- The Giants placed outfielder Austin Slater on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to yesterday, with a left hand sprain. Reliever Yunior Marte is up from Triple-A Sacramento to take the roster spot. Part of a matchup-heavy outfield in San Francisco, Slater has emerged as a highly productive role player when in the lineup for manager Gabe Kapler. He’s hitting .267/.378/.396 over 286 plate appearances this season, his third straight above-average campaign. The righty-hitting Slater carries a .257/.357/.424 line dating back to the start of 2020, including a massive .284/.389/.497 showing against left-handed pitching. Luis González has been in the lineup each of the past four days as Slater has nursed the injury that’ll now send him to the IL.
Giants Rumors
Giants Claim Jose Rojas From Angels; Steven Duggar Elects Free Agency
The Angels announced that the Giants have claimed infielder/outfielder Jose Rojas off waivers. San Francisco has also announced the move, with Brandon Belt (who is undergoing season-ending knee surgery) moved to the 60-day injured list to create space for Rojas on the 40-man roster. Rojas and outfielder Steven Duggar were both designated for assignment by the Angels on September 1. Duggar cleared waivers and opted to become a free agent, rather than accept an outright assignment to Triple-A.
Rojas will change teams for the first time in his pro career, as he has been an Angel since being selected in the 36th round of the 2016 draft. (And, Rojas is even an Anaheim native.) After posting some nice numbers in the minors, Rojas has seen some big league playing time in each of the last two seasons, resulting in a .188/.245/.339 slash line over 241 total plate appearances. Much of that modest production came in 2021, as Rojas had a .676 OPS last season but only a .301 OPS in 57 PA this year.
As noted, the minor leagues was a different story for Rojas, who slashed .287/.347/.503 with 90 home runs over 2298 career PA in the Angels farm system. The hitter-friendly environment of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League is certainly a factor in gauging Rojas’ numbers, but overall, it is easy to see why the Giants might have interest in the 29-year-old. San Francisco has also favored versatile players, and Rojas fits that model with his experience at third base, second base, first base, and both corner outfield spots.
Duggar is a former Giant himself, spending his first five MLB seasons in the Bay Area before being traded to the Rangers for Willie Calhoun in June. Duggar didn’t last long in Texas, as the Rangers DFA’ed him in early August and the Angels claimed him away a few days later.
While Duggar has been a strong defensive player during his career, he has had trouble staying healthy and generating any kind of consistent production at the plate. Duggar has had a few flashes of offensive protential, but over 846 career PA, he has hit only .236/.293/.367. All of the changes of scenery haven’t helped his bat this year, as Duggar has just a .447 OPS over 80 combined PA with Anaheim, Texas, and San Francisco. Now that he’s back on the open market, it’s possible to see another team in need of outfield depth or a defensive boost inking Duggar to a minor league contract.
Farhan Zaidi Discusses Giants’ Offseason
After winning 107 games in 2021, the Giants have taken a big step backwards, with only a 63-68 record this season. Pretty much everything clicked during that dream season, but injuries and under-performance have marred San Francisco’s efforts this year, with the bullpen and much of the lineup being particularly inconsistent.
As a result, some notable changes could be in store for the 2023 club. In an interview on The Front Office on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (partial audio clip), Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said that “everything is on the table for us” this offseason, “including going out and being aggressive at the top end of the free agent market.”
Zaidi has yet to make any true big-ticket signings since taking over the front office in November 2018, preferring shorter-term deals with both free agents or in-house players. This isn’t to say that the Giants have been necessarily adverse to spending in general, considering that the club’s current payroll is around $162.3MM (as per Roster Resource). However, even that total is below the team’s spending levels prior to Zaidi’s tenure, as payroll topped the $200MM mark in 2018 before Zaidi was hired.
