Nick Tropeano

Injury Notes: Healy, Sheriff, Rizzo, J.C. Ramirez

By Kyle Downing | April 8, 2018 at 1:49pm CDT

Mariners first baseman Ryon Healy showed up to the team’s clubhouse today in a walking boot; he twisted his ankle in a postgame workout, says Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times. It’s been described as a “pretty bad sprain”, and Healy will have an MRI soon. The expectation seems to be that he will require a DL stint, though the severity of the injury is unclear at this time. Healy provided the heroics in last night’s win; it seems likely that Dan Vogelbach will receive everyday at-bats in his absence.

More injury items from around the league…

Cardinals left-hander Ryan Sheriff has been placed on the DL with a toe injury; the team has recalled right-hander John Brebbia from Triple-A Memphis in a related move. Sheriff was added to the roster with the news that Brett Cecil would be out for an extended period of time; he allowed one earned run in his 2 2/3 innings of work this season. Sheriff also managed a 3.14 ERA last season in 14 1/3 innings of work for the Cardinals.
Anthony Rizzo has missed a couple of games for the Cubs due to back tightness, says Carrie Muskat of MLB.com. The first baseman’s back has evidently been bothering him ever since the club’s trip to Cincinnati. Rizzo has just three hits (including one home run) in 32 plate appearances to begin the season.
J.C. Ramirez is officially headed to the DL with forearm issues, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times tweets. We noted earlier that the righty had been experiencing forearm tightness; he now joins fellow Angels starters Matt Shoemaker and Andrew Heaney on the disabled list, leaving the club incredibly thin in the rotation beyond Garrett Richards, Shohei Ohtani and Tyler Skaggs. Parker Bridwell and Nick Tropeano seem to be the likeliest candidates to get rotation attention, but for the time being the club has recalled relievers Felix Pena and Eduardo Paredes (righty reliever Akeel Morris was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake).

Angels Claim Cody Ege

By Jeff Todd | August 12, 2016 at 4:55pm CDT

The Angels have claimed southpaw Cody Ege off waivers from the Marlins, per an announcement from Los Angeles. Right-hander Nick Tropeano was moved to the 60-day DL to create a 40-man opening.

Ege, 25, will head to Triple-A Salt Lake City to begin his tenure in the Los Angeles organization. He has spent most of the year at that level with Miami, compiling a 4.50 ERA over 44 frames with 7.2 K/9 and 5.5 BB/9.

That obviously isn’t a terribly promising pitching line, though Ege did earn a brief MLB promotion. He was also much better in the upper minors last year — good enough, in fact, to be a part of an under-the-radar deadline trade that has turned out to be more important than it initially seemed.

Ege was dealt along with Tomas Telis in the deal that sent Sam Dyson to the Rangers. That swap has certainly had an impact on both organizations, as Texas has utilized Dyson as its closer while the Fish have been forced to hunt for extra arms at the back of their pen.

Nick Tropeano To Undergo Tommy John Surgery; Garrett Richards Still Holding Off

By Jeff Todd | August 3, 2016 at 10:40pm CDT

The Angels received mix news on the pitching injury front today, as Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register was among those to report (Twitter links). Righty Nick Tropeano will undergo Tommy John surgery, as had been expected, while fellow right-hander Garrett Richards continues to show enough positive progress that he’ll hold off on having the same procedure.

Tropeano was recently diagnosed with a fairly significant tear of his ulnar collateral ligament. While there was at least some thought given to a PRP and stem cell treatment similar to that undertaken by both Richards and lefty Andrew Heaney, the decision was made in fairly short order to go ahead with a UCL replacement (as ultimately proved necessary for Heaney).

The surgery puts an end to what had been a promising campaign for the 25-year-old. He recorded solid results in 2015, but opened the year at Triple-A. Upon returning to the majors, Tropeano posted 68 1/3 innings of 3.56 ERA pitching, with 9.0 K/9 against 4.1 BB/9. ERA estimators weren’t as high on his performance — he was homer-prone and benefited from a 91.1% strand rate — but he was generating a strong 12.5% swinging strike rate and seemed well on his way to locking up a rotation spot for some time to come. Instead, one of his seasons of near-league-minimum salary will be spent on the DL, with the hope being that Tropeano can return for 2018 — at which time he’ll have 2.068 years of service.

Richards, on the other hand, has continued to exhibit sufficient healing that a non-surgical path remains viable. He won’t return to the majors this year, but is expected to attempt to build up to pitch up after the year — perhaps in the Arizona Fall League or winter ball. A final decision on the surgery will await the results of his efforts to throw in full game action.

