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International Transactions: 12/27/20

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The latest international signings involving former big leaguers:

  • The CTBC Brothers of Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League are nearing an agreement with right-hander Gabriel Ynoa, reports Daniel Kim of ESPN (Twitter link). The 27-year-old saw action in parts of three big league seasons with the Mets and Orioles, tossing a career-high 110.2 innings for Baltimore in 2019. Ynoa has a career 5.39 ERA and a matching FIP in his big league time. He spent last season with the Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball but posted only a 10.13 ERA in 24 innings at Japan’s highest level.
  • The CPBL’s Wei Chuan Dragons announced the signings of right-handers Junichi Tazawa, Jake Brigham and Drew Gagnon, as well as utilityman Rosell Herrera (h/t to CPBL Stats). Tazawa was once a notable set-up piece in Boston and logged eight big league seasons between the Red Sox, Marlins and Angels. Brigham’s MLB experience consisted of 12 games with the 2015 Braves; he’d spent the past four seasons in the Korea Baseball Organization. Gagnon threw 35.2 innings of 7.32 ERA ball with the 2018-19 Mets before heading to the KBO last season. Herrera played for the Reds, Royals and Marlins in 2018-19 and hit .225/.286/.316. As an expansion franchise, the Dragons are allowed five foreign-born players next season instead of the customary three. (Right-hander Bryan Woodall signed as the fifth foreign player).

Minor MLB Transactions: 1/4/20

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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.

Marlins Outright Rosell Herrera, Peter O’Brien

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The Marlins announced that they’ve outrighted outfielder Rosell Herrera and infielder/outfielder Peter O’Brien to Triple-A New Orleans. Having been outrighted in the past, O’Brien could reject the assignment in favor of free agency, but he’ll stay in the organization, Wells Dusenberry of the Sun Sentinel suggests.

The Marlins designated Herrera for assignment this past Wednesday to make room for the acquisition of outfielder Cesar Puello. A former Royal and Red, the 26-year-old Herrera had chances to prove himself with the Marlins before they cut him. Herrera batted just .200/.288/.314 in 119 plate appearances in the majors this season, though, leading the Marlins to ax him from their roster.

O’Brien, whom the Marlins acquired from the Dodgers in June 2018, hasn’t been able to consistently put his big power to use in the majors. While the 28-year-old journeyman’s a .257/.316/.507 hitter in 1,358 Triple-A plate appearances, he has only slashed .209/.275/.434 in 200 major league attempts. O’Brien batted .167/.255/.262 in 47 PA this year before Miami designated him.

Marlins To Designate Rosell Herrera

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The Marlins will designate utilityman Rosell Herrera for assignment, per Craig Mish of MLB Network on Sirius XM (Twitter link). Corresponding moves aren’t yet known.

Herrera, a 26-year-old switch-hitter, has yet to make good on his former prospect promise. He’s now a .225/.286/.316 hitter through 421 career MLB plate appearances.

Marlins Claim Rosell Herrera

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The Marlins announced that they have claimed infielder/outfielder Rosell Herrera from the Royals.  Herrera was designated for assignment by K.C. last month.

The 26-year-old Herrera made his Major League debut last season, hitting .234/.286/.317 over 302 combined plate appearances with the Reds and Royals, as Kansas City claimed him off waivers from Cincinnati last June.  In this brief time in the big leagues, Herrera has already played all three outfield positions as well as time at second base and third base, so he offers quite a bit of versatility to a Marlins team that parted ways with Derek Dietrich earlier this winter.  Herrera doesn’t have Dietrich’s upside at the plate, of course, so he could perhaps fit better as competition or perhaps a replacement for current utilityman Miguel Rojas.

Herrera has been added to Miami’s 40-man roster, giving the Marlins a full 40-man complement.

Royals Sign Terrance Gore, Designate Rosell Herrera

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The Royals announced today that they have inked a deal with outfielder Terrance Gore. Meanwhile, utilityman Rosell Herrera was designated for assignment to create roster space.

Gore has secured a one-year, MLB pact that comes with a split salary, per MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan (via Twitter). He will earn at a $350K rate in the minors and a $650K rate in the big leagues.

The 27-year-old Gore is a five-year MLB veteran, but has taken just 19 plate appearances at the game’s highest level. While he’s valued for his blistering speed and instincts on the bases and in the field, Gore has a track record of abysmal offensive numbers in the minors.

Given that profile, it’s a bit of a surprise to see the out-of-options Gore occupying a 40-man roster spot for a Royals club that seems to have little hope of near-term contention. That’s all the more true given that the club already added speed demon Billy Hamilton, who is expected to command the bulk of the playing time in center.