Of course, that payroll was inflated by several large contracts given to veteran players and stalwarts of the Giants’ three World Series championships, and by 2018, most of those players were no longer productive. Rather than entirely rebuild, Zaidi took a more measured approach to moving some but not all of those larger deals, and this strategy was a big part of the Giants’ sudden success in 2021. Such underperforming veterans as Brandon Crawford, Brandon Belt, Buster Posey, Evan Longoria, and Johnny Cueto were generally healthier and much more productive on the field, with the revamped coaching staff helping these players find their old form.
Posey retired, while Cueto wasn’t re-signed and instead landed with the White Sox. Crawford was given a contract extension before the 2021 season was even over, and Belt was also retained when he accepted San Francisco’s one-year qualifying offer. As it turned out, it seems like the Giants may have simply waited a year too long with these players, as Crawford and Belt have struggled, and Longoria has hit well when healthy but has also played only 69 games.
“We had a bunch of veteran players when I came in whose contracts were going to be up last offseason and this coming offseason,” Zaidi said, describing this period “as a time of big transition for our organization.” Considering how well the Giants played in 2021, “it made sense for us to not be too aggressive with the transition and retrench a little bit with the guys who had had that successful season for us.”
With things not working out in 2022, Zaidi finally seems ready to turn the page on this version of the Giants roster. Belt, Joc Pederson, and Wilmer Flores are all free agents, while Longoria’s $13MM club option will likely instead be bought out for $5MM (and, Longoria might retire altogether at season’s end). Zaidi said earlier this week that the Giants have already talked to Pederson about an extension, and Flores has still been productive enough that he could be considered for another deal at a relatively low cost.
How many veterans are kept, however, will tie into Zaidi’s plan for a younger roster. As he noted in the Front Office interview, “we find ourselves in a position this offseason where we want to get more athletic. We want to have a roster that has a better chance of staying healthy, which usually means getting a little bit younger.”
This strategy will also impact the Giants’ free agent plans. Health is naturally always a concern for any team in deciding whether or not to sign a free agent, especially since most players are generally in their late 20’s or early 30’s by the time they earn enough service time to reach the open market. Looking at some of the top free agents available this winter, pretty much everyone has some level of injury history, though if youth is more of a factor for San Francisco, players like Carlos Correa (who turns 28 this month) or Trea Turner (who turns 30 in June) could be prioritized. Aaron Judge will be 31 in April, but the Bay Area native has been speculated as a natural target for his old hometown team.
Besides free agents, the Giants could also obviously look to add players in trades, though getting younger and more athletic types will naturally come at a higher cost in terms of trade return. Since the Giants have only around $89MM on the books for 2023, Zaidi could perhaps look to lower the prospect cost by taking on a larger contract, and using the Giants’ financial flexibility in another way than just spending on a free agent.
Giants Place Alex Wood On 15-Day Injured List
The Giants placed left-hander Alex Wood on the 15-day injured list due to a shoulder impingement, with the placement retroactive to September 1. Outfielder Bryce Johnson was called up from Triple-A to take Wood’s spot on the active roster.
Given the date, it is possible Wood has thrown his last pitch of the 2022 season. Manager Gabe Kapler told reporters (including Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area) that the team will re-evaluate Wood in a week’s time to see if a return is feasible. Since the Giants are all but officially out of the wild card race, the club might decide to shut Wood down for the remainder of the campaign. San Francisco will go with a bullpen game to cover Wood’s next scheduled start, and possibly for the rest of the season if Wood indeed doesn’t return.
As per most of the advanced metrics, Wood’s 2021 and 2022 numbers have been pretty much identical, with the southpaw posting a 3.60 SIERA last season and a 3.45 SIERA this year. However, a few less bounces have gone Wood’s way, as while his real-world ERA was a solid 3.83 in 2021, that number ballooned to 5.10 in 2022. Wood got great results from his sinker in 2021 and his slider was also a plus pitch, but both offerings have been below average this year in Statcast’s view.
Kapler noted that Wood has been trying to pitch through his shoulder problem, which could explain this downturn in production and, in particular, Wood’s recent shaky outings. Over his last three starts and 12 1/3 innings, Wood has been tagged for a 7.91 ERA.
