Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Wes Parsons

Recapping The KBO League’s International Player Signings

By | at

With the lockout slowing MLB-related transactions to a crawl of minor league deals, transactions involving Korean Baseball Organization teams have taken more of a spotlight on MLBTR’s pages since the start of December.  These moves have included the signings of several names familiar to North American baseball fans, as the KBO League’s clubs have looked to address their allocated three roster spots for non-Korean players.  International-born players can only sign contracts worth a maximum of $1MM in total salary, and players new to the KBO League can sign only one-year pacts.

Though the Doosan Bears have one signing that still isn’t yet official, the other 29 slots have been filled.  It is still possible this list could be adjusted in the coming weeks due to a number of factors — injuries, players returning to North America (for personal reasons or a deal with an MLB team), issues related to the pandemic, or teams just changing their minds after seeing the players in training camp.  Here is the rundown of this winter’s international signings for the 10 KBO League franchises….

Doosan Bears
Jose Miguel Fernandez (deal not yet finalized), Ariel Miranda, Robert Stock

NC Dinos
Nick Martini, Wes Parsons, Drew Rucinski

Hanwha Eagles
Ryan Carpenter, Nick Kingham, Mike Tauchman

Lotte Giants
Charlie Barnes, DJ Peters, Glenn Sparkman

Kiwoom Heroes
Tyler Eppler, Eric Jokisch, Yasiel Puig

SSG Landers
Kevin Cron, Wilmer Font, Ivan Nova

Samsung Lions
David Buchanan, Jose Pirela, Albert Suarez

Kia Tigers
Socrates Brito, Sean Nolin, Ronnie Williams

LG Twins
Casey Kelly, Adam Plutko, Rio Ruiz

KT Wiz
William Cuevas, Odrisamer Despaigne, Henry Ramos

Drew Rucinski, Wes Parsons Re-Sign With KBO’s NC Dinos

By | at

Right-handers Drew Rucinski and Wes Parsons have re-signed with the NC Dinos of the Korea Baseball Organization for the 2022 season, reports Jee-ho Yoo of South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency. Rucinski will be guaranteed $1.9MM with another $100K of incentives available, tying him for the second-largest salary of any foreign player in the KBO, per Yoo. Parsons, meanwhile, receives $550K in guarantees, plus another $250K of available incentives.

After totaling 54 innings in a nondescript big league career that included stops with the Angels (2014-15), Twins (2017) and Marlins (2018), Rucinski has emerged as one of the top arms in the KBO. He’s started exactly 30 games in each of the past three seasons, averaging 179 2/3 frames per year and posting consecutive ERAs of 3.05, 3.05 and 3.17 from 2019-21. This past season, Rucinski posted the highest strikeout rate (23.5%) and ground-ball rate (a massive 67.8%) of his KBO career. His 7.3% walk rate was strong as well, and he yielded just 12 homers on the year (0.60 HR/9).

Rucinski will turn 33 next week and would be 34 by the time he could plausibly pitch in the Majors again, but given his standout work in the KBO and his eye-popping ground-ball rates, it’s feasible that he could draw MLB interest on next offseason’s market. He’s now racked up a total of 539 innings with a 3.09 ERA, a 20.5% strikeout rate and a 6.9% ground-ball rate during his time in the KBO. Batted-ball data for Rucinski’s first season in South Korea isn’t publicly available, but last year’s ground-ball rate was no fluke; he sat a 63.8% in 2020 and has a combined 65.7% mark over the past two seasons. At the very least, one would imagine that next winter, in a more stable free-agent climate, Rucinski could pique the interest of big league teams with strong infield defenses.

As he enters his fourth season in the KBO, Rucinski has now guaranteed himself $5.7MM over a four-year term in Korea (not including any of the incentives in his prior deals or this upcoming contract). For an undrafted player who had three stints with the independent Rockford RiverHawks of the Frontier League before even finding consistent minor league work, it’s a fairly remarkable journey — and an encouraging tale for players who continue to grind through minimal pay on the minor league and indie circuits.

As for Parsons, who turned 29 back in September, he was also an undrafted minor league free agent who now finds himself on a similar trajectory. His first two contracts in the KBO have been more modest than those of Rucinski, but he’s secured himself more than a million dollars in total after a seven-year minor league journey netted him just 39 2/3 innings in the Majors with the Braves. Parsons tallied 133 innings during his first season with the Dinos in 2021, pitching to a 3.72 ERA with a 25.6% strikeout rate, a 10.9% walk rate and an excellent 64.3% ground-ball rate of his own.

