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NL West Notes: Giants, Lugo, Dodgers

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Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area discussed the injury situations facing the Giants earlier today, noting that right-hander Alex Cobb expects to only miss the minimum 15-days after landing on the injured list earlier today with an oblique strain. Cobb noted to reporters that he felt he could take the mound as soon as Wednesday, but the club is opting to “protect him for the long haul”, in the words of manager Gabe Kapler.

That’s phenomenal news for San Francisco, as Cobb has been among the club’s most reliable starters this season with a 3.09 ERA and 3.24 FIP in 78 2/3 innings of work. Nonetheless, it raises the question of who the club can add to the rotation alongside Logan Webb, Alex Wood, and Anthony DeSclafani while Cobb is on the shelf. One possibility, per The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly, is right-hander Sean Hjelle, who was scratched from his start at the Triple-A level today. Hjelle could replace left-hander Scott Alexander on the active roster for the Giants, as both Pavlovic and Baggarly note that the lefty reliever is expected to head to the injured list after leaving today’s game against the Dodgers with a hamstring issue.

More from around the NL West…

  • The Padres expect to welcome right-hander Seth Lugo back into the fold on Tuesday, when he figures to start against the Giants in San Francisco. Per MLB.com, Lugo threw a 60-pitch simulated game on Thursday, which would put the righty in line for around 80 pitches on Tuesday. Manager Bob Melvin told reporters today that the injury, while not ideal, has allowed the club to manage Lugo’s innings. While Lugo had largely pitched well in eight starts, with a 4.10 ERA and a 3.94 FIP, Lugo has never thrown more than 101 1/3 innings in a season in his career and last threw more than 65 innings back in 2019. Given that reality, Lugo’s month-long stint on the injured list has potentially allowed San Diego to avoid limiting his innings later in the season.
  • Dodgers fans have new clarity on the timelines of left-hander Julio Urias and right-hander Daniel Hudson, both of whom have made notable strides in their rehab processes in recent days. Manager Dave Roberts provided a specific timetable to reporters today, as noted by J.P. Hoornstra of the Orange County Register. Per Roberts, both pitchers are poised to be activated from the injured list during the club’s upcoming three-game set in Kansas City, which will take place from June 30 to July 2. All told, Urias will have missed six weeks while dealing with a hamstring strain if everything goes according to plan from here, while Hudson will make his 2023 debut after missing more than a calendar year while rehabbing from left knee surgery.

Giants Select Darin Ruf

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The Giants announced that they have selected infielder/outfielder Darin Ruf to their roster. Right-hander Sean Hjelle was optioned to open a spot on the active roster. The club already had a vacancy on its 40-man roster due to designating catcher Austin Wynns for assignment earlier this week.

This move completes a strange boomerang trip to New York and back for Ruf over the past nine months. He had been with the Giants since the start of the 2020 season but was flipped to the Mets at last year’s deadline. Unfortunately, he struggled badly after the move and didn’t make the club’s Opening Day roster out of spring this year. He was released and returned to the Giants on a minor league deal, now retaking a spot on the roster.

Prior to that sojourn out east, Ruf played very well for the Giants, particularly as a lefty-mashing righty. Over 2020 and 2021, he hit 21 home runs in 412 plate appearances and walked at a 14.3% rate. That led to a batting line of .272/.381/.519 and 142 wRC+. Against lefties, his line was even stronger at .275/.390/.579. Based on that performance, the Giants signed him to a two-year, $6.25MM deal going into 2022.

Last year, he dipped a bit but was still hitting .216/.328/.373 for a wRC+ of 104 at the time of the trade. But that swooned all the way to .152/.216/.197 after the deal. The Mets fortified their right-handed offense by adding Tommy Pham over the winter and cut Ruf after his struggles continued into the spring.

Now Ruf will have a chance to get back on track in a familiar environment. If it works out, it will be nice icing on the cake for the Giants, adding an extra sweet layer to a deal that already looks like a huge win for them. They got J.D. Davis and left-hander Thomas Szapucki, as well as prospects Nick Zwack and Carson Seymour in that deal. Davis is still under club control through 2024 and the others much longer. The Mets took on the remainder of Ruf’s deal and are still on the hook for it since he cleared waivers. The Giants can pay him the prorated league minimum for any time Ruf spends on the roster, which will be subtracted from what the Mets pay.

Giants Place Joey Bart On 10-Day IL, Recall Sean Hjelle

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The Giants are placing catcher Joey Bart on the 10-day injured list and recalling Sean Hjelle from Triple-A, according to MLB.com’s Maria Guardado. Bart was previously reported to be dealing with back tightness and has been diagnosed with a mild back strain. Susan Sussler of the San Francisco Chronicle notes that Bart is expected to miss minimal time.

