Brewers Designate Justin Smoak, Claim Daniel Vogelbach
6:02pm: Milwaukee has announced the moves. The Brewers acquired Vogelbach via waivers.
3:23pm: The Brewers have designated first baseman Justin Smoak for assignment and acquired 1B/DH Daniel Vogelbach from the Blue Jays, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.
The switch-hitting Smoak had a couple very good years with the Blue Jays from 2017-18, but his production went downward in ’19 during his final campaign in Toronto. The Brewers, hoping for a bounce-back effort, signed the 33-year-old Smoak to a $5MM guarantee last offseason, but the deal didn’t pay dividends for the club. Smoak logged an ugly .186/.262/.381 line with five home runs in 126 plate appearances this year before the Brewers designated him. Thanks in large part to Smoak, first base has been a black hole for Milwaukee, though Jedd Gyorko (who has totaled the second-most starts there for the club) has posted terrific production over a small sample.
Vogelbach could now wind up in the mix at first for the Brewers, but he hasn’t lined up there at all this year between Seattle and Toronto, instead playing all of his games as a DH. While Vogelbach was a Mariners All-Star a year ago, his numbers plummeted in the second half then, and he certainly hasn’t offered a DH-caliber bat this season. Between the M’s and Jays, he hit an abysmal .088/.246/.211 with two home runs in 69 plate appearances. Toronto designated Vogelbach after four at-bats as a member of the team.
Tigers Designate David McKay For Assignment
The Tigers announced that they’ve designated right-hander David McKay for assignment. His roster spot will go to infielder Zack Short, whom the Tigers acquired from the Cubs for outfielder Cameron Maybin on Monday.
The 25-year-old McKay is in his second season with the Detroit organization, which claimed him off waivers from the Mariners in August 2019. He tossed a third of an inning with the Tigers this year and 19 1/3 last season, adding to the seven frames he threw as a Mariner. McKay hasn’t produced with either team, though, evidenced by his 6.08 ERA and 6.1 BB/9.
While McKay has done well racking up strikeouts in the majors (11.5 per nine) and at Triple-A (14.9 K/9), he has also had difficulty preventing runs and limiting walks at the minors’ highest level. He does have two minor league options left, though, so teams looking for an affordable and young bullpen option could take a chance on him in the coming days.
Red Sox Claim Deivy Grullon
The Red Sox have claimed catcher Deivy Grullon from the Phillies, per an announcement from Philadelphia. The Phillies also outrighted hurler Reggie McClain to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
Grullon, 24, was designated for assignment Monday even though he was one of the Phillies’ top 30 prospects at Baseball America over the past few seasons. To this point, however, Grullon has only taken nine MLB plate appearances (all last season). He’s the owner of an impressive .283/.354/.496 slash with 21 home runs in 457 Triple-A plate appearances, though.
McClain was another Monday DFA for the Phillies, who claimed him from the Mariners in January. The 27-year-old entered the pros as a 13th-rounder of the M’s in 2016, and he made his major league debut this season with 5 1/3 innings of three-earned run ball with two strikeouts, three walks and nine hits allowed.
Royals Designate Randy Rosario For Assignment, Promote Edward Olivares
The Royals have designated left-hander Randy Rosario for assignment in order to open a spot on the active roster for outfielder Edward Olivares, who has been recalled from the alternate training site and will start tonight’s game in center field, manager Mike Matheny announced to reporters (Twitter link via Alec Lewis of The Athletic). Olivares was acquired in the trade that sent closer Trevor Rosenthal to the Padres.
Rosario, 26, was a somewhat promising bullpen prospect as he rose through the Twins’ system several years back, posting quality numbers in the upper minors before getting hit hard in a brief debut look in 2017. The new Minnesota front office took him off the 40-man roster, and upon landing with the Cubs, Rosario turned in a 3.66 ERA in 46 2/3 frames of work as a rookie in 2018. However, his 30-to-22 K/BB ratio in that time didn’t inspire much confidence, and Rosario has indeed been hit hard in subsequent seasons. Dating back to 2019, he has a 5.09 ERA in just 17 2/3 innings.
The Royals had spoken favorably of the hard-throwing Rosenthal, with GM Dayton Moore expressing a desire to keep him long-term, but the addition of Olivares to the Padres’ offer likely made it too tempting to overlook. The 24-year-old got out to a poor .176/.224/.294 start in his debut season this year, but that ugly line came in a tiny sample of just 36 plate appearances.
The overall body of work for Olivares in the minors is much more favorable, highlighted by a .283/.349/.453 showing in the Double-A Texas League last year. That production may not appear especially potent at first glance, but it was 23 percent better than that of a league-average hitter in an extremely pitcher-friendly environment, per wRC+, and Olivares adds plenty of value on the bases and in the field as well.
