Yankees Option Jake Bird
The Yankees have optioned right-hander Jake Bird to Triple-A, per a team announcement. A corresponding move has not yet been announced, though ESPN’s Jorge Castillo notes that right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. is expected back from the injured list today and could take Bird’s roster spot.
Bird, 29, was one of the Yankees’ trio of potential high-leverage bullpen additions acquired ahead of the trade deadline last week. With a 4.73 ERA and 3.89 FIP to go along with a 26.3% strikeout rate for the Rockies this year, Bird showed himself capable of putting up at least decent numbers even when playing half his games at Coors Field. That was enough to intrigue the Yankees, and they surrendered second base prospect Roc Riggio and pitching prospect Ben Shields in order to acquire him. While Bird lacks the track record of dominance that David Bednar and Camilo Doval both offer, he comes with three years of team control after 2025 and the hope was that he could help deepen a bullpen mix that will lose Devin Williams and Luke Weaver to free agency this winter.
It’s only been a few games, but the early returns have not been great. The Yankees found themselves swept at the hands of the Marlins in the days following the deadline and have yet to win a game in August. That slump has left them with just a 1.5 game lead over the Rangers for the final AL Wild Card spot, and Bird has been in the thick of those troubles. After surrendering four runs to the Marlins while recording just one out in his Yankees debut, the right-hander surrendered three runs (two earned) while recording two outs against Texas last night. Those six runs allowed in a combined two innings of work across three appearances leave him with a 27.00 ERA for his Yankees career, and now he’s headed to the minor leagues as New York waits for him to get right.
While an effective version of Bird would undoubtedly make the Yankees’ bullpen better, it’s hard to argue they’re light on talent at the moment. Williams, Weaver, Bednar, and Doval have all had worrying moments at points throughout the season, but each has a strong track record of success in the late innings. And now it seems they’ll be reinforced later today by the return of Leiter, who has been sidelined for the past month due to a stress fracture in the fibular head of his left leg. Acquired from the Cubs at last year’s deadline, Leiter’s 4.46 ERA in 41 appearances leaves something to be desired but his underlying metrics remain brilliant. He’s struck out 29.1% of his opponents this year while walking a career-low 7.6%, and he’s paired all that with a career-best 49.0% ground ball rate. If Leiter keeps looking that good in his return to action, that elevated ERA should come back down in a hurry as he helps avoid further bullpen meltdowns in the Bronx.
Cubs Release Chris Flexen
The Cubs released righty Chris Flexen, as first reflected on the MLB.com transaction log. Chicago had designated him for assignment last week. MLBTR has learned that Flexen declined an outright assignment, leading to the release. As a player with five-plus years of service time, Flexen will collect the remaining portion of his $1.5MM salary.
Flexen signed an offseason minor league deal and was called up at the end of April. That initially worked brilliantly. The 31-year-old fired 28 innings of 0.65 ERA ball over his first two months. Flexen’s 13.5% strikeout rate and pre-2025 track record suggested he was in line for significant regression. That arrived in July, when opponents blasted six home runs and tagged him for 15 runs (13 earned) through 15 2/3 innings. He allowed multiple runs in each of his final four appearances.
The Cubs pulled the plug last week. Flexen concluded his organizational tenure with a 3.06 earned run average over 43 2/3 innings. Estimators like SIERA, FIP and xERA all felt his true level was closer to allowing five earned runs per nine — essentially a match for the 4.95 ERA he posted over 160 innings for the White Sox a year ago.
Flexen has the ability to log multiple innings out of the bullpen or build back out as rotation depth. That’ll at least get him interest on a minor league contract, and it’s not out of the question that he finds a big league deal. A signing team would only pay him the prorated portion of the $760K league minimum for the final couple months. That’d be subtracted from the Cubs’ commitments.
Cardinals Claim Anthony Veneziano From Marlins
The Cardinals claimed reliever Anthony Veneziano off waivers from the Marlins, as first reflected on the MLB.com transaction tracker. He’s been optioned to Triple-A Memphis. Miami had designated him for assignment last week when they promoted outfielder Jakob Marsee.
