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Minor Moves: Brignac, Towles, Storey

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Here are today’s minor moves from around the league…

  • Phillies infielder Reid Brignac has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Lehigh Valley, according to the team’s transactions page. The former top prospect was designated for assignment this weekend to clear a spot on the roster for Freddy Galvis. Brignac, 28, batted .222/.300/.346 in 91 plate appearances with the Phillies this year.
  • The Rangers have signed catcher J.R. Towles to a minor league deal, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. The 30-year-old Towles was once seen as the potential catcher of the future for the Astros, but he never consistently put together success at the big league level, as evidenced by his .187/.267/.315 batting line. Towles has had quite a bit of Triple-A success, however, and he batted .292/.411/.519 in 67 games for the independent Atlantic League’s Bridgeport Bluefish in 2014. Texas needed some additional catching depth after dealing Geovany Soto to the A’s yesterday.
  • Baseball America’s Matt Eddy has published his weekly minor league transactions roundup, and within the excellent recap, he notes that the Blue Jays have released right-hander Mickey Storey. The 28-year-old Storey has big league experience with both the Astros and the Jays and pitched to a 3.12 ERA with a 28-to-9 K/BB ratio in 26 innings across three minor league levels with Toronto this season.

Quick Hits: Escobar, Rodon, Prado, Colon, Rosario

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25 years ago today, Bart Giamatti banned Pete Rose from Major League Baseball for life for gambling on the game. As Bleacher Report’s Scott Miller points out, the next year could be a turning point for Rose, as Rob Manfred replaces Bud Selig as commissioner and MLB prepares to host the All-Star Game in Cincinnati next July. Miller suggests it’s time for baseball to give its all-time hits leader a second chance. Here’s more from around the game.

  • The Athletics recently claimed Yunel Escobar from the Rays on revocable waivers, but Escobar does not want to play for Oakland, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman writes. “I am very concerned with Yunel having been selected on waivers by Oakland,” says Escobar’s agent, Alex Esteban. “While I believe Oakland is an excellent organization, I don’t feel that it is the best organization for him.” Esteban adds that Escobar has a good relationship with Rays manager Joe Maddon. Of course, Escobar does not have a no-trade clause and cannot block a trade to the A’s, but his disinterest in playing for them is one variable to keep in mind as the situation develops. Escobar has stayed out of trouble in Tampa, but he did not get along with Bobby Cox in Atlanta and received a suspension for a homophobic slur while playing for Toronto.
  • White Sox top prospect Carlos Rodon dominated Sunday in his second career start for Triple-A Charlotte. Rodon pitched four innings and struck out eight batters, including five of the last six he faced. Less than two months after signing as the third overall pick in the draft, Rodon is already pitching well at the highest level of the minor leagues.
  • Martin Prado and Brandon McCarthy have played well since the Yankees traded for them this summer, writes Barry M. Bloom of MLB.com. Prado played mostly third base with the Diamondbacks, but since being traded he’s played there sparingly, instead appearing more often in right field and at second base. That’s not surprising, given that the Yankees had acquired Chase Headley the previous week. “They talked to me about that the first day before I even stepped out on the field,” says Prado. “I had this experience in the past with the Braves. It’s not like I haven’t done it.”
  • The most likely destination for Bartolo Colon is either the Angels or Dodgers, one executive tells Adam Rubin of ESPN New York (via Twitter). The Tigers don’t have the money for him, Rubin writes. The Mets placed Colon on revocable waivers on Saturday. Rubin tweets that he does not think the Mets will get rid of Colon simply to avoid paying him his $11MM salary next year.
  • Wilin Rosario is dealing with a wrist injury just as he might be coming to a fork in the road with the Rockies, Nick Groke of the Denver Post writes. Rosario is eligible for arbitration after the season and he hasn’t made an overwhelming case to start next season, hitting .248/.289/.399 while concentrating on improving his defense. One element possibly in Rosario’s favor, though, is that there won’t be many good catchers available on the free agent market — Russell Martin is the only obvious starting-caliber catcher.

Minor Moves: Link, Santos, Miller, Schierholtz

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We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here.

