Rays Place Mike Zunino On IL, Select Anthony Bemboom
The Rays announced that they’ve placed catcher Mike Zunino on the 10-day injured list due to a left quad strain and selected the contract of fellow backstop Anthony Bemboom. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times first reported that the move was coming and suggests that Zunino will be out about three weeks (Twitter links). Tampa Bay also activated Austin Meadows from the IL, as expected.
Tampa Bay has now lost its top two catchers in the span of 48 hours. Michael Perez was placed on the 10-day injured list Wednesday morning due to oblique tightness and replaced on the active roster by Nick Ciuffo, who’ll now serve as the Rays’ primary catcher for the time being. Ciuffo, a 2013 first-round pick, has yet to establish himself as much of an offensive option in Triple-A, where he’s hit .236/.272/.347 in 316 career plate appearances. He does control the running game quite well — 42 percent caught-stealing rate in his minor league career — and graded out as an above-average pitch framer in 2018, per Baseball Prospectus.
Bemboom, 29, has only played in eight games this season himself thanks to injuries of his own. An eight-year minor league veteran, he’s in his first season with the Rays organization having previously spent six years in the Halos’ minor leagues ranks as well as the 2018 season in the Rockies’ system. Bemboom is a career .249/.344/.382 hitter in Triple-A and carries a 31 percent caught-stealing rate since being drafted in the 22nd round back in 2012. He posted above-average marks in pitch framing in each of the past two seasons, as well.
Certainly, it’s not an ideal pairing of catchers for a first-place club. As noted Wednesday at the time of the injury, though, there’s not much in the way of readily available veteran help. Perhaps they’ll explore the market for a short-term backup option, but it’s unlikely that the trade market at this stage of the season would yield anyone who can be reasonably expected to provide more offense than Ciuffo.
Rays Expected To Activate Austin Meadows On Friday; Nate Lowe Demoted
Outfielder Austin Meadows is expected to be activated from the 10-day IL prior to the Rays’ game with the Yankees on Friday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. Meadows will take the 25-man roster spot left open by Nate Lowe, as the Rays sent the highly-touted youngster down to Triple-A following yesterday’s game.
Meadows hit the injured list on April 21 due to a sprained right thumb, so his return will fall just short of the projected timeline of “a few weeks” mentioned by Rays general manager Erik Neander a day after the IL placement. It’s good news for the Rays, since Meadows’ hot start was a huge reason for Tampa’s early-season success. Meadows was hitting .351/.422/.676 with six homers over 83 plate appearances at the time of his injury, and while some regression is inevitable (.400 BABIP, .454 wOBA compared to a .408 xwOBA), it certainly isn’t out of the question that a former top prospect like Meadows could be a big contributors in his first full Major League season.
With Meadows back, Lowe’s first taste of big league action will come to an end after nine games and a .257/.289/.314 slash line over 38 PA. It was perhaps a little surprising to see Tampa promote Lowe so soon, though the 23-year-old had been ripping up Triple-A pitching and the Rays had a need for another bat with both Meadows and Joey Wendle on the IL. Rather than keep Lowe in the majors as a bench player, the club will instead send him back to Triple-A where he can everyday at-bats and continue his development.
In terms of service time, Lowe’s clock stopped almost as soon as it started, so it’s hard to yet determine the impact on his future team control. While it stands to reason Lowe will be back in the majors at some point in 2019, the Rays already control him through at least the 2025 season, and the team might not bring him back until they can ensure that he won’t be a Super Two candidate. (Of course, this could all be moot if Lowe becomes the latest Rays prospect to sign an early-career extension, a la Brandon Lowe, Matt Moore, or Evan Longoria.)
Lowe has played only first base and DH in his young career, making him an imperfect fit at this point on a Rays roster that values multi-positional versatility. Lowe’s first base duties will again likely be split between Ji-Man Choi and Yandy Diaz, though Diaz has seen an increasingly amount of time at third base in recent days due to Daniel Robertson‘s struggles. Brandon Lowe could also see some time at first base, with Robertson or Andrew Velazquez filling in at second, so the Rays are hardly short on potential lineup options.