Veneziano is a 6’5″ lefty who has made 38 MLB appearances over the past three years. He has a combined 3.93 earned run average through 36 2/3 innings, striking out 20.6% of opponents against an 8.8% walk rate. He leans mostly on a mid-80s slider while averaging around 94 MPH on his fastball. Veneziano has managed serviceable big league production, but he has given up eight runs with an underwhelming 12:9 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 12 Triple-A appearances this year.
St. Louis traded Ryan Helsley, Steven Matz and Phil Maton at the deadline. They lost John King to an oblique strain last week. JoJo Romero is the only southpaw in Oli Marmol’s bullpen. He is now the team’s best reliever and probably going to get a decent amount of work in the ninth inning. Romero picked up the save, his first of the season, on Saturday in the team’s only win since the Helsley trade. Veneziano won’t jump right into the big league bullpen, but he’s the only other healthy lefty reliever on the 40-man roster.
Dodgers Claim Luken Baker, Designate Jack Little
The Dodgers announced they’ve claimed first baseman Luken Baker off waivers from the Cardinals. According to the MLB.com transaction log, he’s been optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City. Los Angeles designated reliever Jack Little for assignment to clear a 40-man roster spot. St. Louis had not previously announced that Baker was dropped from the 40-man roster but evidently tried to run him through waivers.
It’s a bit surprising that the Cards went that route. They had four open spots on the 40-man roster, so it’s not as if they were pressed for space. (Their count remains at 36 after they claimed lefty reliever Anthony Veneziano from Miami.) They nevertheless decided to move on from Baker, a 28-year-old first baseman who is in his fifth Triple-A season.
A former second-round pick out of TCU, Baker ranked toward the back of the Cards’ top 30 prospects for a few seasons on the strength of his raw power. He has connected on 136 home runs in his minor league career, 96 of which have come at the Triple-A level. Baker owns a .249/.344/.507 batting line in more than 1600 Triple-A plate appearances. He’s down to a meager .196/.309/.397 slash in 65 games this year, so the Cards determined he wasn’t getting another MLB opportunity. Baker has had sporadic big league appearances, hitting .206 with four homers in just under 200 plate appearances between 2023-25.
Before this claim, the Dodgers did not have a single healthy position player who was on optional assignment. Baker at least provides a healthy bat whom they can call upon if necessary without making a future 40-man roster transaction. He’s in his last minor league option year.
Little, 27, is a 6’4″ righty who made his big league debut last month. He has had two very brief stints on the MLB roster, combining to toss three innings of two-run ball. The Stanford product owns a 4.64 ERA with slightly worse than average strikeout (21.1%) and walk (10.3%) rates across 36 appearances with OKC. Little had gotten out to a strong start to the Triple-A campaign, but he has surrendered 17 earned runs in 19 innings dating back to the beginning of June. The Dodgers will put him on waivers this week.
Twins Claim Thomas Hatch
The Twins claimed righty Thomas Hatch off waivers from the Royals, reports Dan Hayes of The Athletic. Kansas City had designated him for assignment over the weekend. The Twins subsequently announced the claim and added that the corresponding active roster move will be announced when Hatch reports to the team tomorrow. Minnesota had two vacancies on the 40-man roster after last week’s sell-off.
Hatch will be hoping for a longer run in the Twin Cities than he received in Kansas City. He only made one big league appearance with the Royals, giving up two runs in one inning. He’s out of minor league options, so the Royals quickly designated him for assignment after they selected his contract earlier in the week. It was the second time this season that K.C. had designated him almost immediately after a call-up. He went unclaimed on waivers in June, but the Twins placed a claim this time around as they look for fresh arms to fill out a bullpen that they tore down at the deadline.
The 30-year-old Hatch should be able to provide length out of Rocco Baldelli’s bullpen. He has worked as a starter with Kansas City’s Triple-A affiliate for the entire season. Hatch has managed decent results, working to a 4.22 earned run average across 91 2/3 innings. His 20.1% strikeout rate is a little below average, but he’s getting grounders at a 53% clip while showing solid control. Hatch has a five-pitch mix and sits around 93 MPH with both his sinker and four-seam fastball while working as a starter. He was able to push that into the 94-95 range in his lone MLB appearance in short relief.