Beyond the 18 homers on which he connected last year, Olivares collected 25 doubles and a pair of triples while going 35-for-45 in stolen base attempts. Olivares has fanned in a relatively low 17.6 percent of his career minor league plate appearances and is considered an average or better outfielder capable of playing all three spots. At the very least, he seems capable of stepping in as a quality fourth outfielder, but the rebuilding Royals will likely give him ample opportunity to seize an everyday spot in their outfield moving forward.
Braves Release Matt Adams
The Braves announced Thursday that they’ve released veteran first baseman Matt Adams. He was designated for assignment over the weekend when Atlanta acquired left-hander Tommy Milone from the Orioles.
Adams, 32, had a solid showing with the Braves in 2017 but returned with an ugly .184/.216/.347 slash in 51 plate appearances this season. The big slugger has long been a thorn in the side of right-handed pitching and long struggled against lefties. Between that and a defensive profile that limits him to first base (plus the occasional adventure in left field), Adams’ role has been that of a bench player for much of his time in the big leagues. He did provide some pop off the bench for the World Champion Nationals in 2019, slugging 20 big flies, but he also posted a lowly .276 on-base percentage.
Overall, Adams is a career .259/.307/.467 hitter in 2574 trips to the plate. Those numbers improve to .270/.322/.486 when you subtract his 452 unsightly plate appearances against lefties. A team looking for some thump off the bench could certainly pick Adams up and give him a look over the season’s final few weeks.
Rockies Claim Jesus Tinoco
The Rockies have claimed right-hander Jesus Tinoco off waivers from the Marlins, per an announcement from both teams. Colorado traded Tinoco to Miami less than a month ago, receiving righty Chad Smith in return. The Rox will now have both right-handers in their organization. Tinoco has been optioned to the Rockies’ alternate training site.
Tinoco, 25, appeared in three games for the Marlins and tossed five hitless, scoreless innings. He walked three batters and picked up another three strikeouts along the way. Tinoco also logged 36 innings in the Colorado bullpen in 2019 and sports a career 4.17 ERA in his 41 frames. However, control problems have plagued Tinoco, and he appears rather fortunate to have maintained an ERA that respectable. The righty has averaged 5.5 walks and 2.6 home runs per nine innings in the big leagues, leading to an eye-popping 7.40 FIP and a 5.68 xFIP.
Originally acquired by the Rockies from the Blue Jays in the Troy Tulowitzki blockbuster, Tinoco has never missed bats or induced grounders at a particularly strong rate in the minors. The control issues that have emerged in the big leagues weren’t present throughout the bulk of his minor league career, however. Overall, Tinoco has a 4.71 ERA with 7.3 K/9 against 2.8 BB/9 in parts of eight minor league seasons.
Mariners Claim Phil Ervin
The Mariners announced Thursday that they’ve claimed outfielder Phil Ervin off waivers from the Reds, who’d designated him for assignment earlier in the week. Seattle also added right-hander Walker Lockett, another recent waiver claim, to the active roster.
Now 28 years old, Ervin was the 27th overall selection in the draft by the Reds back in 2013. He’s struggled immensely at the plate in 2020, going 3-for-35 with eight strikeouts and six walks. There’s some poor luck at play, evidenced by a ghastly .111 average on balls in play, but Ervin’s hard-hit rate has plummeted from 34.6 percent in 2018 to just 18.5 percent in 2020, per Statcast. He’s always been prone to weak contact when he doesn’t barrel the ball (career 85.4 mph exit velocity), but Ervin’s contact has been weak across the board in 2020.
That said, the 2020 season is a sample of just 42 plate appearances, and Ervin was a roughly league-average bat in parts of three prior seasons. From 2017-19, the former Samford University star hit .262/.326/.438 (98 wRC+ and OPS+) with 17 home runs, 23 doubles, eight triples and 14 stolen bases in 571 trips to the plate. He has experience at all three outfield positions but grades out much better in a corner than he has in his more limited sample of 283 center field innings (-1 DRS, -3.7 UZR).
Ervin doesn’t have minor league options remaining, so he’ll need to stick on the big league club or else be designated for assignment a second time. For now, he’ll give the Mariners a right-handed-hitting backup option in the outfield — one who could potentially fill that role again in future seasons if he shows well in his forthcoming audition.
Jordy Mercer Accepts Outright Assignment
The Yankees announced that veteran infielder Jordy Mercer has accepted an outright assignment to the team’s alternate training site. He was designated for assignment Tuesday, just days after having his contract selected on Aug. 28. Mercer has enough service time that he could’ve rejected the assignment in favor of free agency, but he’ll instead head to the Yankees’ alternate site. As a result, he’ll remain in New York’s 60-man player pool and be eligible to return later in the season should the team wish to re-add him to the 40-man roster.
Mercer, 34, went 2-for-11 with a pair of walks in six games and 13 total plate appearances with the Yankees. The nine-year MLB veteran was Pittsburgh’s everyday shortstop from 2013-18, hitting .257/.317/.383 in 779 games along the way.