Los Angeles has been hit hard with the TJ bug this year, though at least Richards holds out some hope of pitching in 2017. If he does end up having the procedure later in the year, his 2018 campaign would then come under some question — leading to a tough call as to whether the Halos ought to tender him an arb contract for the two seasons to come. Those are the team’s final two years of control over the 28-year-old, and they won’t come cheap since Richards is earning $6.425MM this year.

Nick Tropeano Diagnosed With UCL Tear; Tommy John Surgery Likely

By Steve Adams | July 19, 2016 at 6:07pm CDT

Angels right-hander Nick Tropeano has been diagnosed with a medium- to high-grade tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, the team informed reporters (Twitter link via Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times). While he’s headed for a second opinion, Tommy John surgery is the likely outcome. While he could potentially aim for the same stem-cell treatment that teammates Andrew Heaney and Garrett Richards have utilized — Heaney has been ticketed for Tommy John surgery in spite of said alternative — MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez notes (links to Twitter) that doing so would mean that Tropeano’s recovery would linger well into the 2018 season if he attempts the treatment and ultimately finds it unsuccessful.

For the Angels, the highly likely loss of Tropeano adds to what has been a nearly unprecedented deluge of pitching injuries. The Halos have now lost Richards, Heaney and Tropeano to UCL tears, while left-hander C.J. Wilson will not pitch this season due to shoulder surgery. Further complicating matters for the Halos has been Jered Weaver’s significant dip in velocity, as the former ace has limped to a 5.02 ERA in 107 2/3 innings this season with a fastball that sits in the 82-83 mph range. Left-hander Tyler Skaggs has yet to pitch at the big league level this season due to setbacks in the recovery from his own Tommy John surgery (in late 2014), though he’s said to be nearing a return to the big league rotation at long last.

The Angels were already clearly out of the picture in the American League West and in the AL Wild Card race, but the loss of so many arms with injuries that will cost them some or all of the 2017 season calls into question how willingly they can part with potential trade chips like Hector Santiago and Matt Shoemaker. Anaheim’s farm system has been largely depleted by trades and the forfeiture of high draft picks to sign free agents, and the team has very little in the pipeline that is on the immediate horizon. If the club is able to acquire some near-term rotation options in trades for either of those arms or for potential trade chips like Yunel Escobar and Huston Street, it’d be a major boon to the system. However, as it stands, the club’s rotation consists of Weaver, Shoemaker, Santiago and the struggling Tim Lincecum, with Skaggs, Jhoulys Chacin and prospect Nate Smith serving as possible alternatives.

While the Angels have seen their share of struggles out of the rotation this season, Tropeano had been a bright spot, logging a 3.56 ERA with 9.0 K/9, 4.1 BB/9 and a 33.3 percent ground-ball rate in 68 1/3 innings. Acquired from the Astros alongside Carlos Perez (in exchange for catcher Hank Conger), Tropeano is under control through the 2021 season, so even if Tommy John surgery is the ultimate outcome, the 25-year-old will have plenty of time to contribute to future Angels’ pitching staffs down the line.

Minor MLB Transactions: 6/4/16

By charliewilmoth | June 4, 2016 at 6:32pm CDT

Here are today’s minor moves from around the game.

The Dodgers have outrighted James Ramsey to Triple-A Oklahoma after he cleared waivers, per a club announcement. Los Angeles designated the outfielder for assignment a week ago. The 26-year-old has slashed just .222/.285/.429 with five home runs in 138 minor league plate appearances this season.
Mets right-hander Jeff Walters cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A Las Vegas, the team announced. New York designated Walters for assignment earlier this week to make room for James Loney. Walters, 28, has a 9.27 ERA in 22 1/3 innings with Las Vegas this season.
Right-hander Nick Tepesch has requested and been granted his release from his minor league contract with the Rangers, according to the team’s executive vice president of communications, John Blake (Twitter link). Tepesch appeared in 42 games — 39 of them starts — for the Rangers from 2013-14, logging a 4.56 ERA with 5.4 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9 in 219 innings. The 27-year-old missed the 2015 season and underwent thoracic outlet syndrome surgery in August.
The White Sox have signed free agent catcher Janigson Villalobos to a minor league contract, the team announced. Villalobos, 19, is a native of Venezuela.

