Diamondbacks Claim Edwin Uceta
The Diamondbacks have claimed right-hander Edwin Uceta off waivers from the division-rival Dodgers. While neither club has formally announced the move just yet, the claim is noted on the transaction log at MLB.com, and Uceta himself thanked the Dodgers org and expressed gratitude to the D-backs in an Instagram post last night. Uceta was designated for assignment by the Dodgers during the NLCS, when L.A. needed to create a roster spot for infielder Andy Burns in the wake of Justin Turner‘s injury.
The 23-year-old Uceta made his big league debut with the Dodgers in 2021 but pitched just 20 1/3 frames throughout multiple stints at the MLB level. The results in that scattered cup of coffee weren’t great, as Uceta yielded 15 earned runs on 19 hits and a dozen walks — albeit with an impressive 25 punchouts.
Uceta pitched in just 25 total games (five starts, 20 relief outings) between the big leagues and the minors this season, missing time due to a pair of lumbar strains. He fanned 27.2 percent of his opponents in the big leagues and 29.5 percent in Triple-A, but Uceta also walked 10.1 percent of his Triple-A opponents and logged a 13 percent mark in the Majors.
Baseball America has ranked Uceta among the Dodgers’ top 30 prospects in each of the past three seasons, including a No. 18 placement on their midseason rankings in 2021. FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen had him at No. 33 in the Dodgers’ system on his own midseason rankings, while Uceta was omitted from L.A.’s top 30 over at MLB.com. Both BA and FanGraphs call him a potential back-of-the-rotation starter who’ll likely need to add some bulk to his 6’0″, 155-pound frame. Uceta carries a career 3.79 ERA in 360 2/3 minor league frames and averaged 92.8 mph on his heater during this year’s brief MLB debut.
It’s hardly a surprise to see the D-backs quickly scoop up some potential rotation depth — particularly since Uceta has minor league options remaining beyond the 2021 season. The Snakes will have Madison Bumgarner, Zac Gallen, Luke Weaver, Tyler Gilbert and (assuming his eminently reasonable $5.25MM option is exercised) Merrill Kelly as the rotation favorites heading into 2022. They’ll need depth beyond that quintet, however, and it’s plausible that some of their incumbent arms — Kelly in particular, given that he’s a free agent after the ’22 season — could draw offseason trade interest.
Four Orioles Players Elect Free Agency
OCTOBER 25: Baltimore announced that each of Valaika, Eshelman and Wade has elected free agency as expected. That’s also true of catcher Austin Wynns, who was designated for assignment himself last week.
OCTOBER 23: The Orioles have outrighted infielder Pat Valaika and right-handers Thomas Eshelman and Konner Wade to Triple-A, according to MLB.com’s official transactions page. All three players have the option of rejecting the outright assignment and opting for free agency.
Valaika has the most big league experience of the trio, with 373 games under his belt with the Rockies and Orioles, including 142 appearances in a Baltimore uniform over the last two seasons. Valaika hit .277/.315/.475 over 150 PA in 2020 but his numbers cratered to a .540 OPS in 281 plate appearances this year, and he no longer seems to be in the club’s plans. Valaika was projected to earn $1.3MM in his second trip through the arbitration process this winter and already seemed like a non-tender candidate.
Eshelman could be a candidate to return for another season with the O’s, as he re-signed with the team on a new minor league deal after opting for free agency last offseason in the wake of an outright assignment. Eshelman has spent parts of the last three seasons with Baltimore, with a 5.77 ERA to show for his 98 1/3 career innings. While he has some extra utility as a swingman, Eshelman has only an 11.3% strikeout rate over his brief MLB career.
Wade made his MLB debut this season, posting an 11.68 ERA in 12 1/3 innings over seven appearances for Baltimore. A seventh-round pick for the Rockies in the 2013 draft, Wade pitched in the Mexican League and the independent leagues amidst stints in the Colorado and Boston farm systems before landing with the Orioles on a minor league deal this past winter. A groundball specialist earlier in this career, Wade has a 3.76 ERA over 735 innings in the minors, starting 109 of 175 career outings.
Red Sox Outright Franchy Cordero
Oct. 25: Cordero went unclaimed on waivers and was assigned outright to Triple-A Worcester, tweets Ian Browne of MLB.com.
