Twins Designate Ryne Harper
The Twins have designated right-hander Ryne Harper for assignment, the club informed reporters including Dan Hayes of The Athletic (Twitter link). His roster spot was needed for the addition of Josh Donaldson.
It’s a tough result for the 30-year-old Harper, who had a solid showing in his long-awaited MLB debut campaign. He worked to a 3.81 ERA with 8.3 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9 over 54 1/3 innings.
Teams interested in cheap and steady innings will surely take a hard look at Harper. He doesn’t throw hard and generates bottom-of-the-barrel fastball spin. But his command-driven, slider-heavy approach still permitted an 11.6% swinging-strike rate and a palatable 1.16 HR/9.
Nationals To Sign Welington Castillo
The Nationals have a deal in place with backstop Welington Castillo, per reports from MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter) and Todd Dybas of NBC Sports Washington (via Twitter). He’ll be in big league camp this spring.
Castillo will join a catching mix that already includes two MLB fixtures in Kurt Suzuki and Yan Gomes, both of whom are playing on guaranteed contracts. The former has dealt with some health issues, but all indications are that the pairing will be available at the outset of the season.
Accordingly, Castillo will have a hard time cracking the Nats’ 26-man roster unless an injury arises or the club decides to carry three backstops. It’s certainly possible he could look to catch on elsewhere if he turns in a solid spring but can’t get a look in D.C. Alternatively, Castillo could end up as depth at Triple-A.
At times in his career, Castillo has been quite a strong offensive producer for a catcher. But he’s coming off of a suboptimal 2019 season (.209/.267/.417) after sitting out for a big chunk of the prior campaign owing to a PED suspension. Through 2,701 career plate appearances over the past decade, Castillo carries a .254/.313/.426 batting line.
Castillo’s reputation isn’t quite as good on the other side of the action. Outside of an outlying 2017 season, he has mostly rated as a poor framer. Castillo has typically graded well as a blocker and thrower, but nosedived in both areas (the former, especially) in that rough 2019 showing.
Mariners Claim Nick Margevicius
The Mariners have claimed lefty Nick Margevicius off waivers from the Padres, per a club announcement. Right-hander Reggie McClain was designated for assignment to create roster space.
Margevicius was designated for assignment recently by the Friars. This move officially ends a rather unusual run through the San Diego system.
A seventh-round choice in the 2017 draft, Margevicius lept from High-A to the majors early in the 2019 season — only to end up in DFA limbo after the close of the campaign. Had he not been utilized in the majors last year, Margevicius wouldn’t have added to the team’s 40-man roster pressures.
Presumably, the Pads felt they got enough of a look at the soft-tossing 23-year-old to shrug off his loss. Margevicius certainly wasn’t ready for prime time, as he managed only a 6.79 ERA with 42 strikeouts and 19 walks in his first 57 MLB innings (over a dozen starts and five relief appearances). But he was better in his dozen Double-A outings, where he worked to a 4.30 ERA with 6.9 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9.
As for McClain, he’s also off the MLB roster after debuting in 2019. He mustered an ugly 11:13 K/BB ratio in 21 innings in the bigs but did produce a hefty 64.8% groundball rate. The 27-year-old was much more effective in the minors, compiling 72 2/3 innings of 2.23 ERA ball over stints at the High-A, Double-A, and Triple-A levels.
Cubs Nearing Deal With Steven Souza
The Cubs are closing in on a deal with free agent outfielder Steven Souza Jr., per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (via Twitter). If completed, it’ll be the Chicago organization’s first MLB contract of the offseason.
Souza was previously cut loose by the Diamondbacks. The Arizona organization decided against tendering him and paying a projected $4.125MM salary in Souza’s final year of arbitration eligibility.
This news helps explain the Cubs’ decision to open a 40-man spot today. Adding Souza will not really change the pitch of the austerity-themed offseason, but it does represent a notable commitment that could potentially have an intriguing butterfly effect.
Souza, who’s looking to bounce back following a 2019 season lost to injury, has played almost exclusively in right field during his five seasons in the majors. That has been the primary domain of high-proced Cubs veteran Jason Heyward, who could also appear in center.