  • Former Rangers outfield prospect Jamie Jarmon will attend the University of Delaware to play football, writes Gerry Fraley of SportsDayDFW. Jarmon retired from baseball in July after failing to hit over .200 at any level. Jarmon was selected with the 83rd pick of the 2012 draft as compensation for the loss of C.J. Wilson.
  • The Marlins have signed pitcher Jon Link to a minor league contract, tweets Chris Cotillo of MLBDailyDish. Link, 30, made nine relief appearances for the Dodgers in 2010, but has not pitched in the majors since. He posted a 4.15 ERA with 4.15 K/9 and 4.15 BB/9 in his 8.2 innings of work.
  • The Blue Jays have announced that they’ve selected the contract of righty Sergio Santos. They’ll make a corresponding move tomorrow. The Jays outrighted Santos last month after he struggled through 19 2/3 innings with the big club. He pitched well for Triple-A Buffalo, striking out 16 batters and walking six in 10 2/3 innings.
  • The Yankees have released righty Jim Miller, Chad Jennings of Lohud Yankees Blog tweets. Miller pitched in two games for the Yankees earlier this season, but spent most of the year at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he posted a 3.30 ERA with 9.4 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 57 1/3 innings. The Yankees outrighted him last month.
  • The Nationals have selected outfielder Nate Schierholtz’s contract today, as James Wagner of the Washington Post originally tweeted. Mark Zuckerman of CSN Washington tweets that Michael Taylor has been optioned to Triple-A Syracuse. Nate McLouth has been placed on the 60-day DL to clear space for Schierholtz on the 40-man roster. The Nats signed Schierholtz to a minor league deal earlier this week after the Cubs released him. After a productive season in Chicago in 2013, he was a disappointment in 2014, hitting .192/.240/.300 in 341 plate appearances. The Nationals will hope he’ll provide them with left-handed hitting off the bench.

Quick Hits: Tigers, Gore, Norris, Cabrera, Walters

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GM Dave Dombrowski says the Tigers don’t expect to be able to find improvements from outside the organization to improve their offense down the stretch, MLB.com’s Jason Beck reports. “[T]he reality, is I don’t know where you’re going to find a bat to help your lineup. Runs are tough right now. It’s hard to find hitters right now.” Trades in August are difficult to complete due to waiver rules, and it doesn’t sound like the Tigers will be making any. Dombrowski also confirmed that Andy Dirks’ hamstring injury will keep him out the rest of the season. Here’s more from around baseball.

  • The Royals feel they need a pinch-runner, so outfielder Terrance Gore is likely to be promoted to the big leagues once rosters expand in September, even though he’s not on their 40-man roster, Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star tweets. The 23-year-old is hitting just .225/.292/.262 in 305 plate appearances this year, most of them spent with Class A+ Wilmington. He does, however, have 44 stolen bases and has only been caught seven times.
  • Top Blue Jays prospect Daniel Norris is another potential callup, MLB.com’s Jamie Ross writes. “You could see him. No guarantees, but you might,” says Jays manager John Gibbons. The 21-year-old has zoomed through three levels this year, most recently striking out a ridiculous 32 batters in 16 2/3 innings with Triple-A Buffalo.
  • Both the Nationals and Indians are happy so far with their deadline swap of Zach Walters and Asdrubal Cabrera, Bill Ladson and Daniel Popper of MLB.com report. Cabrera has played strong defense at second base in Washington, while Walters is off to a strong start in 35 plate appearances with Cleveland, hitting .212 with a .257 OBP, but with a terrific .576 slugging percentage even before homering tonight.

AL East Notes: Miller, Beltran, Lester, Pompey

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Andrew Miller’s transition from the Red Sox to the Orioles has gone smoothly, Rich Dubroff of CSNBaltimore.com reports. “There’s a ton of differences. Things in general match up,” says Miller, for whom the Orioles traded at last month’s deadline. “The winning teams I’ve been on have a nice, loose clubhouse that expects to win.” Miller has pitched brilliantly in his first 7 1/3 innings with the Orioles, striking out 11 and walking three while allowing just two hits and one run. Here’s more from around the AL East.

  • Carlos Beltran will see a doctor after feeling something wrong with his elbow while swinging last night, MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch tweets. The Yankees scratched Beltran from their lineup tonight. It’s been a rough season for Beltran, who’s hit .233/.291/.416 (weak numbers for a DH/OF with little defensive value) while battling injury in the first year of a $45MM deal.
  • Jon Lester is not likely to return to the Red Sox this offseason, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reports. Instead, the Yankees and Cubs could emerge as possible suitors. It is, perhaps, no surprise that the Red Sox aren’t considered the favorites to sign him — they just traded him, and reportedly weren’t close in extension negotiations before that. Lester should be able to get a six- or seven-year deal in free agency, Heyman writes, and the Red Sox are likely to consider that to be too risky. Heyman does note, however, that the Red Sox may have been prepared to offer Lester five years and $100MM last month.
  • The Blue Jays have promoted top outfield prospect Dalton Pompey to Triple-A Buffalo. Pompey, 21, hit .295/.378/.473 in 127 plate appearances at Double-A New Hampshire. MLB.com ranks Pompey the No. 3 prospect in the Jays’ system (behind Daniel Norris and Aaron Sanchez), praising his plate discipline and speed.