While Cordero could’ve rejected the assignment and become a free agent and tested the market, MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo reports that Cordero quietly signed a one-year, $825K contract for the 2022 season at some point before he was passed through waivers (Twitter links). He’s still off the 40-man roster and would be owed the prorated portion of that salary for any time spent in the big leagues next season.
Oct. 21: The Red Sox have reinstated right-hander Phillips Valdez from the Covid-19-related injured list and cleared a spot on the roster by designating outfielder Franchy Cordero for assignment, per a club announcement. The team’s 40-man roster remains at 40 players.
Cordero, 27, was one of several players acquired in the three-team swap that sent outfielder Andrew Benintendi from Boston to Kansas City. Long touted as an immensely athletic and toolsy but unpolished upside case, Cordero wasn’t able to put things together in his Red Sox debut. The former Padres and Royals prospect tallied 136 plate appearances but managed only a .189/.237/.260 slash with a sky-high 37.5% strikeout rate.
While Cordero possesses elite speed, huge raw power and off-the-charts exit velocity numbers, it’s that strikeout rate that has continually hampered his ability to break out at the MLB level. The punchouts are simply nothing new, as he’s fanned in 35.7% of his career plate appearances between those three organizations.
To his credit, Cordero mashed his way through another season of Triple-A upon being sent down early in the year. Through 78 games with the WooSox, he posted a .300/.398/.533 batting line with 13 home runs, 24 doubles, two triples and a dozen steals (in 13 attempts). It’s a reminder of the tantalizing, innate ability that Cordero possesses but has not yet delivered in the Majors. He’ll now hit outright waivers, where the league’s other 29 teams will have the opportunity to claim him. If he passes through without a claim, the Sox can retain him by sending him outright to Triple-A.
It should, of course, be noted that the DFA of Cordero hardly closes the book on the Red Sox’ end of the Benintendi deal. The Sox still have four other players to show for that deal, though none has reached the Majors yet. Boston acquired right-hander Josh Winckowski and outfielder Freddy Valdez from the Mets (who received Khalil Lee from Kansas City), in addition to picking up righties Luis De La Rosa and Grant Gambrell from the Royals. Cordero was certainly the most recognizable name going back to Boston in the swap, but he wasn’t necessarily the key player in the deal.
As for Benintendi, he had a fine debut campaign in K.C., slashing .276/.324/.442 (106 wRC+) with 17 home runs, 27 doubles, two triples and eight steals (albeit with a woeful success rate, given his 17 attempts). He’s controllable for one more year via arbitration, with a projected 2022 salary of $9.3MM (courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz).
Mariners Outright Shed Long, Four Others
2:55pm: In addition to Long, the Mariners announced that infielder/outfielder Sam Haggerty, righty Darren McCaughan, outfielder Marcus Wilson and righty Ryan Weber were all outrighted from the roster. Weber was able to immediately declare free agency, as this is the second outright of his career. Long and Wilson will be free agents after the postseason concludes.
Haggerty had a nice season in 2020, but in a limited sample of just 13 games and 54 plate appearances. In 2021, he got to the plate 94 times but produced a meager .186/.247/.291 line, then went on the IL at the end of May with a shoulder injury but never returned. He’ll now look to get back to health and regular playing time in the minors in order to earn his way back to the bigs.
McCaughan made his major league debut this season but only got into two games. In Triple-A, he logged 115 1/3 innings over 20 starts with an ERA of 4.53. His strikeout rate was subpar at 20.9% but his walk rate was an excellent 3.6%. He’ll remain in the organization as depth.
Wilson was claimed off waivers from the Red Sox in August but was stashed in Triple-A and has yet to make it to the show. Between the two organizations, he got 437 Triple-A plate appearances in 2021, slashing .240/.364/.421 for a wRC+ of 110.
Weber is the most experienced of the bunch, with 167 big league innings to his name, with an ERA of 5.28. In 2021, he bounced between Boston, Milwaukee and Seattle but got the most action with Tacoma, Seattle’s Triple-A team. He logged 60 1/3 innings there over 10 starts, with an ERA of 3.58, strikeout rate of 25.1% and miniscule walk rate of 0.9%.
2:05pm: Long underwent a second surgery to repair the stress reaction in his shin last week, agent Nate Heisler tells Divish (Twitter link). The bone is expected to be healed over in one to two months’ time, which should afford Long enough time to be ready for Spring Training.
