Minor MLB Transactions: 5/31/17
Here are today’s minor moves from around the league…
- The Orioles announced today that they’ve selected the contract of catcher Francisco Pena from Triple-A Norfolk to replace Welington Castillo, who’s been placed on the 10-day DL due to a groin injury. Pena made the Baltimore roster out of Spring Training in part due to the fact that he’s out of minor league options, but the team ultimately decided that it could not carry three catchers and designated the 27-year-old for assignment. Pena cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A, where he’s batted .229/.260/.375 in 50 plate appearances since clearing waivers. Pena has shown power but a penchant for strikeouts in his brief big league time, though he’s a strong-armed catcher that is regarded as a solid all-around defender.
- Righty William Cuevas was outrighted to the Tigers‘ Triple-A affiliate, as first noted on the club’s transactions page at MLB.com. Cuevas was designated over the weekend, with his 40-man spot going to fellow righty Arcenio Leon. The 26-year-old Cuevas made one appearance for Detroit this season and surrendered four runs in one-third of an inning. He has a 4.06 ERA in nine starts (44 1/3 innings) for the Tigers’ Triple-A affiliate this season and a career 3.87 ERA with 6.5 K/9 against 3.0 BB/9 in 216 1/3 Triple-A innings.
Pirates Place Alen Hanson On Waivers
The Pirates have placed infielder Alen Hanson on waivers, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Additionally, infielder Gift Ngoepe has been optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis. A pair of corresponding moves will be announced tomorrow, Biertempfel notes, adding that infielder Max Moroff is one candidate to be added to the big league roster.
Hanson, 24, long rated as one of the Bucs’ top prospects and at one point was a consensus top 100 prospect in the game. However, his offensive production began to trail off upon reaching Triple-A, and he’s batted just .205/.239/.261 in a combined 92 plate appearances between the 2016 and 2017 seasons. The bulk of his time in the field as a big leaguer has come at second base, though defensive metrics such as Ultimate Zone Rating and Defensive Runs Saved don’t paint a favorable picture.
Hanson broke camp with the Pirates due largely to the fact that he’s out of minor league options, and that same fact may at least give Pittsburgh hope of passing him through outright waivers. Any club placing a claim on Hanson would have to be prepared to carry him on its 25-man roster (or simply attempt to run him through waivers once again with the hope that he’d clear a second time around).
Ngoepe, the first African-born player ever to reach the Major Leagues, made his big league debut earlier this season and has seen action in 27 games with the Pirates. In 63 plate appearances, the 27-year-old has batted .222/.323/.296 with a pair of doubles and a triple. Ngoepe turned in strong defensive marks in a small sample of 110 innings at second base and also saw time at shortstop (26 innings) and third base (14 innings). However, he struck out in 41 percent of his trips to the plate, demonstrating that there’s still more for him to work on at the dish.
Angels Designate Daniel Wright, Select Contract Of Shane Robinson
The Angels announced today that they’ve selected the contract of outfielder Shane Robinson and designated right-hander Daniel Wright for assignment in order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster. Righty Parker Bridwell was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake to clear a spot on the active roster.
[Related: Updated Los Angeles Angels depth chart]
Robinson, 32, saw action in 65 games with the Halos last season and hit .173/.257/.235 over the life of 111 plate appearances. The veteran outfielder has seen action in each of the past six big league seasons, though the resulting .227/.298/.302 batting line has clearly been sub-par. Robinson, though, has plenty of experience at all three outfield positions and has routinely delivered above-average ratings in left field, center field and right field. He’ll give the Halos a defensive-minded reserve in the absence of Mike Trout, as Cameron Maybin and Ben Revere each see an uptick in playing time while Trout recuperates.
The 26-year-old Wright, meanwhile, has pitched just 17 1/3 innings with Anaheim this season after logging 39 2/3 frames between the Reds and Angels last year. Through 57 Major League innings, Wright owns a 5.84 ERA with 5.1 K/9, 2.4 BB/9 and a 37.1 percent ground-ball rate. Wright has a respectable track record in Double-A but has struggled in both Triple-A and the Majors across the past two seasons. He does have a pair of minor league options remaining, so a club in need of optionable pitching depth could pick him up and send him to the minors without once again exposing Wright to waivers.
Cardinals Release Jonathan Broxton
The Cardinals have released struggling right-hander Jonathan Broxton, GM John Mozeliak told reporters (Twitter link via Benjamin Hochman of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch). Right-hander John Gant has been recalled from Triple-A Memphis to take his spot in the St. Louis bullpen.
Broxton, who’ll turn 33 in a little more than two weeks, has been roughed up for a 6.89 ERA with the Redbirds through 16 1/3 innings this season. In that time, the former Dodgers closer has yielded 12 earned runs on the strength of 23 hits and 11 walks (two intentional).
Broxton’s 42.6 percent ground-ball rate is the second-lowest mark he’s posted in any full season of his big league career, as well. His 11.9 percent swinging-strike rate is his best since 2009, however, and he’s still averaging better than 94 mph on his heater, which helped him tally 16 punchouts in those 16 1/3 frames. That, of course, is a modest silver lining, though it does at least create a bit of optimism that the veteran could at least resurface as a serviceable relief arm.