Rays Place Michael Perez On IL; Mike Zunino Dealing With Quad Issue
It’s been a rough 24 hours for the Rays’ catching tandem, as Michael Perez was placed on the 10-day injured list due to a right oblique tightness while Mike Zunino exited Wednesday’s game due to a tight left quadriceps. Tampa Bay had recalled Nick Ciuffo from Triple-A Durham prior to the game, so he was able to step in for Zunino late in today’s game.
But, as Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times points out, Zunino, Perez and Ciuffo are the only three catchers on the Rays’ 40-man roster. With Perez out and Zunino ailing, there’s little in the way of depth on which to call. And, if Zunino ultimately proves to require a stint on the injured list, the situation will be exacerbated, even if only for a short period of time. Topkin suggests that 29-year-old Anthony Bemboom could be added to the 40-man roster if a need arises, but he’s only played eight games in the minors this year since returning from his own injury.
In terms of readily available help outside the organization, there simply isn’t much available. While veteran catchers Travis d’Arnaud, Drew Butera and Jesus Sucre all lost their roster spots recently, none is available on the open market or waivers. The Dodgers signed d’Arnaud after he was released by the Mets, while both Butera (Rockies) and Sucre (Orioles) accepted outright assignments with the clubs that designated them for assignment. Tampa Bay is as active as nearly any club on the trade market, so perhaps they’d swing a deal for a short-term veteran stopgap should Zunino require an absence of any note.
The Rays are off on Thursday, and Zunino will undergo further testing tomorrow with the hope that he won’t need to miss much (or any) time. If he needs to sit out for even a few games, it seems likely the Rays will have a 40-man roster move in the works in the near future.
Mets To Acquire Wilmer Font
The Mets have reached an agreement to acquire right-handed reliever Wilmer Font from the Rays in exchange for cash or a player to be named later, MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reports (via Twitter). Font, 29 later this month, is out of minor league options, so he’ll have to be added directly to the big league bullpen.
Font has worked as both an opener and a reliever over the past two seasons between the Dodgers, A’s and Rays. He’s not found much success at the MLB level, with a career 6.51 ERA in 65 innings of work. However, he’s shown enough that four clubs have been willing to commit a 40-man roster spot over the past calendar year. Font has averaged 94.3 mph on his heater in his MLB career, complementing that offering with an 83.2 mph slider and a 75.5 mph curveball.
It should be noted, too, that the Mets are likely in somewhat of a scramble to find arms to fill out their big league staff. Left-hander Steven Matz is dealing with a nerve issue that’ll likely sideline him for at least one start, as MLB Network’s Jon Heyman recently tweeted. On the heels of that report, SNY’s Andy Martino followed up by tweeting that Jason Vargas is also likely to head to the injured list with a minor hamstring injury. He may only miss one start, and the Mets won’t need a fifth starter for nearly two weeks, but it’s nonetheless another arm soon to be rendered unavailable.
Rays Option Yarbrough, Recall Velazquez
The Rays have sent down lefty Ryan Yarbrough in favor of infielder Andrew Velazquez, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.
Yarbrough, 27, was recalled yesterday following an April 24th demotion, but was not needed given the postponement of the Rays’ Sunday tilt in Baltimore. Yarbrough has been scored upon in four of his five appearances this year, resulting in an 8.10 ERA in 16 2/3 frames. He’ll head back to Triple-A Durham following a 2018 season that resulted in a fifth place Rookie of the Year finish, with a lone vote from Dick Scanlon of the Lakeland Ledger. Scanlon’s was the only Rookie of the Year ballot to omit Shohei Ohtani. Last year, Yarbrough was able to rack up 16 wins serving as the Rays’ self-termed “bulk guy” or primary pitcher, the hurler who follows the team’s opener. In this capacity, Yarbrough made 32 relief appearances, averaging about 3.7 innings each time.