Though he excelled in the lower levels of the minor leagues after being picked second overall in the 2018, advancing from rookie ball all the way to Double-A in just 130 games, Bart has struggled at the major league level since his debut during the shortened 2020 season, posting a .222/.294/.351 slash line in 408 plate appearances in the the big leagues while striking out 38% of the time. While Bart figures to get another opportunity to establish himself as the long-term catcher for the Giants this season, that will now have to be put on hold while he nurses his injury.

With Bart sidelined for the time being, the Giants are down to two catchers on their active roster, with Roberto Perez being backed up by Rule 5 pick Blake Sabol. Sabol had been playing in the outfielder while the Giants were rostering three catchers with Austin Slater and Mitch Haniger on the injured list, but now figures to see more time behind the plate as San Francisco looks to figure out if he can stick on the roster long-term. That should open up playing time for the likes of JD Davis, Matt Beaty, and Bryce Johnson.

That opens the door for Hjelle to join the big league roster. Hjelle, 25, is routinely considered to be among San Francisco’s top 10 prospects. He made his major league debut last season, and though he struggled in terms of results with a 5.76 ERA in 25 innings of work, that figure is inflated by a .400 BABIP. Hjelle’s 24.3% strikeout rate, 7.0% walk rate, and 3.51 FIP all indicate his performance was much stronger than the top level results would otherwise imply. With the Giants flush in rotation options, Hjelle is likely ticketed for the bullpen, though he could be used in a multi-inning role as he was last season, when seven of his eight appearances saw him face 12+ batters.

Giants Acquire Matt Beaty From Royals, Grant Stephen Piscotty His Release

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The Giants set their Opening Day roster, announcing that they’ve acquired first baseman/outfielder Matt Beaty from the Royals in exchange for cash and selected him directly to 40-man roster. He’ll be with the club for Opening Day. San Francisco also selected the contract of catcher Roberto Perez and granted non-roster outfielder Stephen Piscotty his release.

Additionally, the Giants optioned righty Sean Hjelle to Triple-A and placed outfielder Luis Gonzalez (back surgery) and lefty Thomas Szapucki (left arm neuropathy) on the 60-day injured list. Outfielders Mitch Haniger (oblique strain) and Austin Slater (hamstring strain) were placed on the 10-day injured list, and righty Luke Jackson (recovering from 2022 Tommy John surgery) has been placed on the 15-day injured list.

Beaty, 30 in April, was originally drafted by the Dodgers in 2015, so he and current Giants president of baseball ops Farhan Zaidi — formerly the Dodgers’ GM — overlapped in Los Angeles. He hit fairly well in parts of three seasons with L.A., batting .262/.333/.425 in 556 plate appearances, but a 2022 trade to the Padres didn’t yield the results San Diego hoped. In just 47 plate appearances last year, Beaty went 4-for-43 and drew just two walks, resulting in a .093/.170/.163 batting line. He signed a minor league deal with the Royals and hit .343/.378/.629 in 37 plate appearances.

Perez will join Joey Bart and Rule 5 pick Blake Sabol as catching options for manager Gabe Kapler, and he’ll in fact get the start in Opening Day (with Sabol lining up in left field). The 34-year-old is a premium defender behind the plate but has never provided much with the bat, outside of a 24-homer showing during 2019’s juiced-ball season. That season accounted for 24 of Perez’s 55 career home runs, and he’s batted just .171/.269/.295 in 97 games since that time. He opened the 2022 season as the Pirates’ primary catcher but wound up being limited to 21 games after a torn hamstring required season-ending surgery in May.

Piscotty, 32, had a big showing this spring, hitting .320/.270/.440, albeit in a small sample of 27 plate appearances. The longtime A’s outfielder has seen his production drop off in recent seasons, with just a .214/.270/.352 slash over the past three seasons. Injuries have played a significant role in that downturn, as Piscotty has time with ankle, wrist and calf issues along the way. His peak season came in 2018, when he batted .267/.331/.491 with a career-high 27 home runs for Oakland. He’ll now be free to explore other opportunities in free agency.

Giants Notes: Perez, Sabol, Hjelle, Johnson, Haniger, Cobb, Bishop

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The Giants’ 26-man roster is taking shape, as president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi has indicated that the club will break camp with at least two players from outside the 40-man.  In speaking with reporters (including Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle and Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area) over the last couple of days, Zaidi hinted that catcher Roberto Perez and outfielder Bryce Johnson will each make the team.  Perez signed a minor league deal with San Francisco this winter, while Johnson was outrighted off the 40-man back in November.