Earlier updates:

The Angels have announced that they’ve selected the contract of righty Deolis Guerra and placed fellow righty Nick Tropeano on the 15-day DL with right shoulder tightness. Guerra has been a fixture on the transactions lists recently — the Angels designated him for assignment and then outrighted him just this week. He’s allowed four runs in 5 1/3 innings in the big leagues this season. As for Tropeano, the Angels scratched him yesterday from his start today. Jhoulys Chacin will start in his place.
The Dodgers have released lefty reliever Joe Thatcher, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets. Thatcher had previously exercised an opt-out clause in his minor-league deal, opening a brief window in which the Dodgers could add him to their active roster or let him go, and it appears they’ve chosen the latter option. The 34-year-old pitched reasonably well with the Astros last season and had a 3.60 ERA, 12.6 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 15 innings with Triple-A Oklahoma City this year.
The White Sox have announced that they’ve selected the contract of outfielder Jason Coats from Triple-A Charlotte. He’ll take the 25-man roster spot of righty Tommy Kahnle, who was optioned last night; Kahnle himself had briefly taken the spot of corner outfielder Melky Cabrera, who was placed on the family emergency leave list yesterday. The 26-year-old Coats looked like a fringe prospect heading into the 2016 season, but he’s had a breakout year at Charlotte, batting .335/.399/.567 with 22 extra-base hits. He’s starting in left field and batting seventh for the Sox today against the Tigers.
The Pirates announced a variety of moves related to their bullpen — they’ve selected the contract of righty Curtis Partch, recalled lefty Cory Luebke from Triple-A Indianapolis, optioned righties Wilfredo Boscan and Rob Scahill to Indianapolis, and moved righty Ryan Vogelsong (facial fractures) to the 60-day DL. The moves provide the Bucs with fresh relief options after Boscan and Scahill each pitched multiple innings last night. The hard-throwing Partch last pitched in the big leagues in 2014 with the Reds. He’s gotten great results so far this season for Indianapolis, with a 1.30 ERA, 10.4 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 27 2/3 innings.
Utilityman Emmanuel Burriss has accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Lehigh Valley, the Phillies have announced. The Phillies designated Burriss for assignment on Wednesday after he struggled in brief duty in the big leagues this season.

AL Notes: Teixeira, Beltre, Heaney, Rays

By Steve Adams | April 8, 2016 at 8:54am CDT

Mark Teixeira has previously told reporters that he feels like he can play until he’s 40 years old, and the 35-year-old Yankees first baseman doubled down on those comments following last night’s win over the Astros, as MLB.com’s Barry M. Bloom writes. Teixeira said last night that he hopes to play for five to six more seasons beyond the 2016 campaign, adding that he would love to remain in Yankee pinstripes for the remainder of his playing days. “I’ve loved playing here,” said Teixeira. “I’ve loved every minute of it. … I mean, once you’ve played for the Yankees you’ve reached the pinnacle of Major League Baseball. It’s just tough to see myself in another uniform.” Of course, the Yankees’ roster, as currently constructed, could complicate that possibility. Alex Rodriguez is a strict DH now and is signed through 2017, while the Yanks have a highly promising young first base option in the form of Gregory Bird. While Bird will miss the 2016 campaign due to shoulder surgery and could therefore be rusty heading into next season, he looked plenty comfortable against MLB pitching in his 2015 debut after impressing at the Triple-A level as well.

West Notes: Kazmir, Crisp, Saltalamacchia, Halos

By Steve Adams | May 28, 2015 at 9:31pm CDT

The Athletics had somewhat of a scare yesterday when Scott Kazmir left his start in the third inning and underwent an MRI due to shoulder soreness, but MLB.com’s Jane Lee tweets that the injury isn’t serious. Kazmir’s MRI revealed no structural damage, and the left-hander is expected to miss only one start before rejoining the Oakland rotation. It’s good news for the A’s on multiple fronts, as a healthy Kazmir will either be a key to a theoretical turnaround of their season or a highly desirable trade chip come July.

