Minor MLB Transactions: 11/24/21
Rounding up a few recent minor league signings involving one-time major leaguers, all courtesy of Chris Hilburn-Trenkle of Baseball America:
- The White Sox have signed outfielder Luis Alexander Basabe. The switch-hitting outfielder was a fairly well-regarded prospect for a good portion of his early minor league career, beginning his career in the Red Sox’s system before going to the White Sox as part of the Chris Sale blockbuster. Basabe, now 25, topped out at Double-A during his first run through the Chicago farm system, making it onto the 40-man roster but never appearing in a big league game with the Pale Hose. The White Sox traded him to the Giants for cash considerations in August 2020, and he made nine big league appearances with San Francisco that year. Basabe was outrighted off the Giants’ 40-man in February and recently elected minor league free agency after spending this year in Double-A.
- The Padres have signed right-hander Heath Fillmyer. A former fifth-round pick of the Athletics, Fillmyer reached the majors with the Royals in 2018. Between that year and the following season, he tossed 104 2/3 innings of 5.07 ERA/5.10 SIERA ball. The 27-year-old spent the bulk of the 2021 campaign with Cleveland’s top minor league affiliate, working to a 6.18 ERA with a below-average 21.9% strikeout rate and a slightly elevated 10.2% walk percentage across 83 frames with Columbus.
- Catcher Juan Graterol has landed with the Diamondbacks. The right-handed hitting backstop suited up with the Angels, Twins and Reds between 2016-19, combining to tally 129 plate appearances over those four seasons. Graterol has significantly more experience in Triple-A, where he’s a .280/.321/.344 hitter across parts of seven seasons. The 32-year-old (33 in February) spent the 2021 campaign with the Blue Jays’ top affiliate, hitting .293/.355/.359 with a pair of home runs over 186 plate appearances.
Pirates To Re-Sign Yoshi Tsutsugo
The Pirates are reportedly re-signing Yoshi Tsutsugo on a one-year, $4MM guarantee. The deal is pending a physical. Tsutsugo is represented by Wasserman.
The Bucs and Tsutsugo have been in contact about a potential extension over the past few weeks, so it’s not a huge surprise they’ve eventually agreed on terms. After stints with the Rays and Dodgers didn’t prove particularly successful, Tsutsugo latched on with the Pirates on a major league deal in mid-August. It was a month-plus trial run with a team already well out of contention, but Pittsburgh could afford to give Tsutsugo everyday playing time down the stretch.
The left-handed hitting first baseman took full advantage, as MLBTR’s Steve Adams explored in late September. Over 144 plate appearances in black and yellow, Tsutsugo hit .268/.347/.535 and popped eight home runs. In addition to tapping into the raw power he’d shown for a decade as one of the better hitters in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, Tsutsugo cut his strikeouts substantially in Pittsburgh. After fanning in 29.4% of his 303 plate appearances with Tampa Bay and Los Angeles from 2020-21, he went down on strikes in only 22.9% of his trips to the dish as a Pirate.
It remains to be seen if that run was a sign that Tsutsugo had turned a corner late in his second major league season. There’s a real chance he can’t sustain that kind of output over more than a 43-game sample, and Tsutsugo’s overall numbers as a big leaguer (.209/.309/.388 in 447 plate appearances) aren’t particularly impressive. At a modest $4MM guarantee, though, there’s little risk for the Pirates in giving the 29-year-old (30 on Friday) an opportunity to try to build off his late-season success over an extended showing. If he continues to perform over next season’s first couple months, the rebuilding Bucs could either look to hammer out a longer-term extension or try to move him at next summer’s trade deadline.
Tsutsugo has experience at both first base and in the corner outfield as a big leaguer. When discussing the possibility of bringing him back last week, Pittsburgh general manager Ben Cherington suggested the club would primarily look to deploy him at first base if a deal came together. Now that an extension has been agreed upon, it seems Tsutsugo is in line to assume regular first base duties next season.
That could make fellow lefty-hitting first baseman Colin Moran superfluous. Moran, who was a league average bat over 359 plate appearances in 2021, is projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz for a $4MM arbitration salary and could be a non-tender candidate.
Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette first reported the Pirates and Tsutsugo were in agreement on a one-year, $4MM deal.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Pirates Outright Michael Perez
The Pirates announced this afternoon that catcher Michael Pérez has cleared waivers and been assigned outright to Triple-A Indianapolis (via Rob Biertempfel of the Athletic). He’ll have the right to refuse that assignment in favor of minor league free agency.
The Bucs designated Pérez for assignment last week in order to open 40-man roster space for prospects whom they didn’t want to leave available in the Rule 5 draft. That could end his Pittsburgh tenure after just one season, as Pérez joined the organization after the 2020 campaign via waiver claim from the Rays. The 29-year-old tallied 231 plate appearances as Jacob Stallings’ primary back-up, hitting just .143/.221/.290 with seven home runs.
Pérez hasn’t hit much over his four-season MLB career, owning just a .181/.253/.302 cumulative line. He’s rated as a slightly below-average pitch framer, per Statcast, but his career 26.8% caught stealing rate is almost three percentage points higher than this year’s league average mark.
Diamondbacks Claim Kyle Nelson From Guardians
The Diamondbacks have claimed reliever Kyle Nelson off waivers from the Guardians, per announcements from both teams. Cleveland also announced that outfielder Daniel Johnson, right-hander Justin Garza and left-hander Alex Young have all cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Columbus. Arizona’s 40-man roster is now full.
Nelson has briefly appeared in the majors in each of the past two seasons. He’s tallied just 10 1/3 combined innings, allowing fourteen runs with nine walks and eight strikeouts. The southpaw has struggled to a 5.26 ERA in 37 2/3 career frames at the Triple-A level as well, but he’d kept runs off the board and punched out batters in droves up through Double-A.
During his limited MLB time, Nelson leaned primarily on a cutter and slider mix. He averaged just under 89 MPH on the cutter and worked in the low-80s with his slider, relying more on movement than velocity. The D-Backs have almost no certainty in the bullpen, as they’re not returning a single reliever who tossed 20+ innings with a SIERA below 4.00 this past season. There should be an opportunity for Nelson to compete for a role in Spring Training, if he sticks on the 40-man roster all winter. He still has a pair of minor league option years remaining, so the D-Backs could shuttle him between Phoenix and Triple-A Reno through 2023 as long as he remains on the 40-man.
Each of Johnson, Garza and Young was designated for assignment last Friday, as Cleveland somewhat remarkably overturned around one quarter of their 40-man roster before the deadline to keep prospects from being eligible for the Rule 5 draft. The Guardians also traded Harold Ramírez and J.C. Mejia (to the Cubs and Brewers, respectively), while losing Scott Moss on waivers to the Phillies.
Johnson has been a fairly well-regarded prospect during his days in the Nationals and Cleveland farm systems, but he hasn’t hit well over his first 94 big league plate appearances. He’ll remain in the organization as non-roster depth and hope to play his way back into an uncertain Guardians’ outfield mix next spring.
Garza and Young logged some big league time in the bullpen this past season, with Young coming over from the D-Backs as a waiver claim in July. Garza pitched to a 4.71 ERA/4.79 SIERA across 28 2/3 innings; Young worked 10 1/3 innings of 7.84 ERA/6.24 SIERA ball with Cleveland. Both hurlers have ample starting experience during their pro careers as well.
Phillies Claim Scott Moss From Guardians
The Phillies announced they’ve claimed left-hander Scott Moss off waivers from the Guardians. The 27-year-old was one of seven players Cleveland designated for assignment last week. The Phils’ 40-man roster is now full.
Moss has yet to make his major league debut. A former fourth-round pick of the Reds, the southpaw has appeared on the back two-thirds of Cincinnati and Cleveland organizational top 30 prospects lists at Baseball America in each of the past four seasons. Entering 2021, BA wrote that Moss can run his fastball up to 94 MPH and has a plus slider but inconsistent control.