1:52pm: The Mariners are performing some early roster maintenance in advance of the offseason and are set to announce that infielder/outfielder Shed Long Jr. has been outrighted from the 40-man roster, per Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times (Twitter link). That he’s being assigned outright off the roster means he’s already cleared waivers, and Long will now be able to become a free agent this offseason.
It’s been a tough couple of seasons for the 26-year-old Long, whom Seattle acquired in the three-team swap that sent Sonny Gray from the Yankees to the Reds and outfield prospect Josh Stowers from Seattle to New York. Long played much of last season through a stress fracture in his leg before ultimately undergoing season-ending surgery. The detrimental impact of that injury lingered into 2021, ending his season on Aug. 2 and helping to limit Long to just 34 games and 121 plate appearances at the MLB level.
At the time of his acquisition, Long was a well-regarded prospect seen as a potential everyday option for Seattle at second base or perhaps in left field. He looked the part of a possible regular in his rookie campaign in ’19, posting a .263/.333/.454 batting line with five homers, a dozen doubles, a triple and three steals through 168 trips to the plate. Unfortunately, in the two years since, he’s cobbled together a paltry .184/.250/.325 output through 249 plate appearances while struggling through that pair of leg injuries.
While Long was sidelined, the ever-active Mariners front office, led by president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto, acquired a slew of players who have now left Long as something of an odd man out in the organization. Abraham Toro and Ty France are getting regular at-bats in the infield, while the future outlook in the outfield is quite promising with Mitch Haniger, 2020 Rooke of the Year Kyle Lewis, Jarred Kelenic, Julio Rodriguez, Taylor Trammell and Jake Fraley all in the mix. The Mariners are also expected to further add to that infield mix this winter, perhaps in significant fashion, as the team looks to turn the final corner and emerge from an abbreviated rebuilding process on the heels of a surprising 90-win season
Long will hit the free-agent market at just 26 years of age and search for a new opportunity with an organization that can offer a clearer path to playing time. He’ll still have a minor league option remaining in 2022, but the fact that he went unclaimed on waivers could well mean that Long is ticketed for a minor league pact in free agency.
Cardinals Claim Ljay Newsome From Mariners
The Cardinals have claimed right-hander Ljay Newsome off waivers from the Mariners, both clubs announced Friday. Newsome was on the Mariners’ 60-day injured list after undergoing Tommy John surgery earlier this summer and, for the time being, will remain on the 60-day IL with the Cardinals, per the team. That’ll be a temporary move for the Cards, who’ll need to either pass Newsome through waivers themselves or clear a spot for him on the 40-man roster by eventually removing someone else.
Newsome, 24, has just 12 Major League games under his belt and has struggled in that time, pitching to a 6.53 ERA in 30 frames. His 18.2 percent strikeout rate is a good bit shy of the league average, but Newsome has walked just four of the 137 Major League hitters he’s faced (2.9 percent) — and one of those was intentional. During his last full minor league season, the former 26th-rounder pitched 155 innings across three levels, working to a 3.54 ERA with an outstanding 169-to-17 K/BB ratio: a 27.3 percent overall strikeout rate and just a 2.7 percent walk rate.
On top of a strong minor league track record, Newsome also has multiple minor league option years remaining beyond the current season. He obviously won’t be an option early in the 2022 campaign, but he could give the Cardinals (or another team, depending on the organization’s plan for him) a depth option either in the rotation or as a multi-inning option in the ‘pen. Newsome sat at 91.5 mph with his heater in 2020 when he worked primarily as a starter, but he made 13 of his 14 appearances in 2021 out of the bullpen and saw that average velocity tick up to 93 mph.
The Cardinals were bitten hard by a lack of rotation depth this summer when the majority of their rotation landed on the injured list at the same time. Those struggles prompted the Cards to bring in veterans Wade LeBlanc, J.A. Happ and Jon Lester in the weeks running up to the July 30 trade deadline. All three are free agents this winter, as is southpaw Kwang Hyun Kim, so it’s only natural to see the Cardinals looking to stack up a little extra depth. Next year’s rotation is set to include Adam Wainwright, Jack Flaherty, Miles Mikolas and Dakota Hudson, with younger candidates for that fifth spot including Matthew Liberatore and Jake Woodford (in addition to Alex Reyes, if he’s moved out of the bullpen).