There’s now a bit of a crowd in the outfield picture. Kyle Schwarber has spent most of his time in left and figures to do so again. Ian Happ has been seen as an option up the middle but could be utilized in a variety of manners (including in the infield). Albert Almora is a possible platoon partner for Heyward or Happ. Star third baseman Kris Bryant has also spent time in the corner outfield in recent seasons.
At a minimum, the addition of Souza makes it tougher than ever to envision Nicholas Castellanos returning. Even sans Castellanos, the roster may yet be pared through trade — with Bryant still the most intriguing possibility.
Souza won’t necessarily be assured of a significant role — or even a roster spot out of camp. He’s not only working back from a serious knee injury, but needs to prove he can rebound at the plate. Souza managed only a .220/.309/.369 batting line in 272 plate appearances in 2018, another injury-limited campaign.
The Cubs obviously hope that Souza can rediscovery the form he showed back in 2017, when he was an effective performer for the Rays. He turned in .239/.351/.459 slash with thirty long balls and 16 steals over 617 trips to the plate, easily representing his best season in the bigs. Souza was even then prone to strike out in about three of every ten plate appearances, but drew walks at a healthy 13.6% clip and made plenty of good contact.
Souza has also graded as a plus defender and baserunner at times. When he put it all together in ’17, he was a 3.8 fWAR / 4.1 rWAR performer. Anything approaching that level of production would make this signing a slam dunk for the Cubs, though that’s probably also a low-likelihood outcome given Souza’s more recent track record.
Cubs Outright CD Pelham
The Cubs have outrighted southpaw CD Pelham after he cleared waivers, the team announced and MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian was among those to tweet. That gives the Chicago an open 40-man spot to work with.
Pelham, who’ll turn 25 in February, was acquired through a waiver claim earlier in the offseason. Now, the Cubs have successfully stashed him in the ranks of the non-roster invitees.
The Cubs hope to help Pelham rediscover his form after a brutal 2019 season. He had earned his way up for a brief MLB debut in 2018, skipping over Triple-A entirely. But Pelham struggled badly in the upper minors in the just-completed campaign, coughing up a whopping 43 earned runs in 32 1/3 innings while carrying an ugly 37:40 K/BB ratio.
Those numbers obviously aren’t the ones that the Cubs were focused on when they targeted Pelham. He’s a 6’6 lefty who pumps upper-nineties heat and has a history of strong strikeout numbers in the minors. If the Cubs can help him refine his command and secondary slider, there may be some real upside.
Giants Sign Darin Ruf
The Giants have inked first baseman/outfielder Darin Ruf to a minor league contract, Jayson Stark of The Athletic reports. The deal includes an invitation to major league spring training.
The 33-year-old Ruf is returning stateside after spending three seasons with the Korea Baseball Organization’s Samsung Lions, who purchased his contract from the Dodgers in February 2017. It proved to be a great move for the Lions, as Ruf slashed an excellent .313/.404/.564 line with 86 home runs over 1,756 plate appearances as a member of the team.
Long before heading to Korea, Ruf entered pro ball as a 20th-round pick of the Phillies in 2009. He picked up at-bats with the major league club in each season from 2012-16, hitting a decent .240/.314/.433 (105 wRC+) with 35 homers in 833 PA, but he logged dismal production in his most recent MLB campaign. Ruf spent the majority of that season at the Triple-A level, where he owns a lifetime .280/.345/.457 mark and 28 HRs in 859 trips to the plate.
Minor MLB Transactions: 1/23/20
The latest minor league transactions from around the game…
- The Dodgers released their list of Spring Training non-roster invites, most of which have already been detailed on MLBTR’s pages. One previously unreported name on the list is left-hander Kyle Lobstein, who is back with L.A. on a minor league contract. This will be Lobstein’s second stint in the organization, as he pitched for the Dodgers’ Double-A and Triple-A affiliates in 2018 before moving on to pitch for the Athletics’ Triple-A team in 2019. Lobstein posted a 4.75 ERA, 2.06 K/BB rate, and 9.0 K/9 over 66 1/3 innings last season, with virtually identical numbers against both right-handed and left-handed batters. The 30-year-old Lobstein posted a 5.06 ERA over his 128 career Major League innings, all with the Tigers and Pirates from 2014-16.
