was designated for assignment last week.

Bonifacio, 26, was the team’s primary right fielder in 2017 and gave fans some cause for optimism, hitting .255/.320/.432 with 17 homers, 15 doubles and a triple in that rookie campaign. He’s since been tagged with an 80-game PED suspension, however, and has generally struggled to produce at the plate. Over his past 291 plate appearances in the Majors, Bonifacio hit .234/.317/.371.

Were he a proficient defender in the outfield, perhaps the Royals would’ve been more inclined to keep Bonifacio in the fold. However, he’s limited to the corners and has posted -6 Defensive Runs Saved and -7 Outs Above Average in his big league career to this point. He’s also out of minor league options, meaning he’d need to break camp with the team in Spring Training or else be designated for assignment then. The Royals opted not to wait to make that move, thus giving themselves more 40-man roster flexibility this winter.

If Bonifacio goes unclaimed, he’ll become a free agent in 48 hours.

Royals Designate Jorge Bonifacio, Three Others For Assignment

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The Royals announced that they’ve designated outfielder Jorge Bonifacio, catcher Nick Dini and right-handers Conner Greene and Arnaldo Hernandez for assignment in advance of tonight’s deadline to set 40-man rosters prior to December’s Rule 5 Draft. Those four roster spots will go to left-hander Foster Griffin, right-hander Carlos Hernandez, shortstop Jeison Guzman and outfielder Nick Heath, each of whom has had his contract formally selected, per the team. Kansas City’s 40-man roster is full.

Bonifacio, 26, was the team’s primary right fielder in 2017 and gave fans some cause for optimism, hitting .255/.320/.432 with 17 homers, 15 doubles and a triple in that rookie campaign. He’s since been tagged with an 80-game PED suspension, however, and has generally struggled to produce at the plate. Over his past 291 plate appearances in the Majors, Bonifacio hit .234/.317/.371. For a defensively limited corner outfielder who is out of minor league options, that lack of output was no longer sufficient enough to keep his place on the roster.

Greene, also 26, was claimed off waivers from the Cardinals late last November — nearly a year ago to the day. The once-well-regarded prospect struggled to a 5.13 ERA in 112 1/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A, though, averaging 4.3 walks per nine innings pitched along the way. His control issues expanded beyond walks, as he plunked nine batters and threw a whopping 21 wild pitches.

Dini made his MLB debut at the age of 26 this past season but hit just .196/.270/.357 in 64 plate appearances with Kansas City. He’s a lifetime .288/.347/.437 in five minor league seasons who hit .296/.370/.565 in last year’s supercharged Triple-A environment.

Arnaldo Hernandez, 23, tossed 23 sharp innings in Double-A but was hammered for a 6.39 ERA with a dismal 65-41 K/BB ratio and 24 homers allowed in just 105 1/3 Triple-A innings.

Griffin, 24, was a first-round pick in 2014 and has gone unselected in prior Rule 5 Drafts. He didn’t post particularly appealing Triple-A numbers in ’19 (5.23 ERA, 7.6 K/9, 4.4 BB/9) but notch a 49.2 percent grounder rate. He’s also impressed in the Dominican Winter League this offseason, tossing 23 1/3 innings of 2.31 ERA ball with a hearty 31-to-6 K/BB ratio.

Hernandez, 22, posted a 3.50 ERA with a 43-to-9 K/BB ratio in 35 innings with the Royals’ Class-A affiliate. Guzman didn’t hit much in A-ball and isn’t considered among the organization’s top prospects, but the Royals are bullish enough to protect him from being selected. Heath didn’t have much power, but he’s a prototypical Royals player, as evidenced by his 60 steals between Double-A and Triple-A in 2019.

Royals To Select Contract Of Nick Dini

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The Royals will select the contract of catcher Nick Dini and promote him to the active roster according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter). A corresponding move isn’t yet known.

Dini, who just turned 26, is a former 14th-round draft pick who stands at just 5’8. He has mostly flown under the prospect radar while steadily moving up the ladder. Dini has a history of strong batting averages (.288 career), low strikeout rates (13.6%), and even a bit of speed (29 career steals).

Given a shot this year at Triple-A, Dini has made the most of his opportunities this season. Even given the Pacific Coast League’s offensive context, he has impressed offensively with a .296/.370/.565 batting line (119 wRC+). Dini has swatted 13 home runs, swiped seven bags, and turned in a strong 29:21 K/BB ratio over 213 plate appearances.

It seems that Dini will have a chance to turn into a reasonably capable offensive backstop. His defensive acumen isn’t really evident from public reports, though there is video evidence of a nice back pick last spring.

For the Royals, this is the latest move in a season-long effort to fill in for injured stalwart Salvador Perez. Having traded away Martin Maldonado, the club is cycling through much less established options. Meibrys Viloria and Cam Gallagher have been handling the position of late, but the latter recently came down with an injury that may require a stint on the injured list. The club just acquired Adam Moore, bolstering an organizational depth chart that also includes another player with MLB experience in Andrew Susac.

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