Phillies Designate Neil Walker, Select Ronald Torreyes
The Phillies announced Friday that they’ve designated veteran infielder Neil Walker for assignment and swapped him out for fellow veteran Ronald Torreyes, whose contract has been selected from their alternate training site. Additionally, southpaw Adam Morgan has been reinstated from the injured list, and righty Ramon Rosso is up as the 29th man for today’s twin bill.
Walker, who turned 35 yesterday, beat out a crowded field to secure a bench spot with the Phillies during Summer Camp. In addition to Torreyes, the Phils had Josh Harrison, Logan Forsythe, Phil Gosselin and T.J. Rivera on minor league deals. Walker and Gosselin won backup spots, but Walker struggled to a .231/.244/.308 slash through 18 games and 41 plate appearances prior to today’s move.
Obviously, Walker wasn’t a heavily used piece in Philadelphia, where top prospect Alec Bohm has impressed through his first 25 big league games at third base. With Jean Segura holding his own at second base and Rhys Hoskins raking at first, playing time has been hard to come by for Walker. The addition of Torreyes in his place will give the club another option to handle shortstop — one of the few positions that Walker has never played at the MLB level.
Although Walker didn’t hit much in his short time with Philly, he’s just a season removed from posting a solid .261/.344/.395 batting line in a utility role with the Marlins. And, of course, Walker was a consistently strong producer from 2010-17, when he hit a combined .273/.342/.439 in just shy of 4300 plate appearances between the Pirates, Mets and Brewers.
The 28-year-old Torreyes, meanwhile, will be reunited with former Yankees skipper Joe Girardi. Torreyes was a fan favorite with the Yanks from 2016-18 when he hit .281/.308/.374 through 221 games as an oft-used bench piece. He spent the 2019 season in the Twins organization but hit poorly in Triple-A and saw only a very brief look in the big leagues.
Phillies Sign Ronald Torreyes
The Phillies announced Tuesday that they’ve signed infielder Ronald Torreyes to a minor league contract. The Philadelphia organization also formally confirmed its previously reported minor league signing of catcher Christian Bethancourt. Both players will be in Major League camp this spring.
Torreyes, 27, spent the 2019 season in the Twins organization. He appeared in seven big league games late in the season and tallied 17 plate appearances, including a rare walk-off hit by pitch, but he was otherwise relegated to Triple-A work. In 330 plate appearances with the Twins’ affiliate in Rochester, Torreyes hit .256/.289/.406 with 11 homers, 11 doubles, a triple and two steals.
The deal with Philadelphia will bring about a reunion of sorts with incoming skipper Joe Girardi, who knows Torreyes quite well from his time with the Yankees. The versatile Torreyes was an oft-used bench piece for Girardi in 2016-17, tallying 505 plate appearances and a .281/.311/.374 batting line along the way. He doesn’t get on base much or hit for power, but the right-handed-hitting Torreyes is a tough strikeout (career 13.2 percent) who is capable of playing second base, third base and shortstop.
Torreyes will have plenty of competition in Spring Training as he looks to land a spot on Girardi’s roster for the 2020 season. The Phillies have also brought in Josh Harrison, Phil Gosselin and T.J. Rivera on minor league deals this winter.
Twins Outright Three Players
The Twins have outrighted three players, as Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press was among those to cover on Twitter. Outfielders Ian Miller and Ryan LaMarre join infielder Ronald Torreyes in departing the Minnesota 40-man roster.
Miller is the only one of the three players who won’t have the right to elect free agency if he clears waivers, though he’ll qualify for minor-league free agency soon thereafter. The speedy Wagner College product received his first MLB cup of coffee this season with the Twins, but spent most of the season at Triple-A. Over 514 total plate appearances (including his time with the Mariners organization before a mid-season swap), Miller slashed .264/.346/.431 with 35 steals and a career-high 11 home runs.