Perez has “done a great job, the pitchers love him,” Zaidi said.  Since Perez only played 21 games last season due to hamstring surgery, Zaidi noted that “I think really the evaluation has just been from a health standpoint, how he’s moving around, how his shoulder feels, how his lower body feels…and how much of the catching would we think he can handle.  He’s felt really good and he’s ready to catch more, so that part of the evaluation has been very positive.”

Because Perez is an Article XX(b) free agent, today marks the first of three automatic opt-out dates within Perez’s minor league contract, but that looks like it will be a moot point given the Giants’ apparent desire to put him on their Opening Day roster.  Perez will be one of three catchers on the 26-man (along with Joey Bart and Rule 5 Draft pick Blake Sabol), though Zaidi and manager Gabe Kapler have both intimated that the team probably isn’t likely to have a three-catcher formulation for all season, or perhaps even for very long into the season.

There’s plenty of uncertainty behind the plate for the Giants, given that former top-prospect Bart has yet to establish himself as a true regular at the big league level.  As such, the Giants brought Perez and Austin Wynns into camp as non-roster invitees, and Slusser writes that Wynns isn’t yet out of the running either.  Since Bart still has a minor league option remaining, it’s possible he could yet be moved down to Triple-A for more seasoning.

As a Rule 5 player, Sabol must remain on San Francisco’s active roster for the entire season or else be offered back to the Pirates, his original team.  Sabol’s roster chances are improved by his positional versatility, since he can also play the outfield in addition to catching.  With the Giants’ outfield thinned out by injuries, it has opened the door for both Sabol and Johnson to make the Opening Day roster, even if Zaidi said that the club is ultimately still prioritizing Sabol as a catcher.

“When Mitch Haniger and Austin Slater get back, Blake’s got to fit more firmly in the catching mix,” Zaidi said.  “For us to get through the full season with Blake on the roster, he’s going to have to be able to prove himself to be a viable Major League catcher, and I think we’ve seen a lot of progress with that.”

Luis Gonzalez will miss at least half the season due to back surgery, while Slater will begin the season on the injured list due to a hamstring strain.  Haniger suffered a Grade 1 oblique strain two weeks ago and the Giants had been hopeful that the outfielder would recover in time for Opening Day, but it now seems as if Haniger will need at least a brief IL stint to fully recover.

Gonzalez will be placed on the 60-day injured list prior to Opening Day, joining Thomas Szapucki and Luke Jackson as longer-term injury absences for the Giants.  With three 40-man roster spots opened by these forthcoming 60-man placements, the Giants will have plenty of room to select the contracts of Perez, Johnson, and possibly Wynns or any other minor league signings.  Given how actively Zaidi searches the waiver wire, it also wouldn’t be a surprise if San Francisco adds a player from outside the organization who becomes available when another team makes an end-of-camp roster cut.

As for spots on the 26-man roster, Alex Cobb isn’t yet a guarantee to avoid the injured list, as the veteran righty is still battling some knee soreness after being hit with a Miguel Vargas line drive on March 11.  Cobb was able to pitch again five days later but hasn’t pitched since, so the Giants could perhaps place him on the IL to both provide more recovery time and to give the team more roster flexibility.  San Francisco has two off-days within the first six days of the regular season schedule, thus delaying the club’s need for a fifth starter.

If Cobb is sidelined, it would make it a bit easier for San Francisco to fit right-hander Sean Hjelle onto the roster, though Zaidi said that “I think he could be on the team in either configuration” regardless of Cobb’s status.  A second-round pick for the Giants in the 2018 draft, Hjelle has had unspectacular numbers in the minors as a starter, though he did climb the ladder and make his MLB debut with 25 relief innings in 2022.

Hjelle was deployed as a long reliever and as a bulk pitcher behind an opener, so the Giants might be eyeing him as something of a piggyback option to keep starters’ arms fresh early in the season.  Regardless of role, Hjelle has certainly looked the part of a big league-caliber pitcher this spring, with a 1.80 ERA and 18 strikeouts over 15 innings, with only two walks allowed.

The news isn’t good for another recent high draft pick, as Pavlovic reports that outfielder Hunter Bishop will require elbow surgery.  It would seem that Bishop is facing either a full Tommy John procedure or the better-case scenario of an elbow-brace surgery, yet Pavlovic notes that Bishop’s status won’t be known until the surgery is actually underway.  Bishop was the 10th overall pick of the 2019 draft and was still drawing top-100 attention as recently as the 2021 preseason, but he has been hampered by injuries.  Between his health problems and the canceled 2020 minor league season, Bishop has played in only 134 minor league games since being drafted.