Shoulder and back injuries have hampered Wood in the past, most notably during the 2019-20 seasons when he pitched only 48 1/3 total big league innings. Wood did rebound during the 2020 playoffs to help the Dodgers win the World Series, and he pitched well after signing a one-year, $3MM free agent deal with San Francisco in the 2020-21 offseason. That resulted in a new two-year, $25MM contract to rejoin the Giants last winter.
Carlos Rodon is widely expected to opt out of his contract and re-enter free agency, leaving the Giants with Wood, Logan Webb, Alex Cobb, Jakob Junis, and Anthony DeSclafani under contract or under arbitration control for 2023. DeSclafani is a question mark after missing most of the season due to ankle surgery, but the Giants still have a decent core rotation in place, even if some additions will likely need to be made.
Zaidi: Giants Have Discussed Extension With Joc Pederson
Far more has gone wrong than right for the 2022 Giants, but the team’s offseason signing of outfielder Joc Pederson to a one-year, $6MM contract has proven to be a shrewd investment. Pederson has hit well in his first season as a Giant, and he’s apparently made a good impression on the organization in all facets, as president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said in an appearance on KNBR’s Tolbert & Copes show yesterday that he’s had discussions with Pederson and his agent about re-signing him (link to full 23-minute interview).
“We’d love to have him back next year,” Zaidi said when asked what the future held for Pederson. “We’ve talked some to his representative. I’ve talked to Joc about it himself. He’s from here. He’s played well. He was an All-Star for us.”
Pederson, 30, has indeed enjoyed a strong year in San Francisco. The Palo Alto native has appeared in 107 games, tallied 348 plate appearances and slashed .263/.339/.519 with 20 home runs, 17 doubles and three stolen bases (in five attempts). He’s walked at an 8.6% clip, and this year’s 21.6% strikeout rate is his lowest mark since 2019 (and tied for the third-lowest of his career). The Giants have shielded him from lefties almost entirely — he has just 46 plate appearances against same-handed opponents — but that’s nothing new for Pederson, who carries just a .210/.285/.334 batting line against southpaws (compared to .240/.342/.494 against righties).
It’s been the best offensive showing for Pederson since his career-high 36 home runs back in 2019, but defensive metrics on the slugger are down across the board. Each of Defensive Runs Saved (-7), Ultimate Zone Rating (-6.6) and Outs Above Average (-6) are critical of Pederson’s glovework. He’s also spent 10 games at designated hitter for the Giants, though, and Pederson’s pop against right-handed pitching is plenty sufficient to fill that role if the Giants are concerned about his defensive work moving forward.
If Pederson does reach the market, he’ll be one of the more appealing options on a fairly thin market for corner outfield bats. Aaron Judge, of course, is the top free agent on the market, and Andrew Benintendi will be in a nice position heading into his age-28 season on the heels of a strong all-around showing. Beyond that pairing, Pederson will slot into the next tier alongside names like Mitch Haniger, Joey Gallo and Jurickson Profar (who seems likely to opt out of the final year of his Padres contract).
As with any potential free agent, Pederson’s return (or his departure) is largely dependent on the context of the roster around him. In-house outfield options for the Giants next year include Austin Slater, LaMonte Wade Jr., Luis Gonzalez and Mike Yastrzemski — to say nothing of prospects Heliot Ramos, Luis Matos and Vaun Brown. Ramos and Matos, however, have had down seasons in the minors, just as Yastrzemski has in the big leagues. Struggles notwithstanding, however, Zaidi implied that the team plans to tender a contract to Yastrzemski in arbitration this winter and retain him for the 2023 campaign.
“It’s just been a down season for him,” Zaidi said of Yastrzemski. “He’s been frustrated. Last year, the batting average wasn’t there but he still hit 25 homers, so you still had offensive production in a certain way. He’s still a guy who brings a ton of intangibles to the table. He’s a great defensive player. We view him as part of this team going forward, and I know he’s going to be as motivated as anybody to come back strong next year.”