Velazquez, 24, made his big league debut for the Rays last year as a September call-up. According to the Baseball America Handbook, Velazquez’s “ability to play an excellent center field, second, shortstop, or third base makes him a useful utility-man.” Indeed, Velazquez has logged innings at all of those positions for the Durham Bulls. A seventh round pick of the Diamondbacks in 2012, Velazquez was shipped along with Justin Williams to the Rays for Jeremy Hellickson in November 2014.
The Rays, currently owners of the best record in baseball, will move to a 12-man pitching staff for the time being. This puts the Rays in the minority for the American League, where two-thirds of clubs run with a 13-man pitching staff at the moment.
Giants Claim Andrew Moore, Designate Breyvic Valera
The Giants have claimed right-hander Andrew Moore off waivers from the Rays, according to Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic (Twitter link). Moore will report to San Francisco’s Double-A affiliate in Richmond. To create a 40-man roster spot for Moore, the Giants have also designated infielder Breyvic Valera for assignment.
Valera’s stint on the Giants’ 40-man roster has come to an end before he appeared in a game with the team, which acquired Valera in January when he was designated by the Orioles. In 24 games at Triple-A this season, Valera has posted a .257/.397/.338 slash line, including an impressive 16-to-10 BB:K ratio. The 27-year-old Valera has made only 86 MLB plate appearances and has produced a .529 OPS across parts of the last two seasons, which he spent with the Cardinals, Dodgers, and Orioles.
Moore has appeared in only 11 games in the Major Leagues — nine starts with the Mariners in 2017 — posting a 5.34 ERA in those games. Triple-A has not treated him well this season, as Moore has conceded 9 home runs in 17 1/3 innings while walking as many batters as he has struck out. Moore, a former second-round selection of the Mariners, was recently DFA’d by the Rays, but will hope to make a home in San Francisco. He is just 24 years old and is not far removed from successful seasons in the minors in 2016 and 2017.
AL Notes: Glasnow, Astros, Alvarez, Ohtani, Jays
Even though Rays right-hander Tyler Glasnow has been incredible this season, the club still plans to tamp down his workload as the year progresses, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. The towering 25-year-old has recorded a dazzling 1.47 ERA/2.39 FIP with 9.63 K/9, 1.47 BB/9 and a 51.4 percent groundball rate, but at 43 innings pitched, he’s already closing in on last season’s total. “He threw 112 innings last year and we have to monitor that,’’ said manager Kevin Cash, who added: “If we can get him extra days, we’re going to do that. If we’ve got to shave an inning off of him per start, like (Friday) night we could have taken him out after the sixth. Those are things we have to monitor and consider here early in the season.’’ For what it’s worth, Glasnow’s season-high innings total as a professional came as a member of the Pittsburgh organization in 2017, when the formerly wild hurler racked up 155 1/3 frames. A year later, the Pirates traded him and outfielder Austin Meadows to the Rays for righty Chris Archer in what now looks like a heist for the first-place Tampa Bay franchise.
Elsewhere around the American League…
- Astros outfield/first base prospect Yordan Alvarez has gotten off to a scorching start this year at Triple-A Round Rock, where he has slashed an awe-inspiring .418/.505/.923 with 12 home runs in 107 plate appearances. The Astros have taken notice of the 21-year-old’s brilliance, according to president of baseball ops/general manager Jeff Luhnow, who said Saturday that Alvarez “certainly is making it a conversation” within the team to promote him (via Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle). Luhnow also declared, “It’s pretty clear he can hit right now in the big leagues,” and noted Alvarez would likely slot in as a left fielder for the Astros in order to make a maximum impact. At the same time, though, the Astros already have a more-than-capable regular there in Michael Brantley, and Luhnow cautioned, “The same people who were clamoring for Kyle Tucker to come up because he was destroying AAA pitching are the same people now clamoring for Yordan Álvarez to come up.” That indicates it’s not a slam dunk Alvarez will head to Houston imminently, as Tucker disappointed during a 77-plate appearance major league debut in 2018 and has gotten off to a terrible start in Round Rock this year.