KBO’s NC Dinos To Sign Wes Parsons

By | at

The NC Dinos of the KBO have announced the signing of right-hander Wes Parsons. He will now begin the process of completing a physical and traveling to Changwon to self-isolate before joining the team.

The 28-year-old right-hander can earn up to $600K in the form of a $320K base salary, $80K signing bonus, and $200K in incentives, writes Yoo Hee-ho of the Yonhap News Agency. Parsons will join the Dinos rotation. With Drew Rucinski and Aaron Altherr already on board, the Dinos now have a full slate of foreign players for the 2021 season. The Dinos are embarking on their title defense season after winning their first-ever KBO championship last year.

Parsons originally signed with the Atlanta Braves in 2012 as an undrafted amateur free agent. He made his big league debut in 2018 for the Braves. His five-inning outing was his only appearance of the season. After 17 appearances spanning 15 1/3 innings with a 3.52 ERA/6.08 FIP in 2019, the Rockies selected Parsons off waivers. He made another 15 appearances in Colorado, pitching to a 6.98 ERA/7.09 FIP across 19 1/3 innings. Though Parsons struggled in the Majors, he produced better results in Triple-A: he worked to a 2.86 ERA/3.27 FIP with 8.6 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 along with a 56.8% groundball rate in 2019.

Rockies’ Tim Collins Opts Out Of 2020 Season

By | at

The Rockies announced Monday that left-hander Tim Collins has informed the club that he will opt out of the remainder of the 2020 season. He’d been in the team’s 60-man player pool but did not make the Opening Day, 30-man roster.

Colorado has also formally added nine players to its 60-man pool, per the announcement. Joining the group are right-handers Tommy Doyle, Karl Kauffmann and Wes Parsons; infielders Aaron Schunk, Michael Toglia, Ryan Vilade and Colton Welker; lefty Helcris Olivarez; and catcher Willie MacIver.

The Rockies’ announcement comes after two game — the Marlins/Orioles tilt in Miami and the Phillies/Yankees contest in Philadelphia — were postponed due to Covid-19 concerns. However, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets that Collins had already informed the team of his decision to opt out prior to today’s news. That said, with 11 players and a pair of coaches testing positive in the Marlins organization alone since Friday, it’s certainly possible that we’ll see another wave of players decide to step away from the season citing health and safety concerns.

Collins, 30, was a staple in the Royals’ bullpen from 2011-14, pitching to a 3.54 ERA with better than a strikeout per frames part of a relief corps that eventually served as the backbone for consecutive World Series appearances. Unfortunately for Collins, he was only a part of the 2014 World Series runner-up roster, as he underwent Tommy John surgery early in 2015. When Collins appeared on the cusp of returning in 2016, he suffered a second UCL tear that led to a second Tommy John surgery.

All told, Collins missed the 2015-17 seasons while recovering, but he returned to the mound in 2018 and made it back to the Majors with the Nationals. In two seasons since his return, he’s totaled 31 1/3 frames in the Majors and logged a 4.02 ERA with a 25-to-15 K/BB ratio. He’s handled righties better than lefties in his career to date, so Collins isn’t necessarily impacted by the three-batter minimum rule like some other southpaws might be.

The 2020 season could’ve been a proving grounds of sorts for Collins, who is still young enough to reestablish himself as a quality reliever. But he’ll instead opt to step aside amid the current health concerns and likely look for another minor league deal this winter.

Minor MLB Transactions: 1/4/20

By and | at

Baseball America has posted its traditional roundup of minor moves dating to the start of the offseason. We’ve already covered quite a few of the transactions over the past several weeks, but there are several additions on minor-league pacts that have to this point eluded detection …