AL East Notes: Venditte, Beeston, Blue Jays, Herrera

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Yankees farmhand Pat Venditte is hoping to have a chance to be the first major leaguer to regularly employ a switch-pitching approach, as Newsday’s Jim Baumbach writes. Just like a switch-hitter, Venditte chooses which arm he’ll use to achieve the platoon advantage. (A rule crafted with him in mind requires the pitcher to choose which side he will throw from, with switch-hitting batters then permitted to pick a side of the box.) Venditte has been quite effective; he owns a 2.49 career ERA in the minors. This year, he dominated at Double-A before getting bumped to Triple-A, where he has a 3.75 ERA over 48 frames with 8.6 K/9 against just 2.8 BB/9. Across both levels, he has held righties to a .668 OPS, with lefties posting a meager .512 mark against his sidearm offerings (a mid-80s heater and a slider, one from each side).

Here’s more from the American League East:

  • While Blue Jays watchers tend to have focused on the standing of GM Alex Anthopoulos, who reportedly will stay on past the present season, an even more important situation to watch is that of CEO Paul Beeston, writes Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca. Beeston’s contract is said to be expiring this year, says Davidi, and other organizational changes signal that change could be afoot.
  • Blue Jays righty Chad Jenkins has been one of several Toronto players to shuttle constantly between the majors and Triple-A this year, writes Brendan Kennedy of the Toronto Star. The Jays have been the most active team in the league this year in optioning and recalling players, but Anthopoulos says that has resulted from an effort to avoid straining players on the major league roster. “We definitely haven’t used the waiver wire much this year,” Anthopoulos explained, “but we have consciously optioned players back and forth to avoid DL placements. That has absolutely been by design. … All players, especially relievers, realize that when the pen has been used a lot, those with options get sent out to protect the entire group, including the player being optioned.”
  • Red Sox utilityman Jonathan Herrera will undergo season-ending surgery to deal with bone chips in his elbow, tweets Alex Speier of WEEI.com. The 29-year-old, who came over from the Rockies in an offseason deal, struggled to a .233/.307/.289 slash over 104 plate appearances on the year. He played on a $1.3MM salary this year, his second season of arbitration eligibility. Though his price tag will remain manageable, Herrera would appear to be a non-tender candidate.

Blue Jays Claim Matt Hague From Pirates

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The Blue Jays have claimed first baseman Matt Hague off waivers from the Pirates, Toronto announced via press release. Hague has been optioned to Triple-A.

Hague, 28, has only limited MLB experience but was swinging well this year at Triple-A Indianapolis, slashing .267/.365/.448 with 14 long balls over 386 trips to bat. Pittsburgh designated him for assignment (and ultimately exposed him to waivers) to make roster space for the acquisition of reliever John Axford.

Blue Jays Notes: Anthopoulos, Rogers Media, Gibbons

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Alex Anthopoulos will remain the GM of the Blue Jays following the 2014 season, reports Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun. Anthopoulos has been under some scrutiny from fans, media, and even players over his failure to make a big acquisition at the trade deadline. The Blue Jays have begun to lag in the AL playoff picture. They are four games back in the Wild Card race, but would have to pass the Mariners, Tigers, and Yankees to claim the second spot. One reason ownership is patient with Anthopoulos is the emergence of pitchers Drew Hutchison, Marcus Stroman, Aaron Sanchez, and minor leaguer Daniel Norris. Anthopoulos is signed through 2015.

  • Also from Simmons, the Jays never actually approached ownership about expanding payroll because a deal was never close. Front office personnel do believe that more money is available for the right player.
  • Related to a deal not being close, the Rays apparently wanted both Stroman and Hutchison in return for David Price. In my opinion, it’s understandable why that offer didn’t get anywhere. The Jays would have upgraded one rotation spot while creating a potential hole with another.
  • Keith Pelley, president of Rogers Media, says the club is focused on the 2014 playoff run and has not evaluated offseason options, according to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca. That would seemingly contradict Simmons’ report, although such comments are often pure double talk.
  • Davidi also illuminated manager John Gibbons’ contract situation. Gibbons is signed through 2015 and will have a vesting option for 2016 triggered after December 31. His contract is structured to continuously add such options until it is terminated.

