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Rays Announce Wild Card Roster

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As the Athletics did shortly before them, the Rays have announced their 25-man roster for tonight’s Wild Card showdown in Oakland. They’ll carry 10 pitchers, as Tampa Bay looks to have loaded up on right-handed bench bats in anticipation not only of lefty starter Sean Manaea but of the Athletics’ five left-handed relief options. Conversely, Tampa Bay is only carrying three lefty pitchers, as Oakland’s lineup is predominantly right-handed.

Right-handed pitchers

Left-handed pitchers

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Absent from Tampa Bay’s roster are deadline pickup Eric Sogard and slugging young first baseman Nate Lowe, both of whom hit left-handed. The Rays also opted against carrying outfielder Guillermo Heredia and late-season speed specialist Johnny Davis in tonight’s winner-take-all setting.

A look at this iteration of the Rays underscores the enormous amount of work that general manager Erik Neander, senior vice president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom and the rest of the Rays’ front office have done in reshaping the roster over the past 18 months. Tampa Bay’s roster features 15 players who weren’t even in the organization on Opening Day 2018. Of this group of 25 players, only seven were on the Rays’ Opening Day roster to begin the 2018 season.

In fact, the Rays’ playoff roster not only contains 15 players who weren’t with the organization on Opening Day 2018 but 17 players whom it acquired via trade (counting Drake, d’Arnaud and Roe, each of whom was acquired for cash considerations or, ostensibly, purchased from another club). The only drafted/originally signed Rays on tonight’s roster are Kiermaier, Lowe, Snell, Yarbrough, Castillo and Brosseau (who signed as an undrafted free agent in 2016). Morton and Garcia signed as free agents this past offseason.

Orioles Claim Cole Sulser

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The Orioles announced that they’ve claimed right-handed reliever Cole Sulser off waivers from the Rays. Baltimore had an opening on its 40-man roster after outrighting fellow righty Chandler Shepherd yesterday.

Sulser, 29, went from the Indians to the Rays in the three-team Edwin Encarnacion/Carlos Santana/Yandy Diaz/Jake Bauers deal last offseason. The former 25th-round pick made his MLB debut with Tampa Bay this season and tossed 7 1/3 scoreless innings with just five hits and three walks against nine strikeouts. That was a continuation of a strong season in Triple-A, where Sulser worked 66 innings with a 3.27 ERA, 12.1 K/9, 3.3 BB/9 and a 31.6 percent ground-ball rate.

Sulser averaged 93.4 mph on his heater in his brief MLB tenure this season, complementing that pitch with an 86.7 mph slider and a much more occasional changeup. He has a decent track record of missing bats in the upper minors despite never getting an opportunity with the Indians. Sulser went unclaimed in last year’s Rule 5 Draft, but he’s managed to elevate his profile in 2019. While he’s too old to be deemed a “prospect,” given that he’ll turn 30 next March, Sulser will have all three minor league option years remaining beyond this season and looks the part of a legitimately intriguing late bloomer. The Rays, who have an extremely crowded 40-man roster, cut him loose over the weekend to get the aforementioned Diaz back on the roster in advance of this week’s AL Wild Card game.

Postseason Notes: Wild Card, Brewers, Dodgers

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As twenty teams prepare to pack it in for the offseason, a few odds and ends concerning those still remaining in the battle for a World Series crown…