Yastrzemski, who just turned 32 a couple weeks ago, will be due a raise on this year’s $3.7MM salary but has stumbled to a .203/.303/.361 batting line in 439 plate appearances. He’s still drawing walks at a strong 11.6% clip, however, and Yastrzemski’s strikeout rate, exit velocity, hard-hit rate and broader batted-ball profile are all quite similar to his prior, more productive seasons.
The Giants can control Yastrzemski for three more years beyond the current campaign, so there’s good reason to place a reasonably low-cost bet on a rebound if the team doesn’t believe his skill set has begun to decline. That said, both Yastrzemski and Pederson are left-handed hitting outfielders who could require platoon partners — Yastrzesmki has struggled severely against lefties in each of the past two seasons — so the extent to which the Giants again want to lean on a platoon, matchup-based outfield set will drive the decisions on both players. For the time being, it sounds as though the Giants are open to again leaning heavily on both lefties in the outfield again next season.
The Giants’ Latest Pitching Reclamation
Heading into the 2021-22 offseason, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and general manager Scott Harris had the unenviable task of filling not just one or two, but four rotation spots. Each of Kevin Gausman, Anthony DeSclafani, Alex Wood and Johnny Cueto were free agents. Of the team’s 2021 starters, only Logan Webb was under club control.
Granted, much of that was the front office’s own doing. A generally risk-averse unit, at least insofar as signing free agents to lucrative multi-year commitments, the Giants inked each of Gausman, Wood and DeSclafani to one-year contracts prior to the 2021 season. The continued with a generally risk-averse approach this past offseason, replenishing their rotation for a combined $125MM paid out to Carlos Rodon (two years, $44MM), DeSclafani (three years, $36MM), Wood (two years, $25MM) and Alex Cobb (two years, $20MM).
Obviously, a $125MM investment is hardly a no-risk proposition, but spreading that number out across four pitchers without committing more than three years in length isn’t exactly working without a net for a team that averaged a $179MM payroll from 2015-19, topped out at $200.5MM in 2018, and has averaged a $152.5MM payroll over the past two seasons.
The quintet of Webb, Rodon, DeSclafani, Wood and Cobb had plenty of potential to be a strong group. It also had plenty of potential to be an injury-plagued unit that created ample headaches for the front office. Each of Rodon, DeSclafani, Wood and Cobb came with lengthy injury histories. Depth beyond that group was needed, and the Giants lacked it in the upper minors.
What followed was a series of sensible additions. Matthew Boyd inked a one-year deal worth $5.2MM, as the Giants hoped the longtime Tigers southpaw would be back from flexor surgery by mid-June. Former Royals righty Jakob Junis put pen to paper on a one-year, $1.75MM contract after being non-tendered by Kansas City. Carlos Martinez, a former All-Star with the Cardinals, signed a minor league contract.
Of all the names in that group, Junis was likely the most anonymous. A 29-year-old righty and former 29th-round pick, he looked the part of a player-development success story for the Royals during his first two seasons before flaming out in his final three years with Kansas City. From 2017-18, Junis gave the Royals 275 1/3 innings of 4.35 ERA ball with a strikeout rate just below the league average, a strong walk rate and slightly below-average ground-ball tendencies. It wasn’t a star-caliber profile by any means, but ask any scout in the world and they’d be thrilled at the notion of unearthing a viable fourth or fifth starter in the 29th round of the draft.
The 2019-21 seasons, however, didn’t pan out as either Junis or the Royals hoped. Although he made what’s still a career-high 31 starts in 2019, his ERA spiked to 5.24 as his walk rate ticked upward and he began to allow increasing amounts of hard contact. Things got even worse in 2020, and by June of 2021, Junis found himself optioned to Triple-A for the first time since 2017. Between that and the 5.36 ERA Junis posted from 2019-21, it wasn’t a surprise that the Royals opted not to tender him a contract, instead setting him out into the free-agent market.