The 30-year-old LaMarre has seen time in each of the past five MLB seasons, though the former second-round pick only has 246 total plate appearances at the game’s highest level. He carries a tepid .236/.286/.338 batting line in that span. LaMarre was hitting well at Triple-A with the Braves organization before his trade in September, turning in a .311/.380/.477 slash over 455 plate appearances.
As for Torreyes, who has also appeared in each of the past five big-league campaigns, the opportunities were hard to come by in Minnesota. With a few other infield options bypassing him on the roster, he spent most of the year at Triple-A, where he slashed just .256/.289/.406 but did manage a career-high 11 long balls (as did quite a few other players this year in the suddenly offensively charged International League).
Twins Select Ronald Torreyes
The Twins have selected the contract of infielder Ronald Torreyes. Also heading onto the active roster is righty Kyle Gibson, who was activated from the injured list.
Torreyes will come up to help fill in for some missing pieces. He’ll take the 40-man spot vacated when outfielder Byron Buxton was placed on the 60-day injured list.
This’ll be the first time that Torreyes has appeared in the big leagues this season after seeing action in each of the past four campaigns. He’s a .281/.310/.375 lifetime hitter in the majors. In 330 plate appearances this year at Triple-A, he has turned in only a .256/.289/.406 batting line.
Twins Outright Ronald Torreyes, Activate Adalberto Mejia
The Twins announced today that they have outrighted infielder Ronald Torreyes off of the team’s 40-man roster. His spot was needed for hurler Adalberto Mejia, who was activated from the 60-day injured list.
Mejia is heading back onto the active roster. He’ll take the place of Lewis Thorpe, who was optioned back to Triple-A after showing well in his MLB debut.
Torreyes, 26, hasn’t appeared in the bigs since wrapping up a three-year stint with the Yankees. He has been a high-average, low-power hitter in the bigs but has scuffled this year at Triple-A. The versatile infielder owns only a .179/.219/.358 slash. He has shown a bit of a relative power burst, with five home runs in 114 plate appearances, though that’s a common story in an explosive International League offensive environment.
As for Mejia, he’ll look to get back on track after an ugly opening to the season. He was sidelined for a lengthy stretch with a calf strain. Through 134 innings in parts of four seasons in the majors, he owns a 4.50 ERA with 7.3 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9.
Twins Designate Gabriel Moya For Assignment
The Twins announced Tuesday that they’ve reinstated infielder Ronald Torreyes from the restricted list and designated left-handed reliever Gabriel Moya for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Torreyes was placed on the restricted list earlier this month for undisclosed reasons after already having spent a stretch on the temporarily inactive list. He’s been assigned to Class-A Advanced Fort Myers, where he’ll build back up after last playing in a game on May 3.
Moya, 24, hasn’t pitched in the Majors in 2019 but appeared in the big leagues with the Twins in 2017 and 2018. In 42 2/3 innings at the MLB level, he’s posted a 4.64 ERA with 7.6 K/9, 3.2 BB/9, 1.69 HR/9 and a 38.3 percent ground-ball rate. Moya has dominated in the upper minors in the past despite a pedestrian fastball that averages under 90 mph, but he’s been clobbered for a 7.36 ERA with a 27-to-13 K/BB ratio and three hit batters in 22 innings with Triple-A Rochester this year.
Moya logged a 1.90 ERA in 42 2/3 innings of Triple-A ball in 2018 and an eye-popping 0.77 ERA in 58 1/3 Double-A frames back in 2017. Although he’s anything but overpowering, he’s managed to consistently post gaudy strikeout totals in the minors, with a career minor league K/9 of 11.4. He has a minor league option remaining beyond the 2019 season, which, when paired with his prior success in the upper minors, could make him an appealing flier for another team (either via minor trade or a waiver claim).
Twins, Ronald Torreyes Agree To One-Year Deal
Just moments after news came down of the Twins closing in on a one-year deal with second baseman Jonathan Schoop, Minnesota has announced the signing of another infielder, Ronald Torreyes to a one-year deal, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand tweeted. The team has announced the deal via a press release.