Quick Hits: Rodon, Bryant, Blue Jays, Russell

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Top White Sox prospect and 2014 No. 3 overall draft pick Carlos Rodon has been promoted to Triple-A Charlotte, Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune tweets. As anticipated, Rodon has moved quickly through the minors — he pitched 9 2/3 innings with Class A+ Winston-Salem, striking out 15 batters while walking five. The promotion to Charlotte (for whom he’ll start on Tuesday) means he’s skipping Double-A, which in turn likely means the White Sox think he’s close to being ready for the Majors. Here are more notes from around baseball.

  • Top Cubs prospect Kris Bryant left Saturday’s Triple-A Iowa Cubs game with a foot injury, Tommy Birch of the Des Moines Register writes (Twitter links). The injury was the result of a foul ball Bryant struck off his foot a few days ago. His foot is being X-rayed. The seriousness of the injury is unclear, but his coaches did seem to know about it before tonight. Bryant’s departure from the game set off speculation that he had been promoted to the big leagues, but it does not appear that he has been. He has a ridiculous .306/.415/.648 line in 234 plate appearances so far with Iowa.
  • Two MLB insiders believe that Addison Russell will eventually become the Cubs’ starting shortstop despite the team’s surplus there, Jorge Arangure of the New York Times reports. “From what I’ve seen, [Starlin] Castro moves for sure,” says one. “Russell has the edge over [Javier] Baez.” Baez, for his part, says he enjoys playing second base.
  • The Blue Jays have optioned reliever Chad Jenkins to the minors five times this season, and he’s just one of several Blue Jays who have been optioned four or more times this year, Brendan Kennedy of TheStar.com writes. Kennedy points out that the Jays have made more non-trade, non-injury roster moves than any team this season, about 40% more than the average team. GM Alex Anthopoulos says the Blue Jays option players in order to avoid having other players land on the disabled list. “We definitely haven’t used the waiver wire much this year, but we have consciously optioned players back and forth to avoid DL placements,” he says. For example, the Jays have had Liam Hendriks spot start three times in order to get their starting pitchers more rest. Of course, Kennedy writes, a limited number of players can be optioned, and so all the Jays’ roster moves can have the effect of moving one group of players up and down regardless of how they perform.
  • Brewers owner Mark Attanasio says the team is trying to improve its bullpen, making waiver claims for relievers as recently as today, MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy tweets. The Brewers’ bullpen got off to an extremely hot start in April but has struggled a bit since.

Minor Moves: Young, Slama, LaMarre, Wort, Mills

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Here are today’s minor moves and outright assignments from around the league…

  • Outfielder Chris Young has been given his released by the Mets, Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com tweets. The 30-year-old was recently designated for assignment after struggling for much of the season,. New York will remain on the hook for the rest of his $7.25MM salary this year (less any meager savings that might be achieved if he hooks on with another club at the league minimum rate).
  • The Dodgers have inked righty Anthony Slama to a minor league deal, per the MLB transactions page. Slama, 30, saw brief action with the Twins in 2010-11, and has never played in another MLB organization. The reliever had a great 2012 Triple-A campaign, but struggled at the level last year and ended up with the indy league Southern Maryland Blue Crabs for 2014. Having allowed just two earned runs over 16 1/3 frames, he was picked up by a Los Angeles organization that has been looking for pitching depth.
  • Designated for assignment by the Reds on Tuesday, outfielder Ryan LaMarre cleared release waivers and is now a free agent, tweets Cotillo. Cincinnati is talking with the 25-year-old about a new minor league deal, Cotillo adds.
  • The Diamondbacks have signed right-hander Rob Wort to a minor league deal and assigned him to short-season Class-A, according to the team’s transactions page. Wort, a former Nationals farmhand, had been pitching for the independent American Association’s Sioux City Explorers. The 25-year-old posted a sparkling 0.97 ERA with a 58-to-14 K/BB ratio in 37 innings with Sioux City this season. The relief prospect has never had much of an issue striking hitters out, as he averaged 11.5 strikeouts per nine in five seasons in the Nationals organization, though he never progressed beyond Double-A.
  • Left-hander Brad Mills has accepted his outright assignment from the Blue Jays and will report to Triple-A Buffalo, tweets Chris Cotillo of SB Nation’s MLB Daily Dish. The 29-year-old southpaw, who is no stranger to being designated for assignment this season, was most recently DFA’ed by the Jays on Tuesday this week. He will look to continue his excellent Triple-A work in hopes of receiving another crack at the MLB roster.
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