The veteran Broxton is playing out the second season of a two-year, $7.5MM contract with the Cardinals, which guarantees him $3.75MM this year. The Cards will be on the hook for the remainder of that salary even if Broxton signs with another club after formally clearing release waivers. A new team would only be responsible for the pro-rated portion of the league minimum for any time Broxton spent on its Major League roster. (That sum would be subtracted from the remaining $2.54MM that the Cardinals owe Broxton.)
Gant, 24, was one of three prospects acquired by the Cardinals this offseason in the trade that sent left-hander Jaime Garcia to the Braves. He struggled a bit in 50 big league innings with Atlanta last season but has pitched to a very strong 2.19 ERA with 8.0 K/9, 3.6 BB/9 and a 50 percent ground-ball rate through three starts (12 1/3 innings) with the Cardinals’ Triple-A affiliate this year. He missed the first several weeks of the season due to a groin strain.
Nationals Release Joe Nathan
The Nationals have released veteran righty Joe Nathan, according to the International League transactions page. He requested to be released from his minor-league deal with the team, Chris Cotillo of SB Nation reports (Twitter links).
It seems that Nathan, 42, may be preparing to retire, though there’s still no clear indication that he has made a decision. He evidently was not in line to receive a call-up from the Nats, despite the generally poor performances they’ve received from their relief corps.
Nathan was off to a rough start at Triple-A Syracuse. Over 16 innings, he had allowed 11 earned runs on 19 hits. While Nathan recorded a reasonably healthy tally of 15 strikeouts, he also issued eight walks.
Even if he doesn’t end up making it back to the big leagues, the former All-Star closer authored a rather remarkable comeback story. He underwent Tommy John surgery early in the 2015 season, returning to make ten appearances late in the 2016 campaign for the Cubs and Giants.
Braves Outright Josh Collmenter
We’ll track the day’s minor moves in this post:
- The Braves announced that righty Josh Collmenter was outrighted to Triple-A. He had been designated for assignment after a dreadful recent outing. On the year, the soft-tossing 31-year-old has allowed 17 earned runs in as many innings, due in large part to permitting way too many home runs (22.6% HR/FB, 3.71 HR/9). On the positive side, he is averaging 9.5 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9. The seven-year MLB veteran is playing on a $1.2MM contract this year, which he can keep in full even if he rejects the assignment since he has more than five years of MLB service to his credit.
Hector Olivera To Sign With Atlantic League’s Sugar Land Skeeters
Former Major Leaguer Hector Olivera has signed a contract with the Sugar Land Skeeters of the independent Atlantic League, reports Robert Murray of FanRag Sports (via Twitter).
The 32-year-old Olivera hasn’t played since early in the 2016 season thanks first and foremost to a domestic abuse arrest and conviction that caused clubs to steer clear of him even when he was effectively available for nothing. Then a member of the Braves, Olivera was arrested in April 2016 and charged with misdemeanor assault and battery of a woman who was reportedly hospitalized and had visible bruising. He was sentenced to 90 days of jail time, though he seemingly only served 10 of those days as the other 80 days of the sentence were reportedly suspended by the judge.
Olivera is technically still being paid on the six-year, $62.5MM contract he signed with the Dodgers — one of the most ill-fated signings not only in recent memory but in Major League history — and will continue to be paid under that contract through the 2020 season. Beyond his off-field transgressions, Olivera simply never produced in either the Major Leagues or the minors, posting a collective .245/.296/.378 line in the Majors and a .238/.264/.333 line in Triple-A. Those both came in small samples, partially because Olivera also had difficulty staying healthy.
Olivera’s contract became almost immediately regrettable for the Dodgers, who traded him to the Braves barely two months after signing him. Atlanta GM John Coppolella has candidly called that trade a misstep that “still haunts [him].” Atlanta salvaged some value by then dumping Olivera’s contract on the Padres as a means of acquiring Matt Kemp in a trade that saved the Padres about $28MM. That trade was an obvious salary dump from the get-go, but the Padres made that point all the more clear by releasing Olivera immediately after acquiring him — a definitive statement that they wanted nothing to do with the player or his off-field behavior.
The hope for Olivera, presumably, is that strong play on the independent circuit can potentially serve as an avenue back into affiliated ball, though even at a minimal cost, many teams (if not all 30 teams) will undoubtedly refuse to even consider Olivera. The public relations difficulties that would stem from signing someone with his recent criminal record would likely outweigh whatever minimal on-field upside the signing itself may bring.
Royals Place Danny Duffy On DL, Select Contract Of Eric Skoglund
May 30: The Royals have formally announced that Duffy has been placed on the 10-day DL, and Skoglund’s contract has indeed been selected from Omaha in a corresponding move.
The 24-year-old Skoglung was Kansas City’s third-round pick back in 2014 and entered the year ranked third and fourth, respectively, among Royals farmhands according to MLB.com and Baseball America. Both outlets call Skoglund a potential back-of-the-rotation arm, with MLB.com noting that he has a high floor. BA writes that he has three average pitches and excellent control but no plus offerings or a true out pitch.