His minor league numbers largely reflect that profile, as Moss has typically run strong strikeout rates but issued far too many walks. The 6’6″ southpaw has a 3.13 ERA in 112 Double-A frames and a 4.62 mark over 39 innings at Triple-A. At the minors’ top level, he’s fanned an impressive 30% of opponents but also doled out free passes at an alarming 13.3% clip. While Moss has worked almost exclusively as a starting pitcher to this point in his pro career, those control woes could hint at a big league future in the bullpen. He has one minor league option year remaining, meaning the Phils can keep him at Triple-A Lehigh Valley through the end of next season so long as he remains on their 40-man roster.
Twins Release Willians Astudillo, Outright Charlie Barnes
Twins utilityman Willians Astudillo cleared release waivers and is now a free agent, per a team announcement. Left-hander Charlie Barnes, meanwhile, went unclaimed on outright waivers and has been assigned to Triple-A St. Paul. He’ll remain with the club but will no longer require a 40-man roster spot. Both players were designated for assignment Friday.
Astudillo, 30, made his big league debut with the Twins back in 2018 and has since displayed an uncommon skill set and fairly rare level of defensive versatility. “La Tortuga” has played every position on the diamond, with the exception of shortstop. Astudillo worked as a catcher and corner infielder with the Phillies in his early days as a prospect and has continued to add more positions to his defensive profile. He’s not considered a plus defender anywhere, but Astudillo embodies the “jack of all trades, master of none” profile quite well.
More interesting is Astudillo’s unorthodox skill set at the plate. As free a swinger as there is in the game, the right-handed-hitting Astudillo also possesses uncanny bat-to-ball skills. He’s struck out just 25 times in 533 career plate appearances (4.7%), but his frequent hacking has led to an even smaller 1.9% walk rate. Astudillo has a bit of raw power, but he swings so early and so often, with such high contact rates, that he rarely finds himself in position to get a pitch to drive. Since 2018 (min. 500 plate appearances), Astudillo has the third-highest swing rate (60.1%) of any player in baseball and the second-highest contact rate (91.5%) — trailing only his now-former teammate Luiz Arraez in that regard.
Astudillo was arbitration-eligible and projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn a $1.2MM salary in 2022. Coming off a .236/.259/.375 slash in 216 plate appearances, however, it seems the Twins preferred not to allocate those dollars or a 40-man roster spot to him — particularly with so many prospects needing to be added to the 40-man roster. (Minnesota selected six players Friday.) Astudillo can now sign with any team.
The 26-year-old Barnes is a former fourth-rounder who made his big league debut out of necessity to help soak up some innings in an injury-ruined season for the Twins. He was clobbered for a 5.92 ERA while striking out just 20 of the 175 batters he faced, however. Barnes is a strike-throwing changeup artist whose fastball averaged just 89.9 mph in the Majors. However, he did managed a solid 3.79 ERA with a 19.1% strikeout rate and a 7.4% walk rate in 76 innings at the Triple-A level. He’ll stick with the organization for now and hope for another opportunity in 2022. As it stands, the Twins have a perilously thin mix of starting options, but Minnesota is expected to add several starters this winter.
Kyle Zimmer Clears Release Waivers, Becomes Free Agent
Right-hander Kyle Zimmer, designated for assignment by the Royals last Friday, has cleared release waivers and is now a free agent, per a team announcement.
A former No. 5 overall draft pick and highly touted prospect, Zimmer was beset by injuries throughout his minor league ascent. He landed a spot in the Kansas City bullpen in 2020 and looked well on his way to cementing himself as a long-term piece when he posted a 1.57 ERA and a 28.6% strikeout rate in 23 innings. The 2021 season started well, as Zimmer carried a 2.45 ERA into early July, but he pitched to an 8.57 ERA with more walks (15) than strikeouts (14) over his final 21 frames of the season from that point forth.
Zimmer’s development hasn’t panned out as hoped, but he still has a ground-ball rate north of 50%, a fastball that averages 94.3 mph, a demonstrated ability to miss bats and a minor league option remaining. He’ll need to refine his command and right the ship after a rocky finish to the 2021 season, but Zimmer could make for a decent bullpen depth option for another club.
