Roster Moves: Contreras, Lopez, Detmers, Guerra, Quintana
Catching on some of the roster moves that took place before today’s slate of games…
- The Cubs placed Willson Contreras on the 10-day injured list due to right hip inflammation, officially ending the veteran catcher’s season. In corresponding moves, Alfonso Rivas was moved from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL, and catcher Tyler Payne made his MLB debut today after his contract selected from Triple-A. One of the few veterans remaining in the wake of the Cubs’ deadline fire sale, Contreras might be either a trade candidate or an extension candidate this winter, depending on the club’s next direction. Contreras finishes the year hitting .237/.340/.438 with 21 home runs over 483 PA.
- The Marlins activated Pablo Lopez from the 60-day injured list, as Lopez tossed 1 2/3 innings in an abbreviated start during Miami’s 5-4 win over the Phillies today. It marked Lopez’s first game since July 11, as a right rotator cuff strain interrupted a very impressive season for the 25-year-old. Lopez posted a 3.03 ERA and above-average strikeout and walk rates over his first 101 innings, setting himself up for 2022 as yet another quality young arm in the Marlins rotation. To make room for Lopez’s return to the roster, Miami placed left-hander Sean Guenther on the 10-day IL and moved first baseman Jesus Aguilar to the 60-day IL.
- The Angels called up left-hander Reid Detmers to start today’s contest with the Mariners, and also activated righty Junior Guerra from the 10-day IL. Outfielder Taylor Ward heads to the 10-day IL with a right adductor strain while southpaw Jhonathan Diaz was optioned to Triple-A.
- Jose Quintana cleared waivers and outrighted to the Giants‘ Triple-A affiliate. San Francisco designated Quintana for assignment earlier this week, after the veteran left-hander posted a 4.66 ERA over 9 2/3 innings with the Giants. Quintana was claimed off waivers from the Angels at the end of August, as the Giants looked to add some lefty depth down the stretch.
Rangers Designate Wes Benjamin For Assignment, Activate Matt Bush
The Rangers have activated right-hander Matt Bush from the 60-day IL, according to John Blake, the team’s executive VP of communications. Fellow righty Glenn Otto was optioned to make room on the active roster while lefty Wes Benjamin was designated for assignment to make room on the 40-man.
It’s been quite a journey for Bush, who had his 2019 and 2020 seasons wiped out by Tommy John surgery. This year, he cracked the Rangers’ roster out of spring training but went on the IL April 9th with elbow inflammation and has been there ever since. Prior to that IL placement, he got into three games and logged three innings, with four strikeouts, four hits, a walk and three earned runs. He recently started a rehab assignment and made four appearances in the minors. The club has seemingly decided to reward Bush’s hard work and patience by adding him back to the big league roster on the last day of the season. The 35-year-old can be controlled for three more seasons via arbitration but seems likely to be non-tendered, considering that he’s now three years removed from a meaningful stretch of production at the big league level.
As for Benjamin, he made his Major League debut last year, logging 22 1/3 innings over eight games, including one start. He had an ERA of 4.84 with average-ish strikeout and walk rates of 21.4% and 7.1%. This year, he’s been tossed back and forth between the majors and minors, having been optioned six times. At the big league level in 2021, he got into 22 2/3 innings with an ERA of 8.74, along with a strikeout rate of 17% and walk rate of 15.2%, both of which are worse than league average. The 28-year-old lefty will now presumably go on waivers in the coming days.
Rockies Designate Chi Chi Gonzalez For Assignment
The Rockies announced a few roster moves today, recalling right-handed pitchers Justin Lawrence and Antonio Santos, while optioning infielder Rio Ruiz and designating right-hander Chi Chi Gonzalez for assignment.
The Rockies non-tendered Gonzalez in the offseason and then re-signed him on a minor league deal just over a week later. He had his contract at the end of spring training and stayed a part of the staff until the last day of the season. In 24 games this season, 18 of them starts, he has logged 101 2/3 innings with an ERA of 6.46. That may be somewhat inflated by Gonzalez playing his home games in the most hitter-friendly park in the league, but his underlying metrics aren’t much better. His 12.5% strikeout rate is just barely half of the MLB average, which is 23.2%. His 6.3% walk rate is pretty solid though, considering the league average of 8.7%.
Based on that middling production and the fact that he had already been non-tendered by the club once, they were probably heading down the same path this winter. For the club, they decided to just move on now and use the last day of the season to give another look to some younger arms. Lawrence, 26, and Santos, 24, have each logged their fair share of miles shuttling between MLB and Triple-A this season, each one having been optioned six times. Lawrence has a bloated 8.64 ERA over 16 2/3 MLB innings this season, but a much more palatable 4.73 ERA in 32 1/3 Triple-A innings. Santos is somehow the reverse, with an MLB ERA of 4.76 in 11 1.3 innings but a Triple-A ERA of 7.94 in 45 1/3 innings.