  • The Braves have signed left-handed pitcher Chris Nunn to a minor-league deal that includes an invite to spring training, according to Robert Murray. Nunn, originally a 2012 draftee of the Padres, has yet to see Major League action since his professional debut, making stops in Independent leagues along the way. Now 28 years old, he’s played in the upper minors with the Astros and Dodgers organizations in the last two years. Last year, in 50 2/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A, Nunn struck out 66 batters while walking 24. After posting a 1.33 ERA in Double-A, his numbers ballooned at the next level, though he largely maintained his bat-missing prowess.
  • The Padres signed outfielder Abraham Almonte. The 30-year-old switch-hitter saw action in 17 MLB games for the division-rival Diamonbacks in 2019. He was quite productive with the Snakes’ Triple-A affiliate in Reno last season, slashing .270/.382/.558. That dwarfs his prior MLB performance, though. In 1,138 plate appearances over the past six seasons, the center field-capable Almonte has compiled a .239/.298/.373 line (81 wRC+).
  • The Reds re-signed infielder Christian Colón and added catcher Francisco Peña to the organization. Colón, most known for his top five draft status and World Series heroics with the Royals, logged eight MLB plate appearances in Cincinnati last season. That rewarded a solid .300/.372/.443 line in extended action with Triple-A Louisville, although Colón was unsurprisingly bumped from the 40-man roster at season’s end. Peña tallied 202 uninspiring MLB plate appearances with the Royals, Orioles and Cardinals from 2014-18. He’s shown decent pop for a catcher at Triple-A, though; in parts of six seasons at the minors’ highest level, he has compiled a .259/.301/.469 line.
  • The Dodgers re-signed right-hander Justin De Fratus. The former Phillie has spent the last two seasons in the L.A. organization, but he hasn’t seen the majors since 2015. While all 191 of De Fratus’ MLB appearances have come out of the bullpen, he’s primarily been a starting pitcher in the minors in recent years, albeit with uninspiring results. The Dodgers also added hard-throwing lefty reliever Reymin Guduan. Guduan is still just 27 and had little trouble racking up strikeouts in the Astros’ organization, both in the high minors and at the MLB level. He’s always issued a few too many walks, though. Perhaps more concerning, Houston released Guduan in September after a team-imposed suspension for an undisclosed disciplinary issue.
  • The Rockies re-signed righty reliever Wes Parsons. The 27-year-old was claimed off waivers midseason from the Braves, but a dreadful MLB showing cost him his 40-man roster spot. Parsons logged a cumulative 5.45 ERA with more walks (29) than strikeouts (26) in 34.2 innings. Colorado also signed outfielder Michael Choice. The former top prospect, now 30, hasn’t logged significant MLB action since 2014. He’s spent the past two seasons in the Mexican League, but a strong 2019 effort there earned him another look in affiliated ball.
  • The Braves signed veteran infielder Pete Kozma. The longtime Cardinal has just a .215/.278/.291 career line (54 wRC+) in parts of seven MLB seasons. He hasn’t done much at the dish in the minors, either, but he’s a well-regarded defender around the infield.
  • The Angels signed former Cubs’ prospect Arismendy Alcántara. Alcántara hasn’t played at the highest level since 2017, and his career .189/.235/.315 line (49 wRC+) reflects the plate discipline woes that have done him in. He’s still just 28 years old, though, and his 2019 return to affiliated ball following a year in the Mexican League went well. The utilityman was productive across two minor-league levels in the Mets’ organization last season and showed better discipline than he has in his MLB career.
  • The Mets added former White Sox outfielder Ryan Cordell. Twice traded as a prospect, the 27-year-old fell flat in his first extended MLB look in 2019, with just a .221/.290/.355 line (73 wRC+). He’s capable of logging some time in center field, though, and he put together a decent minor-league resume between myriad injuries.
  • Finally, the Yankees brought aboard utilityman Rosell Herrera. Herrera logged fair MLB time with the Reds, Royals and Marlins the past two seasons. His resultant .225/.286/.316 slash (63 wRC+) won’t turn any heads, but Herrera has an 82nd percentile sprint speed, per Statcast, and has logged time at six different positions (short, second, third, and all three outfield spots) as a big leaguer.

Rockies Sign Jose Mujica, Designate Wes Parsons

By | at

The Rockies have signed right-hander Jose Mujica to a major league contract and designated fellow righty Wes Parsons for assignment, the team announced.

The 23-year-old Mujica is coming off a season lost to Tommy John surgery. In his most recent action, he fired 36 2/3 innings of 2.70 ERA/2.81 FIP ball with 8.35 K/9 and 2.45 BB/9 at the Triple-A level for the Rays in 2018. Mujica had never pitched in Triple-A ball before then, making his strong output all the more impressive.

