Chris Marrero To Sign With Japan’s Orix Buffaloes
First baseman/left fielder Chris Marrero has agreed to a deal with the Orix Buffaloes of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, tweets Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports. Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News was the first to report that Marrero, who was recently designated for assignment and outrighted by the Giants, was close to joining the Buffaloes (Twitter link).
The Giants will receive some level of cash compensation for selling Marrero’s contract to the Buffaloes, and Marrero himself will presumably be paid more than he’d have earned if he stuck with the Giants’ Triple-A affiliate, thus making it a winning scenario for all parties involved. Marrero is represented by MSM Sports.
Marrero, 28, was a first-round pick by the Nationals (15th overall) back in 2006 and made his big league debut with the Nats as a 22-year-old in 2011. However, he’s never solidified himself in the Majors and would only see action in parts of two big league seasons with the Nationals before being cut loose in 2013.
Since that time, Marrero has bounced around the minor league circuit, logging seasons with the Double-A and Triple-A affiliates for the Orioles, White Sox and Red Sox before signing a minors pact with the Giants this past winter. A Herculean Spring Training in which Marrero clubbed seven homers with a .979 