Yankees Select Brody Koerner, Transfer Luke Voit To 60-Day IL
The Yankees have selected the contract of right-hander Brody Koerner and optioned him to Triple-A, per a team announcement. To make room on the 40-man roster, first baseman Luke Voit was transferred from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL.
For Voit, this officially ends his season and eliminates any chance of him returning to the club at some point during the postseason. Overall, it was a disappointing campaign for the slugger, as he was hampered by injuries, with multiple trips to the IL, primarily due to his knee. He managed to get into 68 games at the MLB level and hit .239/.328/.437. That production was still 11% better than league average as measured by wRC+. However, that’s a big drop-off from the wRC+ of 153 that he put up during the shortened 2020 campaign and the 126 he had over 118 games in 2019.
It was perhaps because of Voit’s continued struggles to stay healthy that the Yankees acquired a replacement first baseman at the deadline in the form of Anthony Rizzo. However, Rizzo is a free agent at the end of this season, meaning that the Yankees could let Voit take over as the regular first baseman again in 2022. Though that will probably depend on how his health progresses over the coming months and through the winter. Voit reached arbitration for the first time last winter as a Super Two player. He and the Yankees agreed to a $4.7MM salary for 2021. He would be in line for a modest raise for 2022.
Koerner was previously selected to the roster in early August and lasted about three weeks before being outrighted back to Triple-A. In that time, he only got into two games, logging three innings with two hits, two walks, one earned run and one strikeout. In Triple-A this year, he’s logged 75 innings with an ERA of 3.48 and 60 strikeouts. He could potentially be an emergency option for the Yankees during the postseason. Players in the organization but not on the 40-man roster before September 1 can still participate in the playoffs via a petition to the Commissioner’s Office, a fairly common maneuver throughout the league.
Mariners Reinstate Andres Munoz From 60-Day Injured List
The Mariners made something of a surprise addition to their bullpen, reinstating right-hander Andres Munoz from the 60-day injured list. In the corresponding move, veteran righty Joe Smith was placed on the injured list with an undisclosed issue.
Munoz hasn’t pitched in a big league game since September 15, 2019, when he was finishing up his rookie season with the Padres. The 22-year-old’s career was put on hold due to Tommy John surgery in March 2020, and another setback this past spring added some extra time onto his rehab efforts. Munoz finally began a minor league rehab assignment on September 17, and made one rookie ball appearance and three Triple-A appearances before getting the call to Seattle.
During his injury recovery, Munoz was dealt to the Mariners as part of their big seven-player swap with the Padres prior to the 2020 trade deadline. He might now go from afterthought to instant hero if he can provide the M’s with anything in their late-season playoff push, though it remains to be seen exactly what Munoz can deliver after so much time on the shelf.
A Padres international signing out of Mexico in 2015, Munoz’s big league resume consists a 3.91 ERA over 23 innings in 2019, with a nice 30.9% strikeout rate but also a rather high 11.3% walk rate. That has more or less been the story for Munoz throughout his minor league career, as his big high-90’s fastball has led to a lot of missed bats, though control has often been an issue. This big velo is certainly an intriguing weapon for a team in the postseason hunt, as Munoz might be something of a secret weapon out of Seattle’s bullpen.
The lack of information about Smith’s IL placement would seem to indicate a COVID-related issue, but details aren’t known about the right-hander’s situation (a positive test, contact tracing, waiting on a test result, vaccine side effects, etc.), nor could any be forthcoming given the league-mandated privacy regulations about the COVID list. If a quarantine is required, Smith will miss not just the rest of the regular season, but also likely the ALDS if the Mariners advanced that far.
After a brutal start to the season with the Astros, Smith has turned things around since being dealt to the Mariners at the deadline, posting a 2.00 ERA over his 18 innings in Seattle. Smith has improved his strikeout rate since joining the M’s and has surrendered only one home run, as opposed to giving up four homers in his 21 2/3 frames in Houston.
Brewers Activate Rowdy Tellez From 10-Day Injured List
The Brewers announced a trio of roster moves, including the activation of first baseman Rowdy Tellez from the 10-day injured list. First baseman Keston Hiura was optioned to Triple-A to make space for Tellez on the active roster. Milwaukee also outrighted utilityman Tim Lopes to Triple-A, four days after Lopes was designated for assignment.
