White Sox Acquire Trevor Richards
The White Sox have acquired right-hander Trevor Richards from the Phillies in exchange for cash considerations, according to announcements from both clubs. Chicago has transferred right-hander Drew Thorpe to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man spot. A corresponding active roster move will be required once Richards reports to the Sox.
The Phillies have had a number of bullpen injuries in the past few weeks. Closer Jhoan Duran hit the injured list with an oblique strain, while Zach Pop and Kyle Backhus also landed on the shelf. Duran was set to be reinstated tonight and Matt Gelb of The Athletic reported that Richards would be bumped off the roster for the closer. He is a veteran with at least five years of service time and therefore can’t be optioned to the minors without his consent. But instead of designating Richards for assignment, the Phils have found a trade partner and flipped Richards to Chicago.
Presumably, the Sox are interested in the recent form Richards flashed in the minors. The Phils signed him to a minor league deal in the offseason and started him at Triple-A this year. He got out to an amazing start. He faced 50 batters and struck out 26 of them, a massive 52% rate. He only issued three walks, a 6% clip. All that resulted in a 1.93 earned run average in 14 innings.
The Phils called Richards up to the big leagues a week ago when Backhus hit the IL. Between that promotion and today’s trade, he made two appearances for the Phils. He allowed one earned run over 4 1/3 innings, striking out five while issuing three walks.
Richards has shown flashes of potential in the big leagues before, as he’s been able to strike guys out but has also struggled with command. From 2021 to 2023, mostly with the Blue Jays, he logged 201 innings. His 31.3% strikeout rate was much better than league average, which is usually around 22 to 23%. But he also gave out walks at a 10.9% clip, about two ticks north of par. The end result was a 4.61 ERA for that span.
The control problems got even worse for him late in 2024. The Jays flipped him to the Twins at the deadline that year but Minnesota released him before the month of August was done. He faced 59 batters as a Twin and gave out 11 walks, an 18.6% clip. He also hit two batters and threw seven wild pitches.
Since then, he has only been briefly in the majors. He made five appearances last year, three for the Royals and two for the Diamondbacks. As mentioned, he had to settle for a minor league deal with the Phils coming into 2026. The White Sox will see if Richards can sustain any of the exciting numbers he showed in Triple-A to start this year.
As for Thorpe, he had Tommy John surgery in March of 2025. His 60-day count is retroactive to the beginning of the season, so he’ll be eligible for reinstatement in a few weeks. His current timeline is unclear but he hasn’t yet begun a rehab assignment, so it doesn’t appear as those he’s close to a return.
Photo courtesy of Morgan Tencza, Imagn Images
Phillies Select Trevor Richards
The Phillies made a move in between games of today’s double-header. Left-hander Kyle Backhus has been placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to April 27th, with left elbow inflammation. Right-hander Trevor Richards has been selected to take his place on the roster. The Phils have had an open 40-man spot since Taijuan Walker was released a week ago, so no further corresponding moves are required.
No details have been provided about the injury to Backhus, who last pitched on Saturday. IL stints can be backdated by by a maximum of three days. Perhaps more information on his status will be released after the second game of today’s twin bill but he’ll be on the shelf for at least 12 days.
His injury opens the door for Richards to get back to the majors. Richards signed a minor league deal with the Phillies in the offseason and has been pitching for Triple-A Lehigh Valley so far this year. He has been in great form for the IronPigs, tossing 14 innings over nine appearances, allowing three earned runs. His 1.93 ERA has gotten some help from a .111 batting average on balls in play and 100% strand rate, since his three runs allowed all came on homers, but he struck out 26 of the 50 batters he has faced, a massive 52% clip. He only walked three, a 6% pace.
Richards has had some intriguing but inconsistent major league results in the past. From 2021 to 2023, he tossed 201 innings, mostly for the Blue Jays. His 31.3% strikeout rate in that time was very strong but he gave out walks at a high rate of 10.9% and also struggled with the long ball. 14.5% of his fly balls cleared the fence in that time, a few ticks north of par. He recorded 25 holds but posted a 4.61 ERA for that stretch. That’s obviously not a great number but his 3.37 SIERA showed some optimism, since that metric expects home run rates to even out in larger samples.