Some more news from the game’s Western divisions…

News on Coco Crisp, however, isn’t as encouraging for the Athletics, writes Joe Stiglich of CSN Bay Area. Doctors have recommended that Crisp receive an epidural injection to attempt to alleviate the chronic pain in his neck. The center fielder will be shut down from baseball activities for the next month or so, according to manager Bob Melvin. That, as Stiglich notes, would mean that Crisp would likely be out past the All-Star break, as he wouldn’t resume baseball activities until late June or early July.
The D-Backs are planning to promote Jarrod Saltalamacchia from Triple-A Reno tomorrow, reports Steve Gilbert of MLB.com (via Twitter). Saltalamacchia signed a minor league pact with Arizona after being surprisingly designated for assignment and subsequently released by the struggling Marlins. Saltlamacchia has struggled some at Triple-A after a notable absence from playing in games — he was on paternity leave prior to his DFA, then waited 10 days before being released and another couple of days before signing — but he does have a pair of homers in nine games with Reno. The Diamondbacks will need to add Saltalamacchia to the 40-man roster before he can join the big league club.
The addition of Kirk Nieuwenhuis doesn’t figure to be the only trade the Angels will make in the coming months, as GM Jerry Dipoto told reporters, including Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times, that the search for offense will continue for the next few months. “We’ll be looking for the remainder of the trade season,” said Dipoto, whose team surprisingly ranks 26th in runs scored, 29th in OPS and 26th in wRC+. Dipoto specifically states that he’s not interested in trading the pitching depth he worked long and hard to acquire — presumably referring to Andrew Heaney, Nick Tropeano and Sean Newcomb. He also doesn’t sound like a GM ready to act rashly. “Quite frankly, you try to fix something now, you cost yourself pitching depth, and many different things that could happen along the way would tell you that was the wrong way to go,” he adds.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Papelbon, Marlins, Padres, Angels, Twins

By | May 23, 2015 at 7:46pm CDT

The Marlins showed interest in Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon right around when they fired Mike Redmond, reports Ken Rosenthal in his latest video for FOX Sports. However, it’s unclear if the club will buy after a slow start to the season. Prior to the season they promised Giancarlo Stanton that they will aim to compete, but there may come a point where it makes more sense to trade some of the higher priced mercenaries. Players like Mike Morse, Dan Haren, and Mike Dunn could find themselves on the trade block. Here’s more from Rosenthal.

The Padres are scouting the Brewers for a shortstop. They may lack the prospects to acquire Jean Segura, but San Diego GM A.J. Preller is familiar with Luis Sardinas from his days in the Rangers system. The Brewers are also taking calls on right-hander Mike Fiers, but they’re not interested in trading him.
The Angels have plenty of starting pitching depth to acquire offensive firepower. They could call upon Andrew Heaney if they trade a major leaguer pitcher. Alternatively, Heaney or Nick Tropeano could be offered in a swap. The Halos also have Tyler Skaggs and Sean Newcomb as long term options. Skaggs is rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. Newcomb is working his way through the system (currently in High-A) after being selected 15th overall last June.
The Twins aren’t yet buyers, but they’ll receive reinforcements when Ervin Santana and Casey Fien return to action. Santana is eligible to return from his PED suspension on July 4. Fien is currently on the disabled list. The club has received poor production from center field and designated hitter. They could stick with Aaron Hicks in center with Kennys Vargas as the primary designated hitter, but the addition of a “big bopper” would improve the overall outlook. My own speculation: I wonder if a combination of Ben Revere and Ryan Howard would make sense – assuming the Phillies ate enough cash.

West Notes: Rockies, Rosario, Heaney, Tropeano

By | March 29, 2015 at 10:45pm CDT

An overhaul of the Rockies pitching process could pay dividends, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The club brought in Steve Foster and Darren Holmes to serve as the pitching and bullpen coaches, and the new organizational hierarchy is expected to provide better leadership and creativity. Additionally, the club has moved Wilin Rosario to the third catcher role. The addition of Nick Hundley over the offseason should help the staff perform at a higher level. Rosenthal notes that Rosario is viewed as a poor defensive catcher who allowed too many passed balls, rarely caught base stealers, struggled with game calling, and worked too slowly behind the plate. Of course, these changes don’t solve the long standing issue of pitching in a massive, elevated stadium. That’s up to the new front office.

Speaking of the Rockies front office, GM Jeff Bridich is excited about the new internal structure, writes Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. Bridich hears the criticism that the new group is too tied to the old guard. He is quick to point out that this is a developing front office team. The decision to bring in Hundley was the opening gambit for Bridich. The move should help the entire pitching staff.
The Angels plan to open the season with four starting pitchers, writes Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times. That means offseason acquisitions Nick Tropeano and Andrew Heaney will open the year in Triple-A. The Angels don’t need a fifth starter until April 14, so they’ll roster an additional reliever for Opening Day. Garrett Richards is working his way back from injury. He probably won’t be ready for the April 14 start, but he could be back before much longer.

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