Hatch has now pitched in parts of five big league seasons, combining for a 5.14 ERA across 70 innings. He had a brief stint in Japan last year and would have pitched this season with the Doosan Bears in Korea had the team not flagged something in his physical. The Twins will need to keep him on the MLB roster or designate him for assignment themselves.
Yankees Sign Kenta Maeda To Minor League Deal
5:20pm: New York has made it official, signing the Boras Corporation client to a minor league contract. Maeda has been assigned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
1:35pm: The Yankees are discussing a possible deal with right-hander Kenta Maeda, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post. Maeda had been with the Cubs on a minor league deal but was released on the weekend, according to his MLB.com transactions tracker.
Presumably, the Yankees would be looking to sign Maeda on a minor league deal as well. The 37-year-old has had plenty of good years but hasn’t been in good form lately. He signed a two-year, $24MM deal with the Tigers going into 2024 but that deal hasn’t worked out. He struggled enough last year to get moved to the bullpen, finishing the year with a 6.09 earned run average in 112 1/3 innings.
Here in 2025, Maeda hasn’t been able to bounce back. He started the year back in the Detroit bullpen but was designated for assignment after he allowed seven earned runs in eight innings. He cleared waivers, elected free agency and signed the aforementioned minor league deal with the Cubs. He has since been pitching out of the rotation in Triple-A Iowa. He tossed 57 1/3 innings over 12 starts with a 5.97 ERA. His 45.7% ground ball rate in that time was decent but his 18.1% strikeout rate and 10% walk rate were both subpar.
For what it’s worth, Maeda has been improving. He allowed four earned runs in two innings in his first start for Iowa. In his second, it was five earned runs in 3 2/3. Then he allowed nine earned runs in just one inning in the third start. At that point, he had a laughable 24.30 ERA through three Triple-A appearances. The Cubs stuck with him and he has since tossed 50 2/3 innings over his nine most recent starts with a 3.55 ERA, 20% strikeout rate and 8.8% walk rate. Over his past five starts, he has a 4.13 ERA and 25.4% strikeout rate. In his last three outings, he has a 3.18 ERA in 17 innings with a 27.5% strikeout rate and 5.8% walk rate.
That’s a lot of cherry picking to make Maeda look good in small samples, but it perhaps suggests bit of positive momentum now that he’s been back in a regular starting role for the first time in about a year.
It’s risky to bet on such small samples but there’s not much downside for the Yanks in taking a flier. Since the Tigers released him, they’re still on the hook for the majority of what remains of his salary. That means the Yanks would only owe him a prorated version of the league minimum for any time Maeda eventually spends on their roster.
The Yankees are without starters Gerrit Cole and Clarke Schmidt for the rest of the year, both of them having undergone Tommy John surgery. Ryan Yarbrough filled in for a while but he himself has been shelved by an oblique strain. The club was connected to starting pitchers ahead of the deadline but didn’t end up pulling the trigger.
They currently have Max Fried and Carlos Rodón atop their rotation. Luis Gil had spent the entire season on the injured list due to a lat strain until a few days ago. He finally made his season debut yesterday but issued four walks in 3 1/3 innings while allowing five earned runs. Will Warren and Cam Schlittler are also in the rotation but each has an ERA around 4.60. Marcus Stroman was just released to open a roster spot.
Veteran Carlos Carrasco had been in the system as non-roster depth but he was recently flipped to Atlanta for a player to be named later or cash. Prospect Chase Hampton required Tommy John surgery earlier this year. If Maeda is brought aboard on a minor league deal, he could try to position himself as the next man up for a spot start or as an injury replacement.
Photo courtesy of Junfu Han, Imagn Images
Rays Claim Jesse Scholtens
The Rays announced that they have claimed right-hander Jesse Scholtens off waivers from the White Sox and sent him to Triple-A Durham. Chicago designated him for assignment yesterday. The Rays also announced that catcher Matt Thaiss, who was designated for assignment a few days ago, has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Durham. Scholtens effectively takes the 40-man spot recently vacated by Thaiss.