Junis’ one-year deal with the Giants looked like a sensible depth pickup of an experienced arm with one minor league option year remaining, but it’s proven to be far more than that. In 17 games for San Francisco, 14 of them starts, Junis carries a 4.04 ERA with a 20.9% strikeout rate and a superb 4.7% walk rate. Fielding-independent metrics like FIP (3.83), SIERA (3.72) and xERA (3.85) all feel he’s been a fair bit better than that. For much of the year, he’s sported an ERA in the mid- or low-3.00s, though a recent pair of six-run clunkers have inflated his ERA a bit.
Even with his recent scuffles, though, Junis has been far more than a simple stopgap in the rotation. He’s only averaging about five innings per start — more or less in line with the league average at this point — and has held opponents to three or fewer runs in 13 of his appearances on the season.
The Giants have altered Junis’ pitch selection and done so to good effect; he’s throwing his slider a career-high 51.9% of the time and has yielded only a .210/.255/.359 in the 192 plate appearances that have ended with that pitch. He’s also effectively scrapped his four-seamer and his cutter in favor of a sinker he’s throwing at a 30.6% clip, and while the pitch has still been hit hard, opponents are doing far less damage against the pitch than either of the previous two fastball iterations that Junis was using at a far higher clip.
Junis will probably end up giving the Giants anywhere from a win to two wins above replacement this year — he’s at 1.6 bWAR and 0.9 fWAR at the moment — which is a solid return on their minimal investment in and of itself. But the Giants will also retain Junis’ rights into the 2023 season, as he’s still arbitration-eligible and will finish out the year with five-plus years of service. He’ll be due a raise on this year’s salary, but jumping into the $3MM range for a serviceable fourth starter is nonetheless a bargain.
The Giants already have four starters under contract in 2023 — Webb, Wood, Cobb and DeSclafani — but could very well lose Carlos Rodon to free agency if he turns down his player option (which is a lock, so long as he remains healthy). They’re not going to simply replace Rodon with Junis and call it a day, so the likelihood is that they’ll add an impact starter and enter 2023 with Junis as the sixth or perhaps even seventh starter. That’d land him in the bullpen at the start of the season, likely in a long relief role, but given the injury histories of DeSclafani, Wood and Cobb, there ought to be innings available to him next year.
The Junis pickup obviously isn’t a masterstroke that’s going to alter the course of the franchise for years to come, but he’s quietly been quite valuable for a Giants club that has had its share of pitching injuries — and he’ll continue paying dividends on their investment into the 2023 season. Not a ton has gone right for the Giants this year, but their ability to rehab and, in some cases, reinvent pitchers remains quite strong.
Jose Alvarez Undergoes Tommy John Surgery
SEPTEMBER 2: Alvarez indeed underwent Tommy John surgery this week, the Giants announced.
AUGUST 25: Giants left-hander Jose Alvarez’s 2022 season is over due to a setback in his injury rehab, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Alvarez hasn’t pitched since mid-June due to a pair of injured-list stints, first for a back strain and then elbow inflammation that Slusser reports was later diagnosed as a UCL strain. The problem is serious enough that Tommy John surgery is likely necessary, though Alvarez will probably seek out a second opinion before making his final choice about surgery.
Due to the usual 12-15 month recovery timeframe for TJ surgery, Alvarez seems likely to miss the entire 2023 season. On the off chance that Alvarez does find a favorable second opinion, it would still seem like he’d be facing a lengthy absence that might make him questionable for the start of the 2023 campaign, and there’s no guarantee that he wouldn’t eventually end up getting a Tommy John surgery anyway in the event of another setback.
It’s a tough outcome for the 33-year-old, who will end his 10th Major League season with just 15 1/3 innings pitched and a 5.28 ERA. Alvarez signed a free agent with San Francisco prior to the 2021 season that ultimately paid him $2.55MM over the 2021-22 seasons, after the Giants exercised a club option on his services for 2022.
As such, the left-hander will now head into free agency with a lot of health uncertainty hanging over his market. It doesn’t necessarily mean that Alvarez won’t be able to find a new deal this winter, as several pitchers in similar TJ situations have signed two-year contracts, with only a minimum salary for the first year of the contract in the understanding that the pitcher will miss most or all of the year rehabbing.