Tellez returns after missing three weeks due to a right patella strain. The slugger and the Brewers each hope that the time off has corrected what had been a nagging knee problem for Tellez, and that he is now ready to roll for the Brew Crew’s postseason stretch.
While the Brewers’ May acquisition of Willy Adames has been rightfully lauded as a turning point in the season, the club’s trade for Tellez in early July shouldn’t be overlooked as another key move. Tellez got off to a brutal start with the Blue Jays this year, prompting Toronto to clear its first base/DH logjam and upgrade its struggling bullpen by moving Tellez to Milwaukee for Trevor Richards. Tellez responded to the change of scenery, hitting .270/.329/.474 with seven home runs during his first 167 plate appearances in a Brewers uniform.
The Tellez deal was necessary in part because Hiura struggled so badly, and he will likely finish the season with a .168/.256/.301 slash line over 197 PA at the big league level in 2021. After a huge rookie campaign in 2019, Hiura didn’t hit well in 2020 before cratering this season, leaving the former top prospect as something of an unknown quantity heading into next year. Hiura is still only 25 years old and has continued to hit well at the Triple-A level, at least, but it remains to be seen if the Brewers still view him as a potential future cornerstone.
Dodgers Place Clayton Kershaw On 10-Day IL With Forearm Discomfort
6:04PM: More will be known once Kershaw undergoes more tests, but Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told MLB.com’s Juan Toribio and other reporters that the team is going ahead as if Kershaw’s 2021 season is over.
4:03PM: The Dodgers have placed Kershaw on the 10-day injured list with left forearm discomfort. Righty Mitch White was called up to take Kershaw’s spot on the active roster.
TODAY, 7:14AM: Things are not looking good for Kershaw, who looks like he might be “out for a while,” per ESPN’s Jeff Passan (via Twitter). Tests still must be completed, but Kershaw himself spoke of the injury, detailing it as similar to what he’s been dealing with all year, that quote provided in full here by ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez.
OCTOBER 1: Dodgers star Clayton Kershaw left this evening’s start against the Brewers in the second inning due to what the team called forearm discomfort (via Fabian Ardaya of the Athletic). Kershaw was tagged for three runs on five hits in that brief time, although his fastball velocity was in its customary 90 MPH range.
More will be known after further evaluation, but it’s an obviously concerning development. Any forearm injury is worrisome for pitchers, and Kershaw missed more than two months earlier in the season because of inflammation in the area. He returned from that IL stint on September 13 and was making his fourth start since coming back.
There’s no indication at this point that Kershaw’s in line for another extended absence. But it’s hard to imagine a more inopportune for such a development. The Dodgers entered play two games back of the Giants in the NL West, with a possibility of being eliminated from division contention tonight. Max Scherzer is lined up to start a potential Wild Card game, but Kershaw would no doubt be a key component of a potential NLDS pitching staff if he’s healthy. The three-time Cy Young award winner is slated to hit free agency this offseason.
Mets Activate Robert Gsellman, Designate Brandon Drury
The Mets have activated right-hander Robert Gsellman from the 60-day injured list. In corresponding moves, utilityman Brandon Drury has been designated for assignment, while right-hander Tylor Megill has been optioned to Triple-A.
Gsellman will get a couple more chances to get on the mound during what been an another injury-plagued year for the swingman. A right lat strain sent Gsellman to the IL back on June 21, thus limiting him to only 26 2/3 innings in 2021. Since injuries also greatly limited Gsellman in 2020, he has pitched a total of 40 2/3 innings over the last two seasons.
All this missed time has had an adverse effect on Gsellman’s earnings, considering that 2020 and 2021 were both arbitration-eligible years. Gsellman will be arb-eligible for a third and final time this winter, but won’t get much beyond his $1.3MM 2021 salary. On the plus side, this low price tag could make the Mets inclined to bring him back rather than non-tendering him.
Drury signed a minor league deal with New York last winter and ended up earning $1.55MM in guaranteed salary once the Mets selected his contract. In 88 plate appearances at the big league level, Drury provide above-average (112 OPS+, 114 wRC+) offense, hitting .274/.307/.476 with four homers. Much of that production, however, was packed into a seven-game hit streak in late July. It seems likely that the seven-year MLB veteran will have to settle for another minors contract this offseason in order to catch on with another team.
Cubs Select Joe Biagini, Place Tommy Nance On Injured List
The Cubs have placed right-hander Tommy Nance on the injury list, which seems to hint at a COVID-related absence given the lack of a reason given for Nance’s placement. Taking Nance’s spot is righty Joe Biagini, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Iowa.