When the Royals inked Hamilton, they emphasized the need to cover ground at hitter-friendly Kauffman Stadium, so perhaps there’s a niche for Gore as well if the club decides to take things to an extreme position. (He’d be a platoon match for the left-handed-hitting Hamilton, it’s worth noting.) Certainly, the K.C. team knows him as well as anyone, having employed him exclusively since 2011, excepting a late-2018 run with the Cubs. If Gore does ultimately end up on the big league roster, he’ll pair with Hamilton, Whit Merrifield and Adalberto Mondesi to give manager Ned Yost a fleet-footed quartet that is unparalleled in terms of raw speed and baserunning ability.

As for Herrera, 26, he’s capable of lining up just about anywhere defensively, but hasn’t generally shown much with the bat. He slashed .234/.286/.317 in his first 302 MLB plate appearances last year. That said, Herrera has at times exhibited promising plate discipline as well as speed and even some power (16 home runs in 2013), so it’s still possible he’ll put some things together and emerge as a worthwhile MLB performer.

AL Central Links: Drake, Pineda, Chernoff, Herrera, Tigers

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Oliver Drake earned an unusual spot in the record books upon making his Twins debut on Saturday, as the right-hander became the first player in history to pitch for five different MLB teams in a single season.  After three waiver claims and a trade, the well-traveled Drake has now taken the hill for the Twins, Blue Jays, Angels, Indians, and Brewers since the start of the 2018 campaign.  “It’s definitely been a long year,” Drake told MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger and other reporters.  “It’s always a good thing to be wanted in this game. My wife definitely would appreciate being a little more settled. She’s been moving around a lot with me, and it’s kind of chaos. But it’s all part of it, it’s the lifestyle we live, and we’re just making the best of it.”  Drake had already taken a long journey of a different sense just to reach the Show, as he was a 43rd-round pick for the Orioles in the 2008 draft and didn’t crack the big leagues until 2015.  Ironically, Drake had a pretty stable run for much of his pro career, as he was a member of Baltimore’s organization until he was dealt to Milwaukee in April 2017.

Here’s more from around the AL Central…

  • Also from Bollinger’s piece, Michael Pineda will officially begin his rehab assignment with the Twins’ Gulf Coast League affiliate today.  This will mark the right-hander’s first action since undergoing Tommy John surgery in July 2017.  Minnesota signed Pineda to a two-year, $10MM contract last winter, with $8MM of that deal owed in 2019 as the team sees him as a potential rotation contributor when healthy.  If all goes well in his rehab, Pineda is slated to get some Major League innings under his belt when rosters expand in September.
  • Indians GM Mike Chernoff talks to The Athletic’s Zack Meisel (subscription required) about how a front office prepares for the trade deadline, as well as managing the hectic, last-minute flurry of calls and messages from other teams on deadline day itself.  Cleveland had already acquired Brad Hand and Adam Cimber to reinforce the bullpen earlier in July, leaving the team with one less positional target to worry about as July 31 approached.  “There have been times at the deadline where we’ve had multiple needs and you’re juggling a lot of different things at the same time….Because we addressed the bullpen much earlier in the process, we could really shift our focus to, ’How do we help the outfield?’ “, Chernoff said.  The piece is well worth a full read for an insight into the many factors that every team must juggle as it looks to make any trade, let alone multiple deals at the busiest time of the year for transactions.
  • Rosell Herrera’s rookie season has seen him go from the Reds to the Royals on a waiver claim, though now the 25-year-old looks to be shaping into a useful asset for his new club, the Kansas City Star’s Maria Torres writes.  Herrera hasn’t shown much at the plate (.257/.291/.358 over 159 PA with Cincinnati and Kansas City), though he has displayed some versatility, lining up at second base, third base, and all three outfield spots this season.  Torres details how Herrera, once a top-100 ranked prospect coming up in the Rockies’ system, first started playing the outfield since Colorado already had Nolan Arenado and Troy Tulowitzki on the left side of the diamond, and how wrist problems slowed his ascent through the farm system.
  • The trade that sent J.D. Martinez to the Diamondbacks in July 2017 was the first of six major deals made by the Tigers as they began their rebuilding process, and MLive.com’s Evan Woodbery looks back on the prospect haul that Detroit has collected in those swaps.  While it will obviously be several years before the impact of these deals can be fully assessed, the trade that sent Justin Wilson and Alex Avila to the Cubs at the 2017 deadline is already “a big win for the Tigers” since Jeimer Candelario has become a lineup regular.

Royals Place Jorge Soler On 10-Day DL, Promote Adalberto Mondesi, Select Wily Peralta’s Contract

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The Royals announced a flurry of roster moves (Twitter links) this morning, including outfielder Jorge Soler’s official placement on the 10-day DL with a left toe fracture.  Left-hander Eric Skoglund was transferred to the 60-day DL, while infielder Ramon Torres and right-hander Scott Barlow were optioned to Triple-A.  Joining the 25-man roster are infielder Adalberto Mondesi, outfielder Rosell Herrera, and righty Wily Peralta, as the Royals selected Peralta’s contract from Triple-A Omaha.