Alvarez had a solid track record of success as a member of the Angels and Phillies bullpens from 2015-19, posting a 3.36 ERA/3.80 SIERA over 295 innings in those seasons. Alvarez wasn’t just a left-handed specialist, as he delivered good numbers against right-handed batters in addition to dominating left-handed batters. His solid run was interrupted by an injury-plagued 2020 season, as he tossed only 6 1/3 innings for Philadelphia due to a groin injury.
It made for an ill-timed platform season as Alvarez was eligible for free agency for the first time, and the Giants ended up with a nice bargain for their modest $2.55MM investment. Despite a 4.42 SIERA in 2021 and one of the lowest (15.8%) strikeout rates of any pitcher in baseball, Alvarez outperformed his peripherals to post a 2.37 ERA over 64 2/3 frames last season, benefiting from a 50.5% grounder rate, lots of soft contact, and a .251 BABIP.
This performance made it a pretty easy call for the Giants to exercise their club option, but Alvarez unfortunately again finds himself heading into free agency as a big injury question mark. It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Giants re-sign Alvarez to another low-cost two-year deal, even if there’s naturally more risk attached to an older pitcher coming off Tommy John surgery.
Brandon Belt To Undergo Knee Surgery
Giants first baseman Brandon Belt will undergo season-ending surgery on his right knee tomorrow, he tells Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area. The club informed reporters earlier in the week that surgery had been recommended, and the 34-year-old indeed decided to go under the knife after taking a couple days to deliberate.
Belt has been on the injured list a few times this season due to inflammation in that knee. This is far from the first year in which the joint has proven bothersome, as Belt has twice previously undergone surgery and had it drained on multiple occasions. In a forthright chat with Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle last week, the 12-year MLB veteran acknowledged the knee could be problematic for the rest of his career.
During his interview with the Chronicle, Belt seemed to imply he could retire entirely if the knee injury were especially damaging. Speaking with Pavlovic today, however, he stated he intends to continue playing if he’s able. “It’s just going to depend. I’m going to play next year if I can get my knee healthy and strong again,” Belt said. “Last time I had this surgery (in 2015), I responded really well to it. That’s what I’m anticipating … If I can get it strong like I did (in 2015) then I’ll play, but if not then I’m not going to go out there and be substandard all the time. We’ll just have to see.”
Belt’s production has taken a huge hit this season, one of the reasons for the Giants inability to replicate last year’s 107-win campaign. Through 298 plate appearances, he hit only .213/.326/.350 with eight home runs. Belt’s just a season removed from blasting 29 longballs, but his hard contact rate has fallen more than six percentage points from last year’s 44.8% mark. It’s hard to imagine the persistent knee issues weren’t playing some role in those struggles, considering he mashed at a .285/.393/.595 clip between 2020-21.
It’s nevertheless tough to know what one can expect from Belt moving forward given his age and injury history. The career-long Giant is headed for free agency this offseason. Belt is making $18.4MM this year after accepting a qualifying offer last November, but he’ll certainly be facing a paycut during this trip to the open market.
Every Team’s Initial September Call-Ups
Each season as the calendar flips to September, we see a flurry of transactions around Major League Baseball. Active roster sizes jump from 26 to 28 for the season’s final month, with teams permitted to bring up no more than one additional pitcher. We’ve already covered a host of transactions with 40-man roster implications throughout the day at MLBTR. Here’s a full round-up of teams’ initial September roster moves.