Red Sox Sign Juan Centeno To Minor League Deal
The Red Sox have re-signed catcher Juan Centeno, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reports (Twitter link). Centeno’s minor league contract contains an invitation to Boston’s Major League Spring Training camp.
Centeno chose to become a free agent in November after the Red Sox outrighted him off their 40-man roster. The 30-year-old backstop originally joined the Sox on a minor league deal last offseason and ended up appearing in seven MLB games during the 2019 season.
Those appearances marked seven straight seasons of Major League action for Centeno, though he has only 118 games and 371 total plate appearances as a big leaguer. The bulk of that experience came in 2016, when he hit a respectable .261/.312/.392 over 192 PA with the Twins, though Centeno has primarily been used as a depth option at the MLB level. Centeno will again return to that role in 2020, joining Jett Bandy as spring competition for Kevin Plawecki for the backup catching job behind incumbent Red Sox starter Christian Vazquez.
Mariners To Sign Alen Hanson To Minors Deal
The Mariners have agreed to sign utilityman Alen Hanson to a minor league contract, according to Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors (Twitter link). The deal contains an invitation to Seattle’s Major League spring camp.
Most immediately, Hanson gives the M’s some experienced outfield depth in the wake of today’s news that Mitch Haniger recently underwent core surgery and will miss the start of the season. Since Haniger is expected to be back before the end of April, however, Hanson’s versatility gives him a shot at remaining on Seattle’s roster even after Haniger returns. Over 261 career games at the big league level, Hanson has started at every position on the diamond except pitcher and catcher.
Not much hitting pop has come along with that defensive flexibility, as Hanson has only a .232/.266/.368 slash line over 625 career plate appearances in the majors, and he also hasn’t hit much at the Triple-A or even Double-A levels. The 27-year-old has bounced around between four different organizations over his pro career, seeing MLB action with the Pirates, White Sox, Giants, and Blue Jays.
With Haniger on the shelf, Jake Fraley and Braden Bishop stand out as Seattle’s top candidates for right field playing time. Kyle Lewis could also see some time at the position if not in left field, while Dee Gordon is expected to be deployed at multiple positions. Hanson will be battling for a utility role with such players as Tim Lopes, Patrick Wisdom, Dylan Moore, and Donnie Walton.
Indians Sign Dominic Leone, Anthony Gose
The Indians announced a series of non-roster invitations to Major League Spring Training on Thursday, including veteran right-handed reliever Dominic Leone and outfielder-turned-reliever Anthony Gose.
Leone, a client of Frye-McCann Sports, spent the past two seasons with the Cardinals and has also logged big league time with the Blue Jays, Diamondbacks and Mariners. The Cardinals picked him up in the trade that sent Randal Grichuk to Toronto, but things didn’t go as planned for Leone in St. Louis. After pitching to a 2.56 ERA (and 2.94 FIP) with 10.4 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9 in his lone season as a Blue Jay, the now-28-year-old Leone stumbled to a 5.15 ERA/4.77 FIP in 64 2/3 innings as a Cardinal from 2018-19.
In 2018, Leone was plagued by a nerve issue in his arm that limited his time on the field, but he does carry a lifetime 3.92 ERA with better than a punchout per inning in 243 1/3 big league frames. He’ll now look to earn a fresh start in Cleveland — the fifth organization of his professional career.
Gose, now 29, was at one point ranked among the game’s best outfield prospects but simply never was able to put things together as a position player. The left-hander was a two-way star at the time he was drafted and tried his hand as a two-way player a couple seasons ago before committing fully to the mound in 2019.
Gose, who is represented by CAA, split the ’19 season between the Indians’ Class-A Advanced and Double-A affiliates, showing an ability to miss bats but also demonstrating substantial control problems that may not have been entirely unexpected for an outfielder who is converting to the mound. In 29 innings this past season, he posted a sterling 2.48 ERA with 35 strikeouts but also yielded an alarming 29 free passes with six hit batsmen. Clearly, there’s some potential within Gose, but he’ll need to hone in his control of the strike zone if he’s to emerge as a viable bullpen option at the MLB level.