2024 ended up being a real mixed bag for Richards. Back with the Jays to start the year, he gave them 51 1/3 innings with a 4.64 ERA. He wasn’t allowing as many homers but also wasn’t striking as many guys out. He was traded to the Twins at the deadline. Though his 4.15 ERA was technically an improvement from his time with the Jays, his control problems became untenable. He walked 11 of the 59 batters he faced as a Twin, an 18.6% clip. He also hit another two batters and threw seven wild pitches.
Minnesota designated him for assignment before the month of August was done. In 2025, he was mostly stuck in the minors. He made five big league appearances in total, three for the Royals and two for the Diamondbacks. He allowed five earned runs in 5 2/3 innings. He spent most of the year in Triple-A, for three different clubs, and had a combined 5.19 ERA at that level.
Though it’s been a frustrating road at times, Richards has shown strikeout stuff in the past and is doing so again now, albeit in a small sample. He has usually undercut the punchouts by giving out too many walks and surrendering home runs. For the Phillies, there’s little harm in giving him the last spot in the bullpen and seeing what happens. Richards is a veteran with at least five years of service time, meaning he can’t be optioned without his consent. If the Phils want to bump him off the active roster in the future, he’ll need to be removed from the 40-man as well.
Photo courtesy of Morgan Tencza, Imagn Images
Phillies, Genesis Cabrera Agree To Minor League Deal
The Phillies agreed to a minor league deal with lefty reliever Génesis Cabrera. The agreement was first reported last month by Mike Rodriguez but didn’t appear on the MiLB.com transaction log until this week. The log also indicates that the Phils have also added righty relievers Trevor Richards and Jonathan Hernández, infielder Christian Cairo, and catcher René Pinto in recent weeks.
Cabrera is the likeliest of the group to factor into the early-season plans. The southpaw has pitched in the big leagues in seven straight seasons. He suited up for four different teams last year but struggled to a 6.54 ERA across 40 combined appearances. Cabrera had a mediocre strikeout rate for a second straight season and allowed far too many home runs, which has become an increasing problem.
The 29-year-old Cabrera sits in the 95-96 MPH range with both his sinker and four-seam fastball. The velocity is down from when he was working 97-98 and pitched his way into high-leverage spots with the Cardinals earlier in his career. It’s still above-average for a lefty, though, and Cabrera’s cutter and curveball have each been successful pitches in the past. He backfills their lefty relief depth after the Matt Strahm trade but remains no higher than third on the organizational depth chart behind José Alvarado and Tanner Banks. Philadelphia also has Kyle Backhus, a soft-tossing grounder specialist, on the 40-man roster.
Richards, 33 in May, made five combined appearances last year between the Royals and Diamondbacks. The changeup specialist has pitched parts of eight seasons and topped 60 innings each year from 2021-24. Richards is coming off a 5.19 ERA despite solid strikeout and walk numbers between three Triple-A clubs. He’ll compete for a swing role in Spring Training.
Hernández was a high-leverage arm with the Rangers early in his career who struggled between 2023-24. The 29-year-old sinkerballer signed a minor league deal with Tampa Bay last winter. He was injured for most of the season and limited to 12 Triple-A appearances, in which he tossed 12 innings of three-run ball. He averaged 95.3 MPH on his fastball, down almost three ticks relative to his first few seasons in Texas.
Pinto is a veteran depth catcher who hit .231/.263/.404 over 83 games with the Rays from 2022-24. He spent last season in the minors, striking out at a 31% rate while batting .259/.309/.498 in 64 contests with Arizona and Toronto affiliates. Cairo, a slick-fielding utility player, was a Rule 5 pick by the Braves last offseason. He didn’t make the team and was offered back to the Guardians in Spring Training. He hit .237/.338/.331 across 416 Triple-A plate appearances and qualified for minor league free agency. He’s still looking to make his MLB debut.
Nine Players Elect Free Agency
Now that the season is over, we’ll start seeing several players choose to become minor league free agents. Major League free agents (i.e. players with six-plus years of big league service time) will hit the open market five days after the end of the World Series, but eligible minor leaguers can already start electing free agency.
To qualify, these players must have been all outrighted off their team’s 40-man rosters during the 2025 season without being added back. These players also must have multiple career outrights on their resume, and/or at least three years of Major League service time.
We’ll offer periodic updates over the coming weeks about many other players hitting the market in this fashion. Unless otherwise credited, these free agent decisions are all listed on the official MLB.com or MILB.com transactions pages, for further reference.