Giants Place Logan Webb On 15-Day Injured List

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Oct. 2: The Giants officially announced Webb’s IL placement, along with Junis being optioned to Triple-A Sacramento. Hjelle was recalled to take one active roster spot, with righty Luis Ortiz recalled to take the other.

Oct. 1: Logan Webb was scheduled to make his final start of the 2022 season on Sunday, but the Giants will instead be placing the right-hander on the 15-day injured list, manager Gabe Kapler told reporters (including NBC Sports Bay Area’s Alex Pavlovic).  Webb is dealing with stiffness in his lower back, so the Giants will make the precautionary move and recall another pitcher for what will now be a bullpen game against the Diamondbacks.  Righty Sean Hjelle might get the quick recall, as Hjelle was just optioned to Triple-A today when Jarlin Garcia was activated off the paternity list.

The IL placement will end Webb’s season after 32 starts and 192 1/3 innings, with that innings total ranking 11th among all pitchers entering today’s action.  After emerging as a quality starter for San Francisco in 2021, Webb has continued that strong work this year, posting a 2.90 ERA, 56.7% grounder rate, and an above-average 6.2% walk rate.  While his strikeout numbers dropped off considerably (20.7%, after a 26.5 K& in 2021) and Webb continued to allow a lot of hard contact, he was able to avoid severe damage by keeping the ball on the ground.  Webb allowed only 11 home runs over his 192 1/3 frames, and had an impressive 5.5% barrel rate.

Webb doesn’t turn 26 years old until November, and he will be entering the arbitration process for the first time this offseason.  Though Webb is under control through the 2025 season, it stands to reason that the Giants’ front office might have some talks with Webb’s camp about a multi-year contract extension this winter, in order to officially lock him up as a key piece of the rotation both now and for the future.

In fact, Webb currently projects as the ace of the 2023 staff since Carlos Rodon is a free agent.  San Francisco has Webb, Alex Cobb, Jakob Junis, Anthony DeSclafani, and Alex Wood lined up as next year’s rotation, but at least one more arm figures to be added — DeSclafani missed almost the whole season due to ankle problems, while Wood struggled and missed the end of the season due to a shoulder injury.

Giants Designate Stuart Fairchild For Assignment, Option Sean Hjelle, Reinstate Austin Slater

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The Giants have made a number of roster moves today, optioning Sean Hjelle to Triple-A, reinstating Austin Slater from the injured list, and designating Stuart Fairchild for assignment, per John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter). In addition, Sam Delaplane was added to the 40-man roster and assigned to Class A San Jose. Delaplane is rehabbing from Tommy John surgery.

Slater is the biggest name here in terms of experience. The 29-year-old outfielder was off to a solid start to the season through 34 games before being placed on the injured list. Slater returns to the active roster boasting a .250/.388/.391 triple-slash line through 80 plate appearances. The on-base percentage jumps off the page, buoyed by a solid 18.8 percent walk rate against a 26.3 percent strikeout rate. With just a 10.5 percent walk rate for his career, Slater showed improved discipline thus far, though in a small sample.

The towering 6’11” Hjelle logged four innings while giving up two earned runs in his first bit of Major League action. The former 2nd round pick has served exclusively as a starter in Triple-A, making nine starts with a 5.49 ERA over 41 innings. Baseball America rates Hjelle as the Giants’ 20th-ranked prospect.

Fairchild has already seen time this season with the Mariners and Giants after being drafted by the Reds and making his Major League debut with the Diamondbacks. Fairchild can play all three outfield spots. The 26-year-old outfielder will now be available to the other 29 teams through waivers.

Giants Reinstate Brandon Belt, Dominic Leone From COVID List

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The Giants have reinstated first baseman Brandon Belt and right-hander Dominic Leone from the COVID-related injured list.  Infielder Jason Vosler and righty Sean Hjelle were optioned to Triple-A in the corresponding roster moves.

Belt and Leone return after positive COVID-19 tests sidelined the duo on April 29.  Both were off to strong starts — Belt hit .242/.367/.470 with four home runs over his first 79 plate appearances, while Leone had a 2.57 ERA over his first eight innings out of the Giants bullpen.

With Belt moving back to his customary first base spot, Wilmer Flores (who had been filling in at first base) is likely to slide across the diamond and take over at third now that Vosler is back in Triple-A.  Evan Longoria has yet to play this season due to finger surgery, but the veteran is on a minor league rehab assignment and could be close to his 2022 debut.

Giants Promote Sean Hjelle, Activate LaMonte Wade Jr.