  • The 2019 playoff picture is officially set. The Rays will head to Oakland for the AL Wild Card game on Wednesday, Oct. 2, with first pitch at 8:09 pm EST. Earlier this week, Rays manager Kevin Cash appeared on MLB Network Radio, where he made comments indicating that Charlie Morton would take the ball on Wednesday for Tampa. No official word has come from the Athletics regarding their own one-game stopper, but Billy Beane hinted to the San Francisco Chronicle that Sean Manaea may have the “inside track” to tackle the opportunity.
    The Nationals and Brewers will do battle on Tuesday at 8:08 pm EST in Washington D.C. for the NL play-in spot, where Max Scherzer is expected to take the ball for the Nationals. Meanwhile, Tom Haudricort of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel relays that Brandon Woodruff will be trusted by manager Craig Counsell to best Scherzer in the winner-moves-on affair (link). Woodruff may not carry the imposing resumé of Scherzer (nor does he possess a rare genetic variation that endows him with transfixing, multi-colored eyes), but he has looked the part of a frontline starter when healthy in 2019, with a 3.62 ERA (3.01 FIP) in 121.2 innings this season.
  • In other Brewers-related news, outfielder Ryan Braun expects to play in that Tuesday tilt against D.C. Haudricort also relays that outfielder Lorenzo Cain is “hopeful” for the game (link). Braun is dealing with a calf issue, while Cain has a balky ankle. As previously noted here, the Brewers may be limited to Trent Grisham or Tyrone Taylor in center if Cain is indeed too hindered to give it a ’go’ on Tuesday night.
  • Dodgers manager Dave Roberts hasn’t yet announced the full pitching lineup for the NLDS, but he tells Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Time that he is “feeling really good” about trusting Rich Hill with potential Game 4 duties (link). Hill was only activated from the IL on September 24th but did strike out five Padre hitters in just two innings of work in that appearance. As the number-one seed in the National League, the Dodgers will host the winner of the Nats-Brewers Wild Card play-in matchup. The Dodgers, in fact, will play at home throughout the postseason, unless they face the Astros in the World Series–by posting an MLB-best 107-55 record, Houston clinched homefield advantage through the Fall Classic.

 

Rays Designate Cole Sulser

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The Rays have designated right-handed reliever Cole Sulser for assignment. His 40-man roster spot was needed for the activation of Yandy Díaz, which has become official. Sulser, 29, made his MLB debut September 6 and has given Tampa 7.1 scoreless relief innings since getting the call.

Originally a 25th-round draftee by Cleveland, Sulser put up such elite minor-league numbers to catch the attention of Tampa’s front office, who acquired him as a lesser-known piece in the three-team offseason trade that, ironically enough, also brought in Díaz. Sulser did more than warrant the Rays’ faith, tossing 66 sparkling innings for Triple-A Durham, continuing his track record of minor-league success. Add in Sulser’s strong early returns in the big leagues, and it’s clear he’s a victim of the Rays’ crowded roster rather than underperformance.

In his brief MLB time, Sulser’s shown a 93.4 MPH fastball, per Statcast, backed up by a slider and sparingly-used changeup. On the surface, it’s somewhat pedestrian stuff for an MLB reliever, perhaps explaining how Sulser has waited so long to get to the game’s highest level. That said, he has continued to get outs whenever he’s been asked, and his 32.6% strikeout rate in Triple-A is hardly that of a pitch-to-contact arm.

As with Kean Wong last week, it seems the Rays are somewhat victims of their own roster depth. Like Sulser, Wong wasn’t a top prospect but came with long-term control and a track record of high minors performance, and the Angels claimed him when the Rays cut him loose to activate Brandon Lowe.  It would hardly be surprising to see another team do the same with Sulser.

Rays Activate Yandy Diaz

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Sunday: As expected, Díaz was indeed activated prior to today’s game.

Saturday: The Rays are set to reinstate infielder Yandy Diaz from the injured list on Sunday, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Since Diaz was transferred to the 60-day IL, the Rays will need to make room on the 40-man roster. That corresponding move has yet to be announced.

Diaz appeared in an instructional league game yesterday and made six plate appearances, evidently showing enough improvement to lead to his activation. In Sunday’s season finale, he’ll be limited to DH/pinch-hit duties, per Topkin.

Diaz hasn’t suited up for the Rays since late July, when he landed on the injured list with a left foot contusion. He suffered a setback in his recovery from that injury and was held out of baseball activities for nearly two months as a result of a hairline fracture in his left foot.

With his return, Diaz could factor into postseason play for the Rays, who last night clinched a Wild Card appearance. The 28-year-old could be of particular value in that one-game matchup against the A’s, when lefty Sean Manaea could take the hill. Diaz has done superb work against southpaws all season, slashing .311/.393/.583 when he has a platoon advantage.

Overall, the extended absence of Diaz was a frustrating development for the Rays, who had been enjoying a fine breakout season from Diaz after he was unearthed in an offseason trade with the Indians. Though he only got into 78 games for his new club, he finally showcased the raw power that made him a Statcast darling prior to his arrival in Tampa. After hitting just one home run in his first two big-league seasons, he broke through with 14 round-trippers this season.