Parsons is just a few months removed from joining the Rockies, who claimed him off waivers from the Braves toward the end of August. The 27-year-old wound up throwing 19 1/3 innings for the Rox this past season, but he stumbled to a 6.98 ERA with more walks (16) than strikeouts (14). Parsons showed similar control problems with the Braves earlier in the year, as he issued 13 walks and struck out 12 in 15 1/3 innings, though he did manage a 3.52 ERA. But Parsons has been far stingier with walks at the Triple-A level, where he has logged 8.2 K/9, 3.1 BB/9 and a 3.41 ERA over 153 frames.

Rockies Claim Wes Parsons

By and | at

The Rockies announced that they’ve claimed right-handed reliever Wes Parsons off waivers from the Braves, who had designated him for assignment over the weekend. In order to make room on the 40-man roster, the Rox moved Scott Oberg from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL, definitively ending his season. Oberg went on the IL over the weekend due to a blood clot.

With an immediate need for fresh arms and a longer-term interest in finding cost-efficient relief pitching, it’s no surprise that the Rox made a strike here. Parsons hasn’t quite reached his 27th birthday, has options remaining, and is still a long way from arbitration. It’s possible he’ll be given a chance to pitch his way into the team’s plans for 2020.

If he’s to take advantage of the opportunity, Parsons will need to improve upon his initial showing in Atlanta. He carried a 3.52 ERA through 15 1/3 MLB innings this year, but didn’t get there in style. With 13 walks to go with a dozen strikeouts, along with a lowly 6.9% swinging-strike rate, it was clear that Parsons wasn’t fooling MLB hitters.

That said, there’s still reason to hope for better. Parsons has a history of quality results in the upper minors; this year, at Triple-A, he worked to a 2.86 ERA with 8.6 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 along with a 56.8% groundball rate. No doubt the Rox are particularly intrigued by the fact that Parsons has typically induced quite a few worm burners and limited the long ball as a minor-leaguer.

Braves Designate Wes Parsons

By | at

The Braves announced that they have designated righty Wes Parsons for assignment. His roster spot was needed for the club’s previously reported signing of Adeiny Hechavarria, which is now official.

Parsons, 26, converted to a full-time relief role this season and has had success at limiting earned runs. But that only tells a limited portion of the story.

In limited MLB action, Parsons has had trouble limiting walks (7.6 per nine), getting swings and misses (6.9% swinging-strike rate), and generating grounders (as he always has in the minors). That’s a recipe for disaster, which explains why the Braves haven’t used him more in the bigs despite a 3.52 ERA in 15 1/3 innings this year.

Braves To Select Contract Of Jeremy Walker

By | at

The Braves will select the contract of right-hander Jeremy Walker, per MLB.com’s Mark Bowman (via Twitter). Walker will be activated for tonight’s contest, taking the place of optioned righty Wes Parsons.

Walker put himself on the MLB radar with a strong showing to open the year in the upper minors. Previously a starter, the former fifth-round pick has functioned in a multi-inning relief capacity this season.

The results have been fairly compelling. Through 69 2/3 innings over 26 total appearances, Walker carries a 2.84 ERA with 9.2 K/9 and just 1.0 BB/9. He has generated grounders on well over half of the balls put in play against him and allowed just a pair of homers this season.

While it seems Walker is well-positioned to take his first crack at the majors, and he’d have needed a 40-man roster spot next fall for Rule 5 protection, adding him now will certainly impact the number of slots the club has to work with as it tweaks its roster in advance of the trade deadline. Improving the back of the pen still seems like a priority. Whether the team will end up jettisoning some veterans and/or trading valuable youngsters from its 40-man remains to be seen.

Braves Designate Jerry Blevins

By | at

The Braves have designated lefty Jerry Blevins for assignment, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweets. Righty Kyle Wright was already optioned down, thus creating two active roster openings that will be filled by relievers Jesse Biddle (back from the IL) and Wes Parsons (recalled from Triple-A).

Blevins opened the season in the Athletics organization, facing the unfamiliar position of earning his way onto a major league roster. He ended up being acquired by the Braves and installed in their relief unit.

Things haven’t worked out as hoped for Blevins, who has allowed four runs with four strikeouts and three walks in his 3 1/3 innings over six appearances. That’s too short a sample to draw any final conclusions, but Blevins was working at or near career-worst levels of velocity (89.1 mph average fastball), swinging strikes (8.1%), and hard contact (50.0%) in th ebrief showing.

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

hide arrowsFOX Sports Engage Network scroll to top