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The Giants announced a series of roster moves to reporters today, including Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com. Right-hander Sean Hjelle has been recalled from Triple-A Sacramento, while outfielder LaMonte Wade Jr. has been activated off the injured list. Sam Long and Mauricio Llovera were both sent to Triple-A to create roster space.

Hjelle was a second round selection of the Giants in the 2018 draft and has been working his way up the minor league ladder since then. His promotion is something of an early birthday present, as he turns 25 years old tomorrow. The 6’11” right-hander was ranked #5 in the club’s system by Baseball America back in 2019, though he has slid a bit in those rankings as he has struggled with higher levels of competition.

In 2019, he reached Double-A for the first time, throwing 25 1/3 innings with a 6.04 ERA. After the minor leagues were canceled in 2020, Hjelle returned to Double-A in 2021 and fared much better, putting up an ERA of 3.15 in 14 starts, along with a 25.2% strikeout rate, 6.9% walk rate and 54.6% ground ball rate. In Triple-A last year, however, his ERA shot up to 5.74. He was still getting grounders at a 54.1% clip, but saw the strikeouts dip down to 14.1% and the walks bump up to 11.7%. This year, he’s made five Triple-A starts and has improved those results somewhat, getting his ERA to 4.37 and his walks down to 5.1%, along with a 54.8% grounder rate. He’s still not racking up Ks though, with a 14.3% rate on the year. Whenever he gets into a game, it will be his major league debut.

Wade is coming off an excellent breakout campaign in 2021, where he hit 18 home runs and slashed .253/.326/.482, 117 wRC+. This year, he’s yet to make his season debut due to inflammation and a bone bruise in his left knee. After a seven-game rehab assignment, he’s now back on the roster and should slot into regular action in the outfield next to Mike Yastrzemski, with Luis Gonzalez, Joc Pederson, Austin Slater, Darin Ruf and Mauricio Dubon also in the mix.

As for Long and Llovera, Guardado’s tweet says that Long was optioned and Llovera was returned to Triple-A. The language different could be significant. Under the 2022 health and safety protocols, the commissioner’s office has the sole discretion to determine whether a team has been sufficiently impacted by COVID to call up “substitute” players. If granted permission, the team can then return those substitutes back to Triple-A (and, if he was not previously on the 40-man, off the roster entirely) without utilizing a minor league option or passing the player through waivers. Llovera was selected to the club’s 40-man roster a week ago amid a run of positive tests among Giants’ players. The fact that he has been “returned” to Triple-A, suggests that he is no longer on the roster. However, Llovera’s transactions tracker at MLB.com says he was optioned, meaning it’s possible he still has that roster spot.

Giants Select Three Players, Designate Jay Jackson For Assignment

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The Giants have selected outfielder Heliot Ramos and right-handers Sean Hjelle and Randy Rodriguez to the 40-man roster. The moves keep them from being eligible for the Rule 5 draft. To create roster space, San Francisco designated reliever Jay Jackson for assignment and returned Rule 5 pick Dedniel Nuñez to the Mets.

Ramos is among the better prospects in baseball, entering the 2021 campaign as Baseball America’s #83 overall farmhand. A first-round pick out of Puerto Rico in 2017, the right-handed hitting Ramos has compensated for a lot of swing-and-miss by hitting for a lot of power. He’s regarded as a potential above-average everyday right fielder and hit .254/.323/.416 with 14 homers in 495 plate appearances between Double-A Richmond and Triple-A Sacramento.

Hjelle was a second-rounder out of the University of Kentucky in 2018. The big righty draws praise for his deception and control, but his minor league track record has been mixed. The 24-year-old dominated in the low minors but has run into some trouble at the higher levels, particularly in Triple-A. BA ranks him eleventh in system and calls him a potential back-end starter.

Rodriguez, 22, is a former amateur signee out of the Dominican Republic. Working exclusively as a reliever, he pitched to a sterling 1.74 ERA with a huge 39.1% strikeout rate and a fine 8.9% walk percentage over 62 innings with Low-A Augusta. Rodriguez has never appeared on an organizational ranking at FanGraphs or BA.

San Francisco’s decision to DFA Jackson comes as a bit of a surprise, considering the club just exercised a 2022 option on his services a few weeks back. Signed to a minors pact in January, the 34-year-old Jackson made the big league club in July and worked 21 2/3 frames down the stretch. He struck out a strong 31.1% of opposing hitters in that time, although he also handed out free passes at an alarming 13.3% clip.

Nuñez never appeared in a regular season game with the Giants. Selected out of the New York organization in last year’s Rule 5 draft, he suffered an elbow injury in Spring Training and eventually underwent Tommy John surgery. He’ll return to the Mets but won’t occupy a 40-man roster spot.

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