With one game to go this year, he’s batting .270/.343/.480 overall. He could share time at the hot corner with Matt Duffy, who has filled in capably for 44 games after Diaz went down. Duffy has fared well against right-handers, making for a logical pairing to platoon with Diaz at third base.

AL Notes: Orioles, Yandy, BoSox, Wilson, Mariners

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Orioles executive VP John Angelos seemingly put an end to any speculation that the team could be moved, as he told a collection of Baltimore business leaders today that the O’s would remain in the city “as long as Fort McHenry is standing watch over the Inner Harbor.”  After the panel discussion was over, Angelos reiterated to Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun that “our partnership group is all local, people that are heavily invested now and indefinitely in the city and the future of this city, and that’s just real. The Orioles are a Baltimore institution. The Orioles will be in Baltimore, be in Maryland. That’s the beginning and the end as far as I’m concerned.”

John and Peter Angelos, the sons of Orioles managing partner Peter Angelos, have mostly taken over the regular operations of the franchise as their father is in advanced age and is reportedly dealing with health issues.  Rumors swirled that the family could be looking to sell the team to a buyer that could potentially take the Orioles to a new city, with Nashville mentioned as a potential destination.  Technically, Angelos’ comments didn’t address the possibility that his family could still sell the Orioles, though even if this avenue was pursued, it seems clear that the club would only be sold to someone committed to remaining in Baltimore.

Some more from the American League…

  • Yandy Diaz is hoping to return from the injured list for either the postseason or for the tail end of the Rays’ regular season, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports (Twitter link).  Diaz hit .270/.343/.480 with 14 homers over 344 plate appearances this year, but he has been out since July 22 due to a hairline fracture in his left foot.  Diaz has already suffered one setback in his recovery from the injury, though he worked out at Tropicana Field today.  The Rays would have to make a 40-man roster move if they did activate Diaz, as he has been on the 60-day IL.
  • The Red Sox are “aiming for the biggest names” in their search for a new general manager/head of baseball operations, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal writes (subscription required).  The major pressure and seemingly very short leash associated with the job, however, could make some executives hesitate about taking one of the sport’s marquee jobs.  Both Dave Dombrowski and Ben Cherington were fired after less than four years on the job, despite the fact that both men built World Series-winning rosters.  That lack of long-term security (even in the face of on-field success) might not appeal to executives who would have to move their families to, and perhaps from Boston, in short order.  There’s also the challenge of having to juggle the team’s big payroll while adding young talent, and also remaining in contention at all times.
  • Royals bullpen coach Vance Wilson is expected to be a managerial candidate this offseason, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand tweets.  “Some executives believe he absolutely has a future as a manager,” Feinsand writes about the 46-year-old, who may be best known for an eight-year playing career with the Mets and Tigers from 1999-2006.  Wilson worked as a manager at three different levels of Kansas City’s farm system for seven seasons before moving into his current role as bullpen coach in November 2017.  It stands to reason that the Royals themselves would have interest in speaking to Wilson about their own managerial vacancy, potentially replacing the retiring Ned Yost.

Angels Claim Kean Wong

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The Angels announced Tuesday that they’ve claimed infielder Kean Wong off waivers from the Rays. Wong, the younger brother of Cardinals second baseman Kolten Wong, was designated for assignment over the weekend. The Angels transferred right-hander Griffin Canning from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day injured list in order to open a spot for Wong on the roster.

Wong, 24, was the Rays’ fourth-round pick back in the 2013 draft and made his MLB debut earlier this month, going 3-for-14 in a six-game cup of coffee. He spent the rest of the season with Triple-A Durham, where he logged his second consecutive above-average season at the plate. After hitting .282/.345/.406 with nine homers, 23 doubles, three triples and seven steals in 2018, Wong turned in a .307/.375/.464 slash with 10 homers, 29 doubles, six triples and six steals in 2019. Offense was elevated throughout the league in Triple-A this season, but Wong’s output checked in at 16 percent better than league average, as measured by wRC+.