Patrick Wisdom, Austin Romine, David Bote, and Nick Martini have also been placed on Chicago’s IL (without any official cause) within the last three days, as the Cubs have apparently been hit with a coronavirus outbreak just as their season comes to an end. No official details have been given about any of the players, so it isn’t known who might have a positive case, or if some players are being held out for contact tracing or other precautionary reasons.
Barring a quick turn-around, it appears as though the placement will end Nance’s rookie season. The 30-year-old posted a 7.22 ERA over 28 2/3 relief innings for the Cubs, as Nance began his big league run with 12 1/3 scoreless frames before batters caught up to him in a big way. Nance wasn’t drafted, as he began his pro career by signing with the Cubs after an indy ball stint in 2015, and then delivered a 3.29 ERA over 123 innings in Chicago’s farm system, missing the 2017 season due to injury.
If Biagini appears in one of Chicago’s final two games, it will mark the sixth consecutive season that the righty has seen at least some action at the MLB level. Perhaps best known for his strong performance in 2016 as a Rule 5 pickup for the Blue Jays, Biagini has since shown flashes of that early, but his numbers cratered after being dealt to the Astros in 2019. Biagini had a 10.42 ERA over 19 innings with Houston 2019-20, while also struggling with a shoulder problem last year. The Cubs inked Biagini to a minor league deal last winter, and he has a 5.50 ERA in 91 2/3 frames with Iowa.
Rockies Hire Bill Schmidt As General Manager
The Rockies have removed the “interim” tag from Bill Schmidt, as Schmidt will officially take over the team’s front office as the new general manager. Schmidt has been serving as the interim GM since May 3, a week after former general manager Jeff Bridich resigned.
The club also announced promotions of two other in-house executives. Danny Montgomery goes from special assistant to the GM to being a newly-minted vice president and assistant GM of scouting, while assistant GM Zack Rosenthal had the vice president title added to his current duties.
“After five months as our interim general manager, it became increasingly clear that Bill was the right person to lead this franchise forward,” Rockies president/COO Greg Feasel said in the press release. “We already knew Bill as a trusted and respected baseball professional within the game. He came into a challenging situation and quickly impacted the play on and off the field. Bill’s promotion also gives the organization an opportunity to promote two experienced individuals, Danny and Zack, to leadership roles that will be key in getting us to the next level.”
At the time of Bridich’s departure, the Rockies announced that a wider search for a new GM/president of baseball operations would take place after the season, though the club has now decided to stick with a familiar face. Schmidt has been working in Colorado since October 1999 in various scouting capacities, and has been running the team’s drafts since 2000. Schmidt was promoted to VP of scouting in 2007, a title he held until becoming interim GM. Before joining the Rox, Schmidt also worked as a scout and minor league coach with the Reds and Yankees, a minor league coach with the Brewers, and as a national crosschecker for the Indians.
Schmidt’s hiring is something of an old-school move, as teams have generally trended towards younger and more analytically-inclined front office executives in recent years, rather than older, more established baseball lifers. Schmidt is known to be widely respected around the sport, and his hiring will surely be applauded by peers pleased to see him finally getting a shot to run a big league organization.
It is fair to wonder if Rockies fans are as enthusiastic, however. Bridich was also a longtime front office employee before he was hired as GM in 2014, and the hiring of Schmidt (and even the promotions of Montgomery and Rosenthal) reflect more continuity within an organization that many fans and pundits believe is in need of a shakeup. Owner Dick Monfort is known to be very loyal to his employees — perhaps to a fault, as the team’s insularity has been seen as a chief reason for the Rockies have had only five winning seasons since the Monfort brothers become majority owners in 2005.
Thanks to a brutal 19-34 start, the Rockies will finish under the .500 mark yet again this season, despite a respectable 55-51 mark since May 30. That performance over the last four months quite possibly inspired the team’s decision to mostly stand pat at the trade deadline, moving only Mychal Givens despite the number of impending free agents (most notably Trevor Story and Jon Gray) on the roster. The Rockies have designs on re-signing Gray, while Story is as good as gone but the team didn’t find any acceptable trade offers, so the decision was made to keep Story and at least recoup a draft pick via the qualifying offer.
Schmidt now faces a tall order in getting the Rockies on track, considering the potential free agent losses, a farm system seen as being lacking in impact talent, and the ever-difficult NL West. It will be interesting to see how Schmidt’s approach differs from Bridich, who relied mostly on free agency to make his moves and didn’t swing many major trades (apart from moving longtime stars Nolan Arenado and Troy Tulowitzki) in his tenure as GM.