Mets Claim Antonio Santos
The Mets have claimed right-hander Antonio Santos off waivers from the Rockies, per a club announcement. Between this claim and the Mets’ earlier signing of outfielder Nick Plummer to a Major League contract, the team is up to 39 players on its 40-man roster.
Santos, 25, has spent parts of the past two seasons with the Rox but yielded 17 runs through 17 1/3 innings in his brief MLB auditions. He was also hit hard in 45 1/3 Triple-A frames in 2021, posting a 7.94 ERA with a 15.1% strikeout rate against a 12.7% walk rate. That said, Santos averages nearly 96 mph with his heater and complemented that primary offering with four secondary pitches.
Despite his impressive velocity, Santos hasn’t missed bats at a huge level in the minors (19.1% strikeout rate). However, he’s also walked only 5.1% of his opponents in the minors, and the resulting 14.1 K-BB% is at least somewhat intriguing when paired with that fastball and a deep arsenal of potential second/third pitches. Santos still has a minor league option remaining, too, so he can give the Mets some depth and flexibility in the bullpen this winter.
Orioles Claim Cionel Perez
The Orioles have claimed lefty Cionel Perez off waivers from the Reds, per a team announcement. Baltimore’s 40-man roster is now full.
Perez, 25, was a prominent international signing out of Cuba by the Astros back in 2016, when current Orioles GM Mike Elias was an assistant GM in Houston. Cincinnati acquired him from Houston this past January, and he went on to tally 24 big league innings with a 6.38 ERA with a 22.5% strikeout rate, an 18.6% walk rate and a 51.5% ground-ball rate at the MLB level. In 50 2/3 innings between the Reds and the Astros, Perez has a 6.04 ERA.
While he’s worked exclusively as a reliever in the Majors, Perez has split his time between the rotation and the bullpen in the minors. He has a 4.46 ERA with a 24.5% strikeout rate and 11.7% walk rate in 82 2/3 innings of Triple-A ball, and although that walk rate is rather bloated, Perez’s 52% grounder rate in Triple-A is strong. He was particularly sharp in Triple-A Louisville this past season, notching a 3.26 ERA and 41-to-13 K/BB ratio in 30 1/3 innings of relief.
Perez is out of minor league options, so if he makes it through the offseason on Baltimore’s 40-man roster, have to either break camp with the Orioles or else be exposed to waivers a second time.
Mets Sign Nick Plummer To Major League Deal
The Mets announced Wednesday that they’ve signed outfielder Nick Plummer to a one-year, Major League contract. The Cardinals opted to let the 25-year-old become a minor league free agent earlier this month rather than adding him to the 40-man roster. Plummer is repped by Wasserman.
The Cardinals likely gave at least some thought to keeping Plummer, given that he’s a former No. 23 overall pick (2015) who enjoyed a breakout season between Double-A and Triple-A this season. In 478 plate appearances across 117 games, Plummer raked at a .280/.415/.479 clip with 15 home runs, 20 doubles, six triples and 13 stolen bases (in 24 attempts). He played center field earlier in his career and has continued to do so into the upper minors, but he’s begun to see more time in the corners in recent seasons as well.
Strikeouts and struggles with opposing lefties have both been an issue for the left-handed-hitting Plummer in the past, but he improved in both areas in 2021. After striking out in 31% of his career plate appearances in the low minors, Plummer cut that to a more manageable 26.5% in 2021. He also slashed .315/.457/.534 in 92 plate appearances against lefties — a small but nevertheless encouraging sample for a former first-rounder who appeared to make strides in various areas.
Signing Plummer to a big league deal puts him on the Mets’ 40-man roster but also prevents the rare (but not unprecedented) scenario where he inks a minor league deal after Rule 5 protection day and then is subsequently selected by another club in the Rule 5 Draft. This is Plummer’s first addition to a 40-man roster and, as such, he still has all three minor league option seasons remaining. He’ll give the Mets an intriguing upper-level depth option in the outfield.