While he’s primarily been a second baseman in his minor league career, Wong has begun to see time at third base and in the outfield — mostly the corners but also 24 innings in center — over the past couple of seasons. Defensive versatility is a hallmark of the Rays organization, and familiarizing himself with multiple spots on the diamond obviously increased Wong’s chances of cracking a deep Rays roster. Now, that versatility will help in affording him more opportunities with a new organization.

Wong ranked 40th in an absolutely stacked Rays farm system heading into the season, per Kiley McDaniel and Eric Longenhagen of Fangraphs. Their scouting report pegs Wong as more of a utility option than an everyday player, but he’ll aim to prove himself capable of handling a prominent role with the club over the next few days and possibly next spring, if he survives the offseason on the Angels’ 40-man roster. The Angels control Tommy La Stella for another season and also have Zack Cozart under contract through the 2020 campaign. But La Stella might not make it back to the field in 2019 after suffering a fractured tibia in early July, and Cozart’s Angels tenure has been absolutely decimated by injuries of his own

Younger options like David Fletcher and Matt Thaiss have seen action at second and third in lieu of those injured veterans, but Wong would add another versatile candidate to the mix for playing time. As somewhat of a bonus, he brings a left-handed bat to an Angels roster where the majority of the team’s regulars hit from the right side. Wong’s contract was selected to the MLB roster for the first time earlier this month, meaning he’ll have all three of his minor league option years remaining beyond the 2019 season.

Turner, Pham, Osuna To Be Represented By Newly Formed Agency

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Long-time MLB player representative Greg Genske has formed a new agency along with former Ballengee executive Alex Hicks, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter). The new outfit will be known as GEM Agency and will initially feature several former Genske clients.

According to Heyman, three notable players who’ll start out under the GEM roof: Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner, Rays outfielder Tommy Pham, and Astros reliever Roberto Osuna. All had previously been represented by Genske. Turner will be a free agent after the 2020 campaign, when Pham and Osuna will be entering their final seasons of arbitration eligibility.

This move comes after a period of immense upheaval following the purchase of Genske’s former outfit, The Legacy Agency, by Gatemore Capital Management. The ensuing maneuvering, including Genske’s firing, have led to various splinter agencies, representatives moving to other firms, and the re-badging of Legacy as GSE Worldwide. It wasn’t exactly an orderly transition. Genske initiated litigation regarding the matter, which is still pending in California.

As always, these latest moves are reflected in MLBTR’s Agency Database.

Rays Activate Brandon Lowe, Designate Kean Wong

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The Rays have activated rookie Brandon Lowe from the 60-day injured list. Fellow infielder Kean Wong has been designated for assignment to open 40-man roster space. Lowe is hitting fifth in today’s lineup and playing second base.

Lowe’s return is a welcome sight for Rays’ fans. He last played July 2, when he went down with a bone bruise on his shin from a foul ball. After experiencing difficulty moving laterally for weeks, Lowe embarked on a minor-league rehab assignment in August, where he strained a quad. Initially believed to be season-ending, Lowe has somewhat remarkably returned for the season’s final seven games.

The timing couldn’t be better for a Rays’ club that sits a game up on Cleveland for the AL’s final postseason spot entering play today. Any hope Tampa has at making a playoff run involves the Wild Card, as the Yankees have officially sewn up the AL East. Tampa sits two games behind Oakland for the AL’s top Wild Card position.

The return of Lowe for the season’s final week (and potential postseason play) gives the Rays one of their most impactful bats. The 25-year-old was slashing .276/.339/.523 (128 wRC+) at the time of his injury, perhaps the frontrunner for AL Rookie of the Year. That honor will almost certainly go to Yordan Álvarez now, but Lowe nevertheless looks like a key piece in Tampa short and long-term.

Lowe’s slash line is inflated by a .381 batting average on balls in play and masks a concerning 33.9% strikeout rate, so it’s difficult to imagine he’ll remain this productive at the dish. That said, Lowe’s 90.7 MPH average exit velocity is quite strong, so he should continue to be a bona fide power threat even if his on-base numbers drop off some moving forward. For a quality baserunner and versatile defender capable of playing second base, that’s more than enough to be a key piece on a contender.