Catchers
- Eric Haase (Brewers)
- Chad Wallach (Angels)
Outfielders
- Akil Baddoo (Tigers)
- Dominic Fletcher (White Sox) (per Scott Merkin of MLB.com)
- Corey Julks (White Sox) (per Merkin)
Pitchers
- Carl Edwards Jr. (Rangers)
- Trevor Richards (Diamondbacks)
- Keegan Thompson (Cubs)
- Randy Wynne (Reds)
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Hui, Imagn Images
Diamondbacks Outright Trevor Richards
The Diamondbacks have sent right-handed pitcher Trevor Richards outright to Triple-A Reno, according to his transaction log on MLB.com. Richards was designated for assignment over the weekend when Arizona called up Brandyn Garcia. The eight-year MLB veteran has the right to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency, and presumably, he will choose to do so. This is the second time Richards has been outrighted in 2025, and the last time, when it was the Royals who sent him outright to Triple-A in June, he elected free agency shortly thereafter.
Richards moved into a full-time bullpen role in 2021, and over the next four seasons, he was one of the more durable bullpen arms in the league. From 2021-24, he was one of only seven relievers to throw at least 60 innings each year. He appeared in a total of 226 games and threw 266 1/3 innings for the Rays, Brewers, Blue Jays, and Twins. Only six pitchers both made more appearances and threw more innings in that span. His 4.60 ERA was mediocre, but his 4.21 FIP and 3.64 SIERA were more impressive, and regardless, his ability to eat innings out of the bullpen was valuable in and of itself.
The 2025 campaign hasn’t gone very well for Richards. He signed a minor league deal with the Cubs in the offseason but failed to make the Opening Day roster. He didn’t last long in the majors for either the Royals or the Diamondbacks. All told, he has a 7.94 ERA in 5 2/3 MLB innings this year, and a 5.12 ERA in 31 2/3 innings at Triple-A. Nevertheless, he could certainly find a new home with a club in need of a proven major leaguer to cover bulk innings.
Diamondbacks Designate Trevor Richards For Assignment
The Diamondbacks announced that right-hander Trevor Richards has been designated for assignment. Left-hander Brandyn Garcia was called up from Triple-A in the corresponding move, and though Garcia was already on the 40-man roster, the DFA may have been necessary since Richards has enough big league service time that he couldn’t be optioned to the minors without his consent.
Arizona signed Richards to a minor league contract in June and selected him to the active roster after the All-Star break, with Richards delivering a 3.38 ERA over two appearances and 2 2/3 innings in a D’Backs uniform. Richards has signed minors deals with the Cubs, Royals, and Diamondbacks since the start of 2025, and those contracts translated into 5 2/3 total innings at the big league level with Arizona and Kansas City.
A veteran of eight Major League seasons, Richards has a 4.53 ERA over 565 2/3 career innings in the Show with seven different teams. Richards has worked in a variety of roles (starter, reliever, opener, swingman, long man) over his career, while frequently battling some inconsistent control. Richards had a 31.3% strikeout rate over 201 innings during the 2021-23 seasons, but that number has dropped sharply to a 21.9 K% in 71 big league frames since the start of the 2024 campaign.
Richards has enough of a track record that an interested team might put in a waiver claim. Given the timing of the DFA, a claim could come after the July 31 trade deadline, if a club needs to fill a hole in the bullpen. Richards has been outrighted before, so if he clears waivers, he has the right to reject an outright assignment from the Diamondbacks and instead opt for free agency.
Diamondbacks Sign Sergio Alcántara, Place Ketel Marte On Restricted List Due To Personal Matter
The Diamondbacks announced a series of roster moves today, including the selection of right-hander Trevor Richards and the recall of catcher Adrian Del Castillo, moves which were reported earlier. They also signed infielder Sergio Alcántara to a major league deal. Right-hander Juan Morillo was optioned during the break, opening one active roster spot. Today, infielder Tristin English was optioned to the minors and second baseman Ketel Marte was placed on the restricted list. Marte opened one 40-man spot for Alcántara. To open another for Richards, catcher Gabriel Moreno was transferred to the 60-day injured list.