Orioles To Outright Austin Wynns
The Orioles have outrighted backup catcher Austin Wynns off the 40-man roster, reports Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. The team has yet to formally announce the move, but Wynns, who has previously been outrighted off the 40-man roster, will be able to elect free agency.
Wynns, 30, has spent parts of three seasons in a backup capacity with the O’s, appearing in a total of 115 games and batting .216/.255/.326 in 331 trips to the plate. While the offense isn’t much to look at, Wynns has a strong defensive reputation and has been quite adept at thwarting stolen bases, with a 32 percent mark in his career and a particularly impressive 38 percent mark in 2021 (11-for-29).
Catcher figures to be an area of focus for the O’s this offseason, although with top prospect and former No. 1 overall draft pick Adley Rutschman on the horizon, they’re not likely to be in the market for a high-profile name. Veteran Pedro Severino is also on the 40-man roster at the moment, but with a projected $3.1MM salary in arbitration, he’s a clear non-tender candidate.
Assuming the club eventually moves on from Severino, the O’s could look to bring in a veteran on a non-guaranteed minor league deal — a frequent tactic for them throughout their ongoing rebuild. It’s possible that could even be Wynns on a new minor league arrangement that doesn’t require a spot on the 40-man roster. The 2013 tenth-rounder has spent his entire career in the Baltimore organization.
Angels Outright Three Players
The Angels announced that three of their players have been outrighted to their Triple-A Salt Lake affiliate— right-handers Luke Bard and James Hoyt, and infielder Franklin Barreto. Of these three players, Barreto is the only one with more than three years of service time, a distinction that will allow him to elect free agency after this outright assignment should he choose to do so.
Bard has seen some action out of the Angels bullpen dating back to 2018 but, as today’s transaction indicates, has yet to establish himself as a reliable option. During this time, the righty has limited baserunners at an above average clip but has been undermined by a sky-high home run rate, allowing nearly two home runs per nine innings. The 30 year-old scarcely pitched in the big leagues the past two seasons, most recently owing to season-ending hip surgery this past May. He’ll look to shave some points off his career 5.05 ERA if he’s able to return to the Majors next year.
For the 35 year-old Hoyt, the outright is reflective of his recent career history, where he has been regularly shuttled on and off the Major League rosters of four different teams. While the 2021 season didn’t go as planned for Hoyt in the Majors, where he gave up six runs in eight innings, or the minors, where he put up a 9.42 ERA, his overall track record is much more encouraging. Prior to his time with the Angels, Hoyt had never pitched at the highest level with a strikeout rate south of 30% and just last year had a brilliant 20-game run with the Marlins, pitching to a 1.23 ERA (albeit with a too-high walk rate).
Acquired by the Angels in the deal that sent Tommy La Stella to the A’s last summer, Barreto comes with the highest pedigree of the bunch. The middle infielder regularly checked in on top prospect lists but has been unable to make much of an impact for either the Athletics or the Angels. Barreto has stepped to the plate just eighteen times as an Angel, owing to a number of surgeries including Tommy John surgery this past May. Now that he’s out of minor league options and can elect free agency, it’s quite possible that Barreto, owner of a .175/.207/.343 slash at the highest level, will look to establish himself elsewhere.
Dodgers Designate Edwin Uceta For Assignment
The Dodgers announced they’ve designated Edwin Uceta for assignment. The move became necessary when the club selected the contract of utilityman Andy Burns to replace injured third baseman Justin Turner ahead of tonight’s Game 5 of the NLCS.
Uceta has generally been viewed as one of the better pitching prospects in the Dodgers system over the past few seasons. The right-hander posted strong numbers up through Double-A, working primarily as a starting pitcher up until this year. Both Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs and Baseball America suggested Uceta could yet settle in as a capable back-of-the-rotation arm. While he has never thrown especially hard, public prospect evaluators have credited him with solid secondary offerings and control.
Selected to the 40-man roster last winter, Uceta split this season between Los Angeles and Triple-A Oklahoma City. He worked mostly in relief at both stops. Over 20 1/3 big league frames, Uceta pitched to a 6.64 ERA, offsetting a strong 27.2% strikeout rate with an elevated 13% walk percentage. It was a similar story with OKC, as he tossed 38 2/3 frames of 4.71 ERA ball with plenty of punchouts (29.5%) but a few too many free passes (10.1%).