[Updated Royals depth chart at Roster Resource]

Soler is expected to miss at least six weeks of action with the injury, which was seemingly originally caused by a foul ball off his foot and then exacerbated when Soler was running on Friday night.  Soler’s production has cooled off following a huge opening six weeks, though he still had a .265/.354/.466 slash line and nine homers through 257 total plate appearances this season.  It seemed as though Soler was finally enjoying the breakout campaign long expected of him since his (not long ago) days as one of the game’s best prospects coming up in the Cubs farm system, though this DL stint is an unfortunate interruption to Soler’s season.

Speaking of top prospects, the most noteworthy of Kansas City’s corresponding moves is the promotion of Mondesi, who is back in the majors for the first time in 2018.  Mondesi was a consensus top-40 prospect prior to the 2016 season, with Baseball Prospectus rating him as high as 16th on their list of baseball’s top 100 minor leaguers, though he has shown next to nothing at the plate in two brief stints in the Show.  Mondesi has just a .181/.226/.271 slash line over 209 career PA in the majors, though he has shown more composure as a hitter at the Triple-A level.  With the usual caveat that the Pacific Coast League is very hitter-friendly, Mondesi has hit .292/.328/.527 with 19 homers over 551 Triple-A plate appearances.

Mondesi has already displayed excellent speed and strong defensive ability, so his prospect ceiling would only be further elevated if he can add value as a hitter.  He has mostly played shortstop in the minors with some time at second base, and with the Royals in rebuild mode, Mondesi could get an extended look at either position now that he’s back on the 25-man roster.  Whit Merrifield is certainly staying in the everyday lineup but can play other positions than second base, so Mondesi could displace Ryan Goins for regular time at the keystone, or potentially displace starting shortstop Alcides Escobar.  Manager Ned Yost told reporters (including The Athletic’s Rustin Dodd) that Mondesi will play four games a week for the time being, to keep Mondesi fresh after some injuries earlier in the season.

Peralta signed a one-year, $1.5MM contract (with a $3MM club option for 2019) last winter, though he has yet to appear in a big league game for the Royals after being outrighted off the 40-man roster at the end of Spring Training.  Peralta has a 4.37 ERA over 35 innings at Triple-A, posting a strong 10.0 K/9 but a troubling 5.4 BB/9.  The hard-throwing veteran is looking to rebound after a very rough 2017 season that led his being outrighted off Milwaukee’s roster last summer.

Royals Claim Rosell Herrera

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The Royals have claimed utilityman Rosell Herrera off waivers from the Reds, John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports on Twitter. Herrera was designated for assignment yesterday in order to make room for catcher Curt Casali on the Reds’ roster. In a corresponding move, righty Nate Karns has been transferred to the 60-day DL.

Herrera was an international signing of the Rockies in July of 2009, and vaulted his way up the club’s prospect list over the next few years. At one point, a .343/.419/.515 in his age-20 minor league season earned him the number 86 spot on Baseball America’s top 100 overall prospects. He was highly regarded enough at one point to be added to the club’s roster in order to receive protection from the Rule 5 Draft.

However, after a pair of dismal seasons in High-A ball from 2014-2015, the Rockies released him and re-signed him to a new minors pact; that very same thing happened again the following season. From that point on, he never really made any headlines until being once again released by the Rockies this past offseason and subsequently re-signed by the Reds in a minor-league contract. Even the rebuilding Reds, however, didn’t consider him to be worth a roster spot after watching him strike out in five of his first 13 major league plate appearances, even after the young outfielder managed to slug .500 across nearly a hundred plate appearances at Triple-A.

It’s easy to think, though, that he could find playing time with a Royals club that seems content to look for hidden gems in the beginning stages of a rebuilding process. Herrera is capable of playing both the infield and the outfield, so he could very well earn a major league look in Kansas City with a strong minors performance over an extended stretch.

Reds Designate Rosell Herrera, Select Curt Casali

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The Reds have designated utilityman Rosell Herrera for assignment, per a club announcement. That move opens a 40-man spot for just-acquired backstop Curt Casali, whose contract was selected.

It became clear yesterday that Casali would be moving right onto the active roster, as the team announced it was optioning Tony Cruz. Making things official still required another roster decision, though, and that waited until today.

Herrera, 25, got his first brief taste of the majors with Cincinnati after joining the organization as a minor-league free agent over the winter. He has spent most of the year at Triple-A, where he posted a strong .280/.337/.524 slash with three home runs in ninety plate appearances.

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