Per John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM Phoenix, Marte is “taking some personal days.” Bob Nightengale of USA Today relays that Marte’s home was burglarized while he was away for the All-Star break. Perhaps Marte will be back in just a few days. Regardless, it’s less than ideal for the Diamondbacks, given that their season feels like it’s hanging by a thread at the moment.
The Snakes have been bit really hard by the injury bug this year. They have 11 pitchers on the injured list, many of whom won’t be returning this season due to significant surgeries. Naturally, that has impacted their ability to win ball games. They are currently 47-50 and 5.5 games back of a playoff spot. General manager Mike Hazen has said he would like the team to play its way into buyer position but it has felt like they might be drifting towards sell mode. Losing Marte for any amount of time doesn’t help, given that he’s one of the best all-around players in the game.
Blaze Alexander is perhaps the favorite to take over at the keystone in the interim but Alcántara will give them a fresh body on the roster. He got into one game with the Giants this year, going hitless in four at-bats. He has otherwise been in Triple-A, producing a tepid line of .206/.319/.252. He shouldn’t be expected to provide much with the bat but can play the three infield spots to the left of first base.
Moreno’s transfer to the 60-day IL is also less than ideal for the D’Backs. He was placed on the 10-day IL June 20th due to a hairline fracture in his right index finger. This transfer means the club doesn’t expect him to be able to return in the next month or so. They have been using José Herrera and James McCann behind the plate but will now go with a three-catcher setup. Del Castillo has great minor league numbers on a rate basis but has only played 14 Triple-A games this year due to injuries. He was reinstated from the minor league IL on July 1st.
Now that he’s healthy, perhaps he’ll get a chance to get some big league playing time while Moreno isn’t a near-term option. Del Castillo hit .313/.368/.525 in his major league debut last year. He’s hitting .288/.386/.559 in Triple-A this year but, as mentioned, in a fairly limited sample. Herrera’s line this year is just .197/.302/.268. McCann has a monster .375/.516/.708 line but in just nine games, as he was just added to the roster recently. He slashed .224/.279/.352 over the previous four seasons.
Photo courtesy of Dennis Lee, Imagn Images
Diamondbacks To Select Trevor Richards
The Diamondbacks are selecting the contract of right-hander Trevor Richards from Triple-A Reno, reports John Gambadoro of 98.7 Arizona Sports. Alex Weiner of AZSports.com noted yesterday that Richards had a locker set up in the big league clubhouse during yesterday’s optional team workout at Chase Field. Catcher Adrian Del Castillo is also being recalled from Reno. Gambadoro adds that third baseman Eugenio Suárez, who had an injury scare when he was plunked on the hand in Tuesday’s All-Star Game, will be in tonight’s lineup for the D-backs.
Richards is now with his third organization of the season, having also spent time with the Royals and Cubs. He tossed three big league innings with Kansas City but was tagged for four runs in that small sample. That’s his only big league time this year. He’s spent the rest of the season between the Triple-A affiliates for those three clubs, pitching to a collective 5.12 ERA with a 22% strikeout rate and 10.6% walk rate.
The 32-year-old Richards has pitched in each of the past eight major league seasons, though he hasn’t had much success since 2021. He sports a 5.05 ERA in 205 innings dating back to Opening Day 2022. He’s set down 28.2% of his opponents on strikes in that time but has also issued walks to 12% of the hitters he’s faced and surrendered an average of 1.27 homers per nine innings pitched.
Arizona’s bullpen has been decimated by injury. A.J. Puk and Justin Martinez both underwent UCL surgeries last month. Jalen Beeks is out with a lower back issue, and Ryan Thompson hit the 15-day IL due to a shoulder injury a couple weeks back. Shelby Miller is on the 15-day IL due to a forearm strain.
Richards doesn’t have a strong recent track record, but he’s bee a serviceable middle reliever at various points in his career and at the very least can miss bats at a solid clip. His above-average changeup makes him a quality option against lefties — more so than versus righties — which probably holds extra appeal to the D-backs with both Puk and Beeks out of action. Andrew Saalfrank and 27-year-old rookie Kyle Backhus are the only lefties in manager Torey Lovullo’s bullpen and the only healthy left-handed relievers on the 40-man roster at the moment, so adding a righty who has a nice track record against southpaws makes some sense.