Scholtens, 31, made his major league debut in 2023 but hasn’t pitched in the big leagues since then. He underwent Tommy John surgery in February of 2024, which led to him missing that entire season. He spent a decent chunk of 2025 on the injured list as well. Once he was ready to come off the IL, the Sox optioned him to the minors.
His major league track record consists of 85 innings tossed in a swing role a couple of years ago. He made 11 starts and 15 relief appearances for the Sox with a 5.29 earned run average, 15.4% strikeout rate, 8% walk rate and 41.3% ground ball rate.
Since those numbers don’t jump off the page, the Rays are presumably more interested in his minor league work. From 2021 to 2023, he tossed 231 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level. Most of that was in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, as Scholtens was in the Padres’ system through the end of 2022. Over those three years, he had a 4.58 ERA but his 24.3% strikeout rate and 7.9% walk rate were both better than average.
He hasn’t yet been able to get back to that level. This year, he has thrown 36 minor league innings with a 5.25 ERA, 19.4% strikeout rate and 7.7% walk rate. But as mentioned, he’s coming back from Tommy John and is perhaps still ramping up. Scholtens still has options and hasn’t yet qualified for arbitration, so he’ll give the Rays some cheap Triple-A pitching depth for now. The club has a decent track record of helping pitchers maximize their results, so perhaps they can sprinkle some of their magic dust on Scholtens in the coming years.
Thaiss, 30, was also acquired by the Rays from the White Sox. Chicago had a bit of a squeeze behind the plate and sent Thaiss to the Rays in May for minor league outfielder Dru Baker. Thaiss got into 25 games for the Rays, backing up Danny Jansen, but he slashed just .225/.304/.282 for a wRC+ of 69.
Tampa shook up their catching spot recently. They traded Jansen to the Brewers but also acquired Nick Fortes and Hunter Feduccia, squeezing Thaiss out of the picture. Since he’s out of options, he got pushed off the 40-man.
His offense has occasionally been intriguing since he draws so many walks but he also strikes out a lot and his defense behind the plate isn’t especially well regarded. There has been enough interest for him to bounce around the league in the past year, going from the Angels to the Cubs, White Sox and Rays in small deals, but every club declined to give him a roster spot this week.
Thaiss has a service clock between three and five years. That means he has the right to reject an outright assignment but has to forfeit his remaining salary commitments in order to do so. He is making $1MM this year, with roughly $300K still to be paid out. Understandably, he had accepted this assignment to keep collecting the rest of that money. He’ll give the Rays some non-roster catching depth for now.
If he’s not added back to the 40-man by the end of the season, he’ll have the right to elect free agency, as is the case for all players with at least three years of service who are removed from a 40-man roster during a season.
Photo courtesy of David Reginek, Imagn Images
Pirates Designate Genesis Cabrera For Assignment
The Pirates have designated left-handed reliever Genesis Cabrera for assignment, manager Don Kelly tells the team’s beat (link via Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette). That’ll be the corresponding move to open a 26-man roster spot for righty Johan Oviedo, who’ll make his first major league start in nearly two years after undergoing Tommy John surgery in the 2023-24 offseason.
Pittsburgh signed the 28-year-old Cabrera to a major league contract back in June. He’d opened the year on a minor league deal with the Mets, was added to the roster and was subsequently designated for assignment. The Cubs signed Cabrera to a big league deal shortly thereafter, and a similar sequence played out as he was designated, became a free agent, and signed a big league deal with the Buccos.
In 28 innings this season, Cabrera has pitched to a 5.79 ERA. That includes a 4.91 earned run average in 11 innings as a Pirate. Cabrera yielded six runs on a dozen hits and a walk with seven strikeouts during his five to six weeks in Kelly’s bullpen.
The hard-throwing Cabrera has been erratic in his career, but the bottom-line results in 303 2/3 big league frames are decent. He sports a lifetime 4.06 ERA in the majors, and his 22.1% strikeout rate isn’t too far shy of league-average for a reliever. Cabrera’s 10.9% walk rate is high but not quite egregiously so. He’s typically posted above-average swinging-strike rates and slightly below-average ground-ball rates.