American League West
Houston Astros:
- Selected contract of RHP Hunter Brown
- Selected contract of C Yainer Diaz
- Corresponding moves: IF Niko Goodrum and RHP Peter Solomon designated for assignment
Los Angeles Angels:
- Selected contract of OF Ryan Aguilar
- Selected contract of RHP Zack Weiss
- Corresponding moves: OF Steven Duggar and INF Jose Rojas designated for assignment
Oakland Athletics
- Selected contract of LHP Ken Waldichuk from Triple-A Las vegas
- Recalled OF Cody Thomas from Triple-A Las Vegas
- Corresponding move: RHP David McKay designated for assignment
Seattle Mariners
- Reinstated LHP Matthew Boyd from 60-day injured list
- Recalled OF Taylor Trammell from Triple-A Tacoma
- Corresponding moves: None required
Texas Rangers
- Selected contract of RHP Jesus Tinoco from Triple-A Round Rock
- Recalled OF Nick Solak from Triple-A Round Rock
- Corresponding move: Transferred RHP Josh Sborz to 60-day injured list
American League Central
Chicago White Sox
- Recalled OF Adam Haseley from Triple-A Charlotte
- Recalled RHP Matt Foster from Triple-A Charlotte
- Corresponding move: None required
Cleveland Guardians
- Recalled SS Ernie Clement from Triple-A Columbus
- Reinstated RHP Cody Morris from 60-day injured list
- Corresponding move: Designated RHP Anthony Castro for assignment
Detroit Tigers
- Recalled 1B Spencer Torkelson from Triple-A Toledo
- Selected contract of INF Ryan Kreidler from Triple-A Toledo
- Corresponding move: Transferred RHP Rony Garcia to 60-day injured list
Kansas City Royals
- Selected contract of RHP Daniel Mengden from Triple-A Omaha
- Recalled OF Nate Eaton from Triple-A Omaha
- Corresponding move: None required
Minnesota Twins
- Added LHP Austin Davis (previously claimed off waivers from Red Sox) to active roster
- Selected contract of OF Billy Hamilton from Triple-A St. Paul
- Corresponding move: Transferred OF Trevor Larnach to 60-day injured list
American League East
Baltimore Orioles
- Selected contract of 1B Jesus Aguilar from Triple-A Norfolk
- Recalled LHP DL Hall from Triple-A Norfolk
- Corresponding move: Designated INF Richie Martin for assignment
Boston Red Sox
- Recalled C Connor Wong from Triple-A Worcester
- Selected contract of RHP Eduard Bazardo
- Corresponding moves: None required
New York Yankees
- Recalled SS Oswald Peraza from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre
- Activated INF Marwin Gonzalez from paternity list
- Corresponding moves: None required
Tampa Bay Rays
- Reinstated RHP Matt Wisler from the 15-day injured list
- Recalled INF Jonathan Aranda from Triple-A Durham
- Corresponding moves: None required
Toronto Blue Jays
- Recalled RHP Casey Lawrence from Triple-A Buffalo
- Added OF Bradley Zimmer (claimed off waivers from Phillies this week) to active roster
- Corresponding moves: None required
National League West
Arizona Diamondbacks
- Selected contract of IF Wilmer Difo from Triple-A Reno
- Reinstated RHP Keynan Middleton and LHP Kyle Nelson from 15-day injured list
- Corresponding move: Designated RHP Noe Ramirez for assignment
Colorado Rockies
- Recalled INF Alan Trejo from Triple-A Albuquerque
- Recalled RHP Chad Smith from Triple-A Albuquerque
- Corresponding moves: None required
Los Angeles Dodgers
- Reinstated LHP Clayton Kershaw from 15-day injured list
- Recalled 3B Miguel Vargas from Triple-A Oklahoma City
- Corresponding moves: None required
San Diego Padres
- Recalled INF Matt Beaty from Triple-A El Paso
- Recalled RHP Reiss Knehr from Triple-A El Paso
- Corresponding moves: None required
San Francisco Giants
- Selected contract of recently-acquired OF Lewis Brinson
- Recalled IF David Villar from Triple-A Sacramento
- Corresponding move: Outrighted LHP Jonathan Bermudez to Triple-A Sacramento
National League Central
Chicago Cubs
- Selected contract of RHP Jeremiah Estrada from Triple-A Iowa
- Recalled INF David Bote from Triple-A Iowa
- Corresponding move: Transferred Wade Miley from 15-day injured list to 60-day injured list