Wong, 24, is also a left-handed hitting second baseman, although he’s not generally viewed as anywhere near the caliber of player Lowe is. Nevertheless, he’s been productive in the high minors for quite some time, seemingly a victim of the Rays’ crowded infield mix. He got his first big league call this September after slashing .307/.375/.464 in 506 plate appearances in his third season with Triple-A Durham. Wong, the younger brother of Cardinals’ second baseman Kolten Wong, comes with a clean slate of team control and option seasons. Between that roster flexibility, his defensive profile and high-minors offensive track record, it would be surprising if another organization with a little more uncertainty in the infield didn’t take a flier on him on the waiver wire.

Injury Notes: Suzuki, Adams, Lowe, Freeland

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Nationals catcher Kurt Suzuki returned to the D.C. lineup tonight for the first time in nearly two weeks, logging a pinch-hit, bases-clearing double in the 10th inning of a game against the Marlins. Though he’s back to swinging a stick for the Wild Card-contending Nats, it isn’t as if he’s altogether healed from the elbow issues that first sidelined him on Sept. 7. As he told Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports, Suzuki is simply going to have to play through pain if he wishes to help his club into October. “Shoot, I’m 35 years old. I’m going to be 36 (on Oct. 4),” the catcher said. “If I get hurt, knock on wood, it’s not going to be just a little rest thing…At the same time, I don’t know how many times I’m going to have the opportunity to get to the playoffs.”

If Suzuki’s ongoing presence is a question of pain tolerance, the Nats should be sure to have plenty of aspirin on hand for the veteran backstop. After all, his .260/..319/.473 line (100 wRC+) through 301 plate appearances this year is vastly superior to the output offered by teammate Yan Gomes in 2019 (.221/.316/.370 slash in 329 plate appearances).

More notes about athletes dealing with their own share of September pain…

  • As noted by Greg Johns of MLB.com, Mariners reliever Austin Adams crumpled into a heap after tweaking his knee while covering first base in tonight’s game against the Orioles (link). Adams, 28, had to be helped off of the field by trainers. After kicking around the Angels and Nationals organizations since being drafted in 2012, Adams had appeared to find a comfortable home with Seattle in 2019. In his first prolonged big league exposure, the righty has logged a whopping 15.06 K/9 rate in 31.2 innings this year, with solid ERA (3.98) and FIP (3.12) indicators.
  • Rays youngster Brandon Lowe was back in uniform and manning second base today–albeit only in a sim game. Still, manager Kevin Cash thinks the rookie is almost ready to return from a left quad strain that has sidelined him since being injured in a rehab appearance in late July. “He’s close,” Cash told Juan Toribio of MLB.com (link). “I saw a video of him going first to third, and he’s running a lot better. I’m not going to say he’s back to his normal speed yet — he’s going to have to manage that whenever he does get activated — but we’re encouraged that the at-bats have been really good, the defense has been really good, it’s just running and getting out of the box and us having enough trust in him that he can manage that.” Lowe hasn’t played since July 2nd, when leg issues first befell him. Because Lowe is on the 60-day IL, the team would have to clear a 40-man spot to facilitate his return.
  • Rockies starter Kyle Freeland has been activated by the club and started tonight’s game against the Dodgers. Logging two scoreless innings in something of an “opener” capacity this evening, Freeland penned something of a modestly positive chapter in what has been an otherwise forgettable 2019 saga. With a sky-high 6.98 ERA (6.13 FIP) in 99.1 innings entering tonight’s game, Freeland has been a chief culprit in Colorado’s ’19 pitching woes. Interestingly, Jeff Saunders of the Denver Post penned a column today examining baseball’s offensive explosion in 2019, citing Freeland as one player who will be difficult to evaluate this offseason in part because of the possible “juiced” quality of this year’s baseball (link). Said Saunders: “In my opinion, the  “juiced baseball” really hurt Rockies left-hander Kyle Freeland this season. I’m not making excuses for Freeland’s 6.98 ERA and 25 home runs served up in 20 starts, because he was clearly off his game and his mechanics were out of whack. But I also think it’s true that Freeland became a little gun shy because his slider wasn’t breaking as it should and he gave up a number of cheap home runs.” There may be some merit to this thinking. Freeland posted a 22.9% HR/FB rate this season while home run records were shattered league-wide.
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