Cabrera will now head to either outright waivers or release waivers. Since the trade deadline has come and gone, there’s no alternative for the Bucs to explore. He’ll be made available to the league’s other 29 times in reverse order of leaguewide standings.
As for Oviedo, he’ll finally get back on a big league mound and hope to seize a rotation spot. The former Cardinals prospect had done just that prior to his injury, tossing 233 2/3 innings of 4.03 ball from 2022-23. That includes a career-high 177 2/3 innings in 2023, when he logged a respectable 4.31 ERA. Oviedo typically sits 95-97 mph with his fastball. Both his strikeout and walk rates have been a bit worse than average, but he’s been adept at dodging hard contact and keeping the ball in the yard. He ought to get a real look down the stretch, and Pittsburgh controls him for an additional two seasons via arbirtation.
Marlins Designate Jack Winkler For Assignment
The Marlins announced that infielder Jack Winkler has been designated for assignment. That’s the corresponding 40-man move for their previously reported claim of outfielder Joey Wiemer off waivers. It also opens an active roster spot for outfielder Derek Hill, who has been reinstated from the 10-day injured list.
Winkler, 26, was just added to Miami’s roster at the end of May. Since then, he has been rarely used as a bench player or down in the minors on optional assignment. He has appeared in just 11 major league games and has been sent to the plate just 12 times, mostly getting put into game as a pinch runner. He has two singles and four strikeouts, giving him a career .167/.167/.167 line in that tiny sample of work.
He now heads into DFA limbo. Since the trade deadline has passed, the Marlins will have to put him on waivers in the coming days. If he garners any interest, it would naturally be based on his larger body of work in the minors.
His offense has generally been subpar but he’s been able to steal bases and bounce around the diamond. In 51 Triple-A games this year, he has a .241/.304/.379 batting line and 84 wRC+. He has stolen 17 bases without getting caught and played all four spots on the infield. He has a small amount of experience in the outfield corners in previous seasons as well.
If he were to pass through waivers unclaimed, he would stick with the Marlins as non-roster depth. He doesn’t have three years of big league experience nor a previous career outright, so he wouldn’t have the right to elect free agency.
Photo courtesy of Rhona Wise, Imagn Images
Phillies, Lou Trivino Agree To Minor League Deal
The Phillies have agreed to a minor league deal with veteran right-handed reliever Lou Trivino, reports Matt Gelb of The Athletic. They’ll be the third organization of the season for the Pro Edge Sports client.
Trivino, 34 in October, has suited up for both the Dodgers and Giants in 2025. He’s pitched a combined 38 1/3 major league innings and logged a 4.42 ERA with a well below-average 15.7% strikeout rate but a strong 7% walk rate. That marks Trivino’s first big league work since the end of the 2022 season. He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2023 and has also had a notable shoulder injury in the two years he was off the mound.
This version of Trivino didn’t look nearly as sharp as the pre-injury iteration. His fastball, which averaged 97.3 mph at its peak and 95.6 mph in the three years leading up to his surgery, has sat at 94.7 mph thus far. Trivino’s 1.40 HR/9 is a career-high, and his opponents’ chase rate and swinging-strike rate are both considerably lower than at his best.
That said, there’s no risk in taking a minor league flier on a pitcher with a track record like that of Trivino. He made his MLB debut with 74 innings of 2.92 ERA ball for the 2018 Athletics and, from ’18-’22, picked up 52 holds and 37 saves while working to a 3.86 ERA with a 24.5% strikeout rate and 10.6% walk rate.
Philadelphia won’t really be counting on Trivino for anything. He’s a depth add after president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski & Co. made a pair of splashy deadline upgrades, signing free agent David Robertson and trading prospects Eduardo Tait and Mick Abel to pry star closer Jhoan Duran away from the Twins. Trivino could eventually work his way to the majors, but with Duran, Orion Kerkering, Matt Strahm and Tanner Banks leading the way, Robertson soon to join and the return of lefty Jose Alvarado looming later this month, there are far fewer paths to the majors in Philly than there might’ve been even two to three weeks ago.