As for Del Castillo, it’s not yet clear what sort of corresponding move there is with regard to the catching corps. He’d be an upgrade offensively over Jose Herrera, who has been sharing catching duties with veteran James McCann while Gabriel Moreno‘s broken finger heals. Neither Herrera nor McCann can be optioned — Herrera because he’s out of minor league options and McCann because players with five-plus year of MLB service cannot be sent down without their consent. McCann has more than 10 years of major league service time.
The 25-year-old Del Castillo made his MLB debut last year and hit .313/.368/.525 with four homers in 87 plate appearances. He’s slashing .288/.386/.559 in 70 plate appearances but has spent the bulk of the season on the minor league injured list. Herrera (.197/.302/.268) has struggled greatly at the plate but is a better defensive option. McCann has just 31 plate appearances since signing in the wake of that Moreno injury but has gone 9-for-24 with a pair of homers and a pair of doubles (.375/.516/.708).
Diamondbacks Sign Trevor Richards To Minor League Deal
The Diamondbacks have signed right-hander Trevor Richards to a minor league deal, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He has been assigned to Triple-A Reno alongside lefty Anthony Gose, per the southpaw’s tracker. It was reported earlier this week that the Snakes would be signing Gose but it wasn’t clear if it was a major or minor league deal.
Richards, 32, has had some major league success but has been in poor form for about a year now. The Blue Jays dealt him to the Twins at last year’s deadline but Richards lasted only 13 innings with Minnesota before being outrighted off the roster. In that time, he walked 11 opponents, a rate of 18.6% of batters faced. He also hit two other batters and issued seven wild pitches.
Here in 2025, he has signed minor league deals with the Cubs and Royals, getting a brief look in the majors with the latter club. He has thrown 19 1/3 minor league innings this year with a 4.19 earned run average, 25.6% strikeout rate and 13.6% walk rate. In his quick major league stint with Kansas City, he allowed four earned runs in three innings.
Prior to those struggles, he had a good run in the big leagues. He tossed 201 innings over the 2021-23 seasons with a 4.61 ERA, 31.3% strikeout rate and 10.9% walk rate. He earned one save and 25 holds in that time.
The Arizona bullpen has taken a few punches this season. The relief group was supposed to be anchored by A.J. Puk and Justin Martínez but both are currently out of commission. Martínez recently required Tommy John surgery and will be out for the year. Puk is on the IL with a flexor strain and was recently shut down due to some renewed discomfort. In addition to those two, Kendall Graveman and Christian Montes De Oca are also on the IL.
Amid those injuries, the club’s bullpen numbers are unsurprisingly poor. Arizona relievers have a collective 5.39 ERA, which puts them ahead of only the Nationals and Athletics. If they stay in the playoff race, adding relievers will surely be a deadline focus. For now, they’ll take chances on guys like Richards and Gose while hoping for the best.
Photo courtesy of Matt Marton, Imagn Images
Trevor Richards Elects Free Agency
The Royals announced that right-hander Trevor Richards has become a free agent after clearing outright waivers. Kansas City designated Richards for assignment earlier this week, and since he has been previously outrighted in his career, Richards had the ability to reject an outright assignment to Triple-A in favor of re-entering the open market.
As a free agent this past winter, Richards signed a minor league contract with the Cubs that didn’t yield any MLB playing time, as Chicago released him in early May. The veteran righty caught on with the Royals on another minors deal a few days later, and a 1.69 ERA over 10 2/3 innings with Triple-A Omaha earned Richards a ticket back to the big leagues last weekend.
Unfortunately, Richards allowed four runs over his three innings and three total appearances as a Royal, resulting in an ugly 12.00 ERA. Most of the damage came on June 8, as Richards was charged with three runs when he couldn’t retire any of four White Sox batters faced. While a total sample size of 18 batters isn’t that much to go on, Richards allowed two walks and threw three wild pitches during his brief time in K.C.
Richards has enough MLB service time (six years and 70 days heading into the 2025 campaign) that he can’t be optioned to the minors without his consent. This makes his roster situation a little tricky going forward, and he’ll almost surely be limited to minor league offers in his latest trip to free agency. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Richards re-sign with the Royals on a new deal after he’s tested the market, or the 32-year-old might seek out another stop in what has been something of an itinerant career. Richards has a 4.54 ERA over 563 innings with six different clubs in his eight Major League seasons, beginning as a starter and then moving into long relief or swingman roles in recent years.