The Dodgers will place Uceta on waivers over the coming days. Between his prospect pedigree, youth, and bat-missing abilities, Uceta could be an appealing flier for another club. He still has two minor league option years remaining, meaning any claiming team could shuttle Uceta back-and-forth between the majors and Triple-A through the end of the 2023 season if he sticks on their 40-man roster.
Rockies Outright Four Players
The Rockies announced that four players — infielders Josh Fuentes and Rio Ruiz and right-handers Yency Almonte and Tommy Doyle — have cleared waivers and been assigned outright to Triple-A Albuquerque. The moves bring Colorado’s 40-man roster tally down to 35, although the Rox will have to reinstate four players from the 60-day injured list before the start of the offseason.
Fuentes has appeared in the majors in each of the last three seasons, garnering his most significant playing time in 2021. The 28-year-old tallied 284 trips to the plate this year, but he hit just .225/.257/.351 with seven homers despite playing his home games at Coors Field. Fuentes hasn’t performed well at the big league level, but he’s a career .291/.329/.489 hitter over parts of three years at Triple-A.
Ruiz, 27, was once a fairly well-regarded prospect. He’s gotten to the majors in each of the last six years but has never hit at a particularly high level. The left-handed hitter got regular run with the Orioles from 2019-21, opening this past season as Baltimore’s starting second baseman. But he managed just a .220/.292/.380 line with the O’s before being let go.
Colorado claimed Ruiz off waivers in May, and he stuck on the 40-man roster for the entire season. He only picked up 40 big league plate appearances, spending most of his time in Albuquerque. Ruiz is a .270/.337/.423 hitter in parts of five Triple-A campaigns, including a .304/.361/.496 mark with the Isotopes this past season.
Almonte, also 27, has pitched for Colorado in each of the last four years. He worked to a 2.93 ERA with a huge 56.3% ground-ball rate in 27 2/3 innings in 2020, but the wheels fell off this year. Over 47 2/3 frames, Almonte managed just a 7.55 ERA with worse than average strikeout (21.7%), walk (13.4%) and grounder (41.9%) percentages.
Doyle made his MLB debut in 2020, getting a three-game cameo. He didn’t pitch in the big leagues this past season, instead spending almost the entire year on the minor league injured list. The 25-year-old still has just 11 2/3 innings above A-ball in his professional career — 2 1/3 MLB frames in 2020 and 9 1/3 innings with Double-A Hartford in 2021.
Fuentes, Ruiz and Almonte have all appeared in seven-plus minor league seasons. They’ll all qualify for minor league free agency this winter, assuming the Rockies don’t pivot and reselect them back onto the 40-man. Doyle does not have the requisite service time to reject an outright assignment, so he’ll stick in the organization. He’ll presumably get a Spring Training invitation in 2022 and look to pitch his way back onto the roster.
Dodgers To Select Andy Burns, Remove Justin Turner From NLCS Roster
The Dodgers will remove third baseman Justin Turner from the team’s roster for their ongoing NLCS against the Braves, manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Juan Toribio of MLB.com). Turner suffered a hamstring injury in last night’s contest that’ll prove to be a season-ending issue. To replace him on the postseason roster, Los Angeles will select the contract of utilityman Andy Burns.
Injured players can be removed from a playoff roster mid-series with approval from the Commissioner’s Office. There’s not yet been any formal announcement, although there’s no reason to believe the Dodgers’ request to remove Turner won’t be granted. Doing so renders the injured player ineligible to return for the remainder of the current series and the following series, should the team advance. So even if the Dodgers erase their 3-1 deficit against Atlanta to advance to the World Series, Turner cannot return this year.
Even before the injury, it was a difficult postseason for Turner, who reached base in just six of his 38 playoff plate appearances. He offered the kind of consistently strong performance we’ve come to expect from the 36-year-old in the regular season, hitting .278/.361/.471 with 27 home runs over 612 plate appearances.
Burns briefly appeared on the active roster, getting into nine games in June. The right-handed hitter posted a .232/.361/.412 line with six homers and ten stolen bases over 216 plate appearances with Triple-A Oklahoma City during the regular season. He covered each of first, second and third base as well as both corner outfield spots. Roberts could deploy Burns as a late-game defensive sub at a few different positions or use him as a pinch runner off the bench.