- Angels designated hitter Shohei Ohtani‘s much-anticipated 2019 debut could come as early as Tuesday, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register suggests. Ohtani has been on the shelf thanks to October 2018 Tommy John surgery, which will stop the two-way star from pitching this year but won’t keep him out of the Angels’ lineup. To their credit, Kevan Smith and Albert Pujols – especially the former – have offered respectable DH production in Ohtani’s absence. [UPDATE: Regarding Ohtani’s potential activation, GM Billy Eppler said Sunday (via Fletcher): “We hope to be able to activate on him this trip but he has to get through every step of the progression so we’re not going to say anything till the progression is finished.”]
- Prospect Jesus Lopez, whom the Blue Jays acquired from the Athletics for Kendrys Morales in March, is switching from infielder to catcher, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet tweets. The 22-year-old’s adjusting to his new position in extended spring training, per Davidi.
Rays Designate Andrew Moore For Assignment
The Rays announced Monday that they’ve designated right-hander Andrew Moore for assignment. His spot on the 40-man roster will go to top prospect Nate Lowe, who was officially selected to the big league roster earlier this morning.
Moore, a second-round pick of the Mariners back in 2015, arrived in Tampa Bay (alongside Tommy Romero) by way of the trade that sent Denard Span and Alex Colome to Seattle just under a year ago. He made nine starts and pitched 53 innings with the Mariners in his 2017 debut campaign but posted a lackluster 5.34 ERA with just 31 strikeouts (albeit against a particularly stingy eight walks).
While Moore fared reasonably well in Triple-A with the Rays last season following the swap (4.34 ERA in 83 innings), he’s an extreme fly-ball pitcher who hasn’t demonstrated an ability to miss bats at the upper levels of the minor leagues. Moore averaged just 5.8 K/9 in that Triple-A run with the Rays last season, and he’s off to a dreadful start in 2019, having served up a staggering 25 earned runs on 29 hits (nine home runs) and 10 walks with just 10 strikeouts in 17 1/3 innings.
Though his 2019 results are obviously unsightly, Moore isn’t far removed from being a reasonably interesting pitching prospect. Prior to his arrival at the MLB level in 2017, he’d been touted as a potential fourth or fifth starter who relied on plus control and an above-average-to-plus changeup to compensate for his rather average fastball velocity. If he clears waivers, the Rays will surely be glad to continue trying to coax that upside out of the 24-year-old. Moore is in his final option year, however, so a club looking for some upper-level rotation depth could conceivably show interest if it sees something correctable in Moore despite his 2019 struggles.
Rays Promote Nate Lowe
11:34am: The Rays have announced the promotion, though they’ve yet to reveal the corresponding roster moves. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports (via Twitter) that Christian Arroyo will be optioned to Durham, thus opening a 25-man spot, but there’s still the matter of a 40-man move to be addressed.
11:20am: The Rays are set to promote top first base prospect Nate Lowe to the big leagues, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports (via Twitter). Lowe, who ranks as the game’s No. 90 overall prospect at Baseball America and the No. 3 first base prospect in the game per MLB.com, is not on Tampa Bay’s 40-man roster. A corresponding 40-man move will be necessary.
While he’s not related to recently extended second baseman Brandon Lowe, Nate Lowe is viewed by the Rays as a similarly vital young piece of the club. The 23-year-old is off to a terrific start with Triple-A Durham, where he has slashed .300/.444/.543 with three homers, eight doubles and nearly as many walks (17) as strikeouts (19) through 90 plate appearances.