Prior to his promotion, Skoglund had pitched to a 4.53 ERA with 8.2 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 and a 45.3 percent ground-ball rate in 43 2/3 innings with Omaha. If he can get off to a decent start, it’s possible that he’ll pitch himself into the club’s 2018 rotation plans.
May 29: Royals left-hander Danny Duffy will be placed on the 10-day disabled list and miss the next six to eight weeks due to a grade one oblique strain, reports MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan (via Twitter).
The loss of Duffy, who leads the Royals in innings pitched and has the second-best ERA in their rotation, is yet another blow to a Kansas City club that has gotten off to a dismal 21-28 start to the season and currently sits in last place (6.5 games out of first place) in the American League Central. He’ll join rotation-mate Nate Karns on the 10-day DL.
It’s not immediately clear how they’ll replace him in the rotation, though Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star suggested earlier today (Twitter link) that Eric Skoglund, who was held out of his last start in Omaha, could make tomorrow’s start for the Royals. The team does not yet have a starter listed for that contest, as Karns was only recently placed on the disabled list. Now, with Duffy on the shelf, they’ll need to find a second option to add to the rotation.
For a Royals club that many expect to operate as a seller prior to the non-waiver trade deadline, the loss of one of its best arms for a considerable chunk of the season only seems to make an eventual sale likelier. Players such as Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Lorenzo Cain, Alcides Escobar and Mike Minor are all free agents at season’s end, while Kelvin Herrera, Joakim Soria, Brandon Moss and Jason Hammel are all controlled through the 2018 season.
Minor MLB Transactions: 5/29/17
Here are Monday’s minor moves from around the game…
- The Twins have now also announced that lefty Adam Wilk has cleared waivers and accepted his outright assignment to Triple-A Rochester. Wilk was designated for assignment last Friday after making a pair of appearances with the Twins and will hope to earn another look later in the season. The 29-year-old has posted a 6.75 ERA in 10 2/3 innings between the Mets and Twins this year and a 6.57 ERA in 37 innings as a big leaguer dating back to 2011. He has a solid track record both in Triple-A and in Korea and could give the Twins a long relief option or a spot start option later in the year.
Earlier Moves
- The Twins announced that they’ve selected the contract of left-hander Jason Wheeler, an eighth-round pick from their 2011 draft who’ll be making his Major League debut. Wheeler, 26, posted strong numbers in the lower minors but has seen his production take a step back in parts of three Triple-A seasons. He’s off to a decent start in 2017, having logged 44 innings with a 4.50 ERA, 7.6 K/9, 2.0 BB/9 and a 41.8 percent ground-ball rate. He’ll give the Twins some length in their bullpen on the heels of yesterday’s 15-inning marathon, but there’s also enough uncertainty at the back of the Minnesota rotation that Wheeler could conceivably be a candidate for a starting job. Wheeler has made 140 professional appearances, and all but one of those outings has been a start.
Rays To Promote Jose De Leon
The Rays are bringing up highly touted right-hander Jose De Leon prior to tonight’s game, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. ESPN’s Buster Olney first reported that De Leon “appeared” to be on his way to the Majors (Twitter link). Per Topkin, De Leon won’t immediately be placed into the rotation, as Erasmo Ramirez is still lined up to make tonight’s start even after pitching the final inning of yesterday’s 15-inning game with the Twins.
Acquired from the Dodgers in a straight-up swap for Logan Forsythe this offseason, De Leon has frequented top prospect rankings for the better part of the past three years. He entered the 2017 campaign rated No. 29 on Baseball America’s top 100 prospects list and rated 33rd, 38th and 73rd on the respective lists of MLB.com, Baseball Prospectus and ESPN’s Keith Law. A flexor injury has limited De Leon to just 8 1/3 innings in 2017, but he turned in a brilliant 2.61 ERA with 11.6 K/9 with 2.1 BB/9 in 86 Triple-A innings last year. De Leon also made four starts for the Dodgers in 2016, though he limped to a 6.35 ERA in 17 frames.
It could prove to be a short stay for De Leon this time around, as his promotion appears to be somewhat out of necessity. (Topkin notes that in addition to Ramirez starting one day after recording a save, the Rays also had three relievers throw more than 30 pitches yesterday.) The Rays, after all, don’t have a lot of room in the rotation thanks to strong starts to the season from Chris Archer, Alex Cobb, Jake Odorizzi, Ramirez and Matt Andriese — each of whom carries an ERA of 3.67 or better.
That said, it may not be long before a spot for De Leon materializes. Even with a 27-26 record, the Rays are still often suggested as a candidate to field offers their starting pitchers this summer. That, of course, wouldn’t necessarily be akin to waving a white flag on the 2017 season; rather, the Rays have the pitching depth to be able to deal from their big league rotation in order to acquire controllable help in other areas without necessarily hampering their chances in 2017. In addition to De Leon, the Rays have Jacob Faria and Ryan Yarbrough pitching well in the Triple-A rotation, while lefty Blake Snell has struck out 21 batters in 11 2/3 innings since being optioned earlier this month. Cobb, in particular, is an oft-mentioned trade candidate, given his status as an impending free agent.