Fancred’s Jon Heyman adds (via Twitter) that the deal will be with $800k if Torreyes makes the Major League team. Dan Hayes of The Athletic further clarifies that it’s a split Major League contract for Torreyes, who does have a minor league option remaining (Twitter link).
Torreyes’ journey to Minnesota included a quick layover in Chicago, as the Cubs acquired and non-tendered the infielder within a three-day span in late November. Torreyes, 26, spent the last three seasons with the Yankees, slashing .280/.294/.370 in limited action with the big league club. For his career, the versatile infielder owns a .281/.310/.375 line across parts of four seasons. The Twins will likely look for more impactful production at the plate from Torreyes if he is to earn a consistent role at the Major League level. If he makes the club, he’ll pair with Ehire Adrianza to give the Twins a versatile couple of infielders off the bench.
Cubs Non-Tender Ronald Torreyes
The Cubs have non-tendered recently acquired infielder Ronald Torreyes, per a club announcement. Also non-tendered were non-arb-eligible players Justin Hancock and Allen Webster.
It’s not entirely clear why the Cubs decided to pick up Torreyes days ago, only to set him free. It could be, though, that the club wanted the added insurance while deciding what to do with Addison Russell, who was tendered earlier today. And several other teams have done the same with certain players, so it’s hardly a one-off situation. It seems clear the utilityman could end up in the Chicago organization, though perhaps only if he is willing to sign a minors deal.
Cubs Acquire Ronald Torreyes
The Cubs have acquired recently designated infielder Ronald Torreyes in a swap with the Yankees, per an announcement. Cash or a player to be named later will head to New York in return.
Torreyes, 26, makes his way back to an organization that once had him as a minor-leaguer. (He originally came over in this swap and departed in this one, with numerous trades and claims coming thereafter.) If he can hang onto his 40-man spot, or otherwise remains with the Cubs at the start of camp next spring, he’ll presumably compete for a bench job.
With the move, the Cubs have added a player who’s capable of handling just about any defensive position but hasn’t hit much in the big leagues. In 614 career plate appearances, he’s slashing just .281/.310/.375 with four home runs and four steals.
These sorts of moves on the margins of the 40-man roster don’t always mean much, but it’s reasonably notable to see the Cubs snag a shortstop-capable reserve. After all, the organization is facing at least a partial deadline to make a decision on Addison Russell in the coming days. As the non-tender deadline looms, it’s still not clear what course the club will take.
Yankees Claim Parker Bridwell, Designate Ronald Torreyes For Assignment
The Yankees announced Monday that they’ve claimed right-hander Parker Bridwell off waivers from the Angels and designated utility infielder Ronald Torreyes for assignment.
Bridwell, 27, could potentially give the Yanks some rotation depth. He’s only a season removed from 121 innings of 3.64 ERA ball with the 2017 Halos, though his secondary metrics never made that output appear sustainable. Bridwell averaged just 5.4 strikeouts per nine innings pitched that season and stranded nearly 80 percent of the runners allowed — neither of which are conducive to long-term success. Bridwell is also out of minor league options, so he’ll have to be carried on the 40-man roster all winter and break camp with the team in 2019 or else once again be exposed to waivers.
New York may well plan to try to sneak Bridwell through waivers themselves, as he’s already been passed up on by most of the teams in MLB. League-specific waiver priority applies in August but not the offseason, meaning that every team but the Astros and Red Sox passed on claiming Bridwell.
Obviously, the addition of Bridwell does nothing to limit the Yankees’ continued approach to add to the rotation this winter. New York has already added a pair of starters in trading for James Paxton and re-signing CC Sabathia, but there’s still an additional need in the rotation — especially once Sonny Gray is inevitably traded — and the Yanks will continue to be tied to several of the top names on both the trade and free-agent markets.
The versatile Torreyes has been a usable utility piece for the Yankees over the past three seasons, though his OBP dropped to an unpalatable .294 last season. He’s a .281/.308/.374 hitter in his three seasons in Yankee Pinstripes and has seen action at second base, third base, shortstop and in right field.