Mercer spent last year with the Tigers — his first anywhere other than the Pirates — and salvaged what was shaping up to be a dismal season with an excellent .312/.343/.512 slash in his final 48 games. He returned to the Tigers in 2020 but was cut loose early in the year when they opted to give younger talent a look as their rebuild progresses. He can play all over the infield, so it wouldn’t be a shock to see Mercer return later this month should an injury pop up in the Yankees’ infield.
Twins Outright Danny Coulombe
The Twins have assigned left-hander Danny Coulombe outright to their alternate training site after he cleared waivers, Dan Hayes of The Athletic tweets.
The 30-year-old Coulombe only pitched in two games with the Twins in the short time between the selection his contract and a subsequent late-August DFA. He pitched 2 2/3 shutout innings between those two contests, walking three hitters but also picking up three strikeouts.
Coulombe has appeared in parts of six Major League seasons, 2020 included, and notched a collective 4.19 ERA with 8.5 K/9, 4.0 BB/9 and a 56 percent ground-ball rate. He’s found a new gear in terms of strikeouts over the past two seasons in Triple-A, punching out 61 hitters in just 36 1/3 innings. He’ll stick with the Twins in their 60-man player pool and is eligible to return to the club later this season should the need for some bullpen reinforcements arise.
Recent Player Pool Additions: Tigers, Rangers, Rays, Pirates, Phillies
The flurry of trades leading up to the deadline created some vacancies in teams’ player pools, and we’ve continued to see a few clubs add prospects to their ranks even in the days since the deadline as they look to get said players some vital developmental reps late in the season. Here’s a look at some of the latest additions around the league…
- Outfielder Parker Meadows and right-handers Logan Shore, Jason Foley and Alex Lange have all been added to the Tigers‘ pool, the team announced Thursday morning. Meadows, the No. 44 pick in 2018 and the younger brother of Rays star Austin Meadows, is the most highly regarded of the bunch. He posted strong numbers that summer but struggled in his first full season, slashing .221/.296/.312 against older competition in Class-A. He’s ranked 13th among Detroit prospects at MLB.com and at FanGraphs. Lange, 24, was the better of the two pitching prospects acquired from the Cubs in the trade that sent Nick Castellanos to Chicago last year. He’s pitched as a high as Double-A already and could be an option for the Tigers by next year. Foley was an undrafted free agent in ’16 who missed the 2018 season due to injury but returned with solid numbers in Class-A Advanced last year. Shore, a former second-round pick of the A’s, was sent to Detroit as a PTBNL in 2018’s Mike Fiers trade. Shore’s changeup is considered a potentially plus pitch, but the rest of his arsenal isn’t regarded nearly as highly.
Earlier Additions
- The Rangers announced that infielder Davis Wendzel, outfielder Bubba Thompson and outfielder Steele Walker were all added to their 60-man pool this week. Wendzel was the No. 41 overall pick in the 2019 draft, while Thompson was selected 26th overall back in 2017. Wendzel saw just seven pro games after being drafted last year, so he’s still relatively light on overall professional experience. Thompson had a strong 2018 campaign in his first year of pro ball but saw his production crater in Class-A Advanced last year. He fared better in the Arizona Fall League, however. The 24-year-old Walker was a second-rounder of the White Sox back in 2018 but was traded to Texas over the winter in exchange for Nomar Mazara. He hit .284/.361/.451 in 525 plate appearances across Class-A and Class-A Advanced last year.
- Infield prospect Greg Jones was added to the Rays‘ player pool, per a club announcement. Tampa Bay selected the now-22-year-old Jones with the No. 22 pick out of UNC Wilmington in 2019. He posted a .335/.413/.461 slash in 48 games and 218 plate appearances with the Rays’ short-season Class-A affiliate in the New York-Penn League, although that wasn’t a particularly aggressive initial assignment for a college bat. The success is still notable, of course, and he’ll get some additional simulated game reps and face time with coaches over the season’s final month.
- The Pirates added 2019 first-rounder Quinn Priester to their player pool earlier this week, MLBTR has learned. The Illinois native was selected with the 18th overall pick in the 2019 draft and logged 36 2/3 innings between Rookie ball and short-season Class-A last year. Priester pitched to a 3.19 ERA in that time with a 41-to-14 K/BB ratio and a hefty 59.1 percent ground-ball rate. He’s considered to be one of the organization’s best two to three best pitching prospects.
- The Phillies added former No. 1 overall pick Mickey Moniak to their player pool a day prior to the trade deadline. As Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia noted at the time, it was possible the timing of the move was sheer coincidence and not part of any scheme to trade the 22-year-old outfielder. Moniak had been rehabbing a knee injury, Salisbury wrote, and he’d progressed to the point where he’s able to work at the Phillies’ alternate training site rather than rehab at their Spring Training complex. Moniak hasn’t lived up to his 1-1 billing, but he did post better-than-average numbers against much more advanced pitching in a pitcher-friendly Double-A setting last year. His .252/.303/.439 slash doesn’t look like much, but that checked in 15 percent better than average in the Eastern League, per wRC+.