Minor MLB Transactions: 2/19/19
While the world is abuzz following the largest signing of the offseason earlier today, there are still some minor moves happening throughout the league. We’ll keep track of them here…
- The Pirates have voided their minor league contract with right-hander Roberto Gomez after concerns arose following his physical exam, the team told reporters (Twitter link via the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Bill Brink). The 29-year-old spent the past two seasons with the Giants organization and tossed 14 2/3 innings at the big league level, though he was roughed up to the tune of a 7.98 ERA in that tiny sample. Gomez, to his credit, notched a much more impressive 14-to-2 K/BB ratio in that time. He also owns a respectable 4.21 ERA with 8.0 K/9 against 3.5 BB/9 in 115 1/3 innings of Triple-A ball — all coming in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. The exact nature of his injury remains unclear, but he’ll no longer be vying for a job with the Buccos.
- Journeyman infielder Dean Anna, who’d been slated to report to camp with the Twins on a minor league contract, has opted to retire (Twitter link via Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press). Anna, 32, saw brief MLB action with the Yankees and Cardinals back in 2014-15, though he only ever tallied a total of 26 MLB plate appearances. He’s spent parts of six seasons in Triple-A, where he was a career .280/.372/.377 hitter with experience playing all over the infield (plus a bit of outfield work).
Minor MLB Transactions: 1/4/19
Rounding up some minor league moves from around baseball…
Latest Transactions
- The Dodgers signed outfielder Cameron Perkins to a minor league deal with an invitation to their big league spring camp, J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group reports (Twitter link). A sixth-round pick for the Phillies in 2012, Perkins made his big league debut in 2017, posting a .510 OPS over 97 plate appearances for Philadelphia. The Mariners claimed him off waivers last winter and he spent last season in Seattle’s farm system. Perkins has hit .278/.332/.418 over exactly 2800 minor league PA and played all three outfield positions, plus some time at both corner infield slots.
Earlier Today
- The Cardinals have outrighted Ryan Meisinger to Triple-A after the right-hander cleared waivers, the team announced (Twitter link). Meisinger will stay in the organization after being designated for assignment in December to make room on the Cards’ roster for Andrew Miller. The 24-year-old Meisinger made his big league debut last season, posting a 6.43 ERA over 21 innings for the Orioles, and St. Louis claimed him off waivers from the O’s last month.
- The Red Sox have signed right-hander Josh Smith and catcher Oscar Hernandez to minor league deals. the team announced. Both players are among the list of names receiving invitations to Boston’s Major League Spring Training camp. Smith tossed 127 1/3 innings for the Reds and Athletics from 2015-17 but didn’t appear in the majors last season, spending the year at the Triple-A affiliates of the Red Sox and Mariners. Hernandez also spent 2018 with Boston’s Triple-A club in Pawtucket, though his season was marred by a 50-game suspension due to a second positive test for a drug of abuse. Hernandez has a career .251/.329/.424 slash line over 1947 minor league plate appearances, and he appeared in 22 MLB games with the Diamondbacks in 2015-16.
- The Pirates also announced some non-roster invitees to their big league Spring Training camp today, including the addition of right-hander Roberto Gomez on a minor league deal. (John Dreker of PiratesProspects.com had the news on Gomez back in November.) The 29-year-old Gomez has 14 2/3 career MLB innings to his name, all with the Giants over the last two seasons. Over 550 career minor league frames, Gomez has a 3.68 ERA, 6.3 K/9, 2.16 K/BB rate, starting 92 of his 147 career games but seeing increasing usage as a reliever over the last two seasons.
Giants Release Roberto Gomez
The Giants have released right-hander Roberto Gomez to open a spot on the 40-man roster for Johnny Cueto‘s reinstatement from the 60-day disabled list, tweets Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area. The team had already announced earlier tonight that Kelby Tomlinson was optioned to Triple-A in order to open a spot on the 25-man roster.
Gomez, 28, has been on the minor league disabled list since early May. Because injured players can’t be outrighted during the season, the Giants instead opted to release Gomez in order to clear a spot on the roster. It’s not uncommon in this type of situation for the player in question to strike up a new minor league contract with the organization, so it’s possible that he could yet return to the Giants’ minor league ranks.
Gomez ha pitched a total of 14 2/3 innings for the Giants over the past two seasons, and while he hasn’t yet found success in the Majors (13 runs allowed in that time), he does have an impressive 14-to-2 K/BB ratio in the big leagues. Gomez also has a solid track record at the Triple-A level, where he’s worked to a 3.93 ERA with 8.0 K/9 against 3.5 BB/9 over the course of 103 innings.
Giants Notes: Samardzija, Upcoming Roster Decisions
The Giants announced on Wednesday that right-hander Jeff Samardzija has been placed on the 10-day disabled list due to tightness in his right shoulder. Right-hander Tyler Beede is up from Triple-A Sacramento to take his spot on the roster for the time being, though the organization’s current hope is that Samardzija will only miss one start, per Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle. An MRI revealed some inflammation in Samardzija’s shoulder, per Schulman, but there’s no structural damage. With so many injuries in their rotation, the Giants briefly had all three starters listed as “TBA” this weekend, though they’ve since said that Chris Stratton and Andrew Suarez will start the first two games of the series, while a determination on Sunday’s starter has seemingly yet to be made. Schulman notes that the club had been planning to move lefty Ty Blach to the bullpen, but he’s now a candidate to start in Samardzija’s place on Sunday, as is rookie Dereck Rodriguez.
A bit more out of San Francisco, where there are several roster decisions looming on the horizon…
- With Joe Panik, Alen Hanson and Mark Melancon all likely to return from the DL this weekend, and Madison Bumgarner likely to be activated next Tuesday, and two of them (Melancon and Bumgarner) will require corresponding 40-man moves. Kerry Crowley of the San Jose Mercury News runs through some possibilities for the roster over the next six days, listing Steven Okert, Roberto Gomez and Jose Valdez as candidates to be designated for assignment in order to clear 40-man spots for Melancon and Bumgarner.
- More complicated, Crowley notes, is the impending return of Hunter Pence from the 10-day DL. Manager Bruce Bochy implied that Pence will return to the 25-man roster when his rehab window expires this weekend, though his exact role looks uncertain. Andrew McCutchen is the team’s regular right fielder, and the Giants have said that Mac Williamson will be given an everyday opportunity in left field. Pence, of course, can’t play center field, so he appears headed for a limited role. Crowley suggests that either Austin Jackson or Gregor Blanco could land on the disabled list as a temporary fix, though it stands to reason that if Williamson proves adept in left field, the Giants could eventually have a more difficult decision on their hands.
Giants Designate Carlos Moncrief For Assignment
The Giants have designated outfielder Carlos Moncrief for assignment in order to clear a spot on the roster for fellow righty Roberto Gomez, whose contract has been selected from Triple-A Sacramento (Twitter link via Alex Pavlovic of CSN Bay Area).
Moncrief, 28, spent most of his career with the Indians organization but has been with the Giants for the past two seasons. He’s batted .287/.349/.421 with two homers and four steals through 190 Triple-A plate appearances this season but slashed just .211/.256/.237 through 43 plate appearances with the big league club this year after making his MLB debut.
Gomez, also 28, notched a 4.07 earned run average with 8.2 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 and a 46 percent ground-ball rate in 97 1/3 innings with the Giants’ Triple-A affiliate. Gomez has made 38 appearances in Sacramento, 25 out of the bullpen and 13 starts.