MLB.com’s scouting report on Lowe lauds his plus-plus raw power — a trait he was finally able to tap into in game settings a season ago when he raked at a .330/.416/.568 clip across three minor league levels (topping out at Durham). In 2018, Lowe slugged 27 homers, 32 doubles and a triple with a 12.3 percent walk rate against just a 16.2 percent strikeout rate. He’s a below-average runner and limited to first base on the defensive spectrum, but last year’s .313/.395/.484 slash against lefties and .338/.425/.608 slash against righties suggests that he has the potential to be a true everyday option for the Rays at first base and/or designated hitter (as opposed to a platoon slugger).
It’s unlikely that the Rays would call up Lowe if they didn’t feel they had everyday at-bats available to the former 13th-round pick. But, with Ji-Man Choi and Yandy Diaz both performing quite well at first base and designated hitter, neither would appears to be in jeopardy of losing any playing time (barring a yet-unrevealed injury, of course). It’s possible, though, that Diaz could slide across the diamond to third base in place of the struggling Daniel Robertson, opening at-bats at first and DH to be shared among Lowe, Choi and others.
The maximum amount of service time that Lowe would be able to accrue this season is now 155 days, meaning he’ll fall shy of the requisite 172 days to notch a full season. Because of that, he’ll be controllable through the end of the 2025 campaign if he’s in the big leagues for good, and he’s also in line to be a surefire Super Two player after the 2021 season. That said, it’s still possible that he’ll be optioned back to the minors at some point and alter those trajectories.
Quick Hits: Brewers, Cubs, Rays, Mariners
Brewers right-hander Jimmy Nelson last took a major league mound Sept. 8, 2017, when he suffered a partially torn labrum that derailed a breakout season. Almost 20 months later, it appears Nelson is nearing a return to the majors. The 29-year-old, who has been pitching in extended spring training, will begin a rehab assignment Sunday at the Triple-A level, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. In another piece of encouraging news for the Brewers’ struggling rotation, righty Freddy Peralta could rejoin the team after his Double-A rehab start Saturday, manager Craig Counsell said. Peralta went to the IL on April 16 with a shoulder issue. The 24-year-old has only managed a 7.13 ERA/5.82 FIP with a 21.1 percent groundball rate in four starts this season, though he also logged 11.21 K/9 against 3.57 BB/9 during that 17 2/3-inning span.
Here’s more from around the majors…
- The Cubs shut down injured reliever Brandon Morrow a week ago, but he’s nonetheless optimistic he’ll pitch this year, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports. Biceps and elbow problems have prevented Morrow from taking the hill since last July, adding to the unfortunate array of injuries the 34-year-old has dealt with during his career. “Every injury I’ve come back the same or better,” Morrow told Rogers. “Frustrating it’s going to be a little longer but just needs a little more time to heal.” Morrow will have a Synvisc injection Monday to “lubricate and help to protect the area around my elbow,” though Rogers notes it’s not a permanent solution. In the event Morrow doesn’t come back this season, it’s possible he has thrown his last pitch with the Cubs. They’ll have a chance to buy him out for $3MM in lieu of a $12MM vesting option over the winter. In the meantime, their bullpen has clearly missed a healthy Morrow this season, having posted a 4.84 ERA with 5.63 BB/9.
- Rays second baseman Joey Wendle‘s fractured right wrist will shelve him for at least six to eight weeks, according to manager Kevin Cash (via Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times). This season has been an injury-riddled nightmare for Wendle, who previously missed three weeks on account of a left hamstring strain. Wendle hasn’t gotten to properly follow up last year’s impressive rookie showing as a result. The first-place Rays have held their own without him, though, thanks in part to second base replacement Brandon Lowe.
- Longtime major league center fielder Mike Cameron has accepted a coaching job in the Mariners organization, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports. The 46-year-old Cameron will work with Mariners outfielders on defense and baserunning, largely at the minor league level. Cameron excelled in those two areas during his MLB career, which spanned from 1995-2011 and included a tremendous four-year run in Seattle from 2000-03. He was a key cog on the ’01 Mariners, who won 116 regular-season games and still stand as the franchise’s most recent playoff team.