Cincinnati Reds
- Selected contract of 2B/3B Spencer Steer
- Selected contract of RHP Fernando Cruz
- Corresponding moves: Transferred INF Mike Moustakas and RHP Jeff Hoffman from 10-day injured list to 60-day injured list
Milwaukee Brewers
- Recalled RHP Luis Perdomo from Triple-A Nashville
- Recalled OF Esteury Ruiz from Triple-A Nashville
- Corresponding moves: None required
Pittsburgh Pirates
- Recalled RHP Johan Oviedo from Triple-A Indianapolis
- Recalled OF Calvin Mitchell from Triple-A Indianapolis
- Corresponding moves: None required
St. Louis Cardinals
- Selected contract of OF Ben DeLuzio from Triple-A Memphis
- Recalled RHP James Naile from Triple-A Memphis
- Corresponding moves: None required
National League East
Atlanta Braves
- Reinstated IF Orlando Arcia from 10-day injured list
- Added recently-claimed RHP Jesse Chavez to active roster
- Corresponding moves: None required
Miami Marlins*
- To recall OF Bryan De La Cruz
- To recall RHP Jeff Brigham
- Corresponding moves: None required
New York Mets
- Selected contract of INF Deven Marrero from Triple-A Syracuse
- Recalled RHP Adonis Medina from Triple-A Syracuse
- Corresponding move: Designated RHP Connor Grey for assignment
Philadelphia Phillies
- Selected contract of RHP Vinny Nittoli from Triple-A Lehigh Valley
- Recalled C Donny Sands from Triple-A Lehigh Valley
- Corresponding moves: None required
Washington Nationals
- Recalled C Tres Barrera from Triple-A Rochester
- Recalled RHP Mason Thompson from Triple-A Rochester
- Corresponding moves: None required
*Marlins moves reported by Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald (Twitter link)
Giants Select Lewis Brinson, Outright Jonathan Bermudez
The Giants announced they’ve selected outfielder Lewis Brinson onto the major league roster. Brinson, who was acquired from the Astros for cash considerations in a minor league trade this morning, will step right into the big leagues as a September call-up. In a corresponding move, San Francisco sent left-hander Jonathan Bermudez outright to Triple-A Sacramento. The Giants hadn’t previously announced that Bermudez had been designated for assignment, but he’s apparently already cleared waivers and no longer occupies a spot on the 40-man roster.
It was a short stay on the 40-man for Bermudez, who was just claimed off waivers from Houston a week ago. The left-hander has yet to throw a pitch in the San Francisco organization. Added to Houston’s 40-man roster last offseason to prevent him from being taken in the Rule 5 draft, Bermudez has had a disappointing year in Triple-A. The 26-year-old started 14 of his 19 games with the Astros top affiliate in Sugar Land, but he only managed an 8.96 ERA through 67 1/3 frames. He surrendered a staggering 16 home runs in that time (2.14 HR/9) while only striking out 20% of batters faced.
The season obviously hasn’t been kind to Bermudez, but he’d posted huge strikeout numbers up through the Triple-A level coming into this year. He’ll remain in the organization, with San Francisco’s player development staff having an opportunity to help him get back on track. Bermudez will be eligible for the Rule 5 draft this winter if he’s not added back onto the 40-man roster by the start of the offseason, but it seems unlikely he’d be selected after this year’s rough showing barring a major bounceback this month.
San Francisco announced that reliever Andrew Vasquez has likewise gone unclaimed on waivers. Designated for assignment yesterday, Vasquez has also been outrighted to Sacramento. Unlike Bermudez, he’ll have the right to refuse that assignment and test free agency as a player who has previously cleared outright waivers in his career. Vasquez has been a part of the Blue Jays, Phillies and Giants organizations this season, but he’s only appeared in nine MLB games (all with Toronto). The left-hander has had an excellent year in the minors, working to a cumulative 1.86 ERA over 19 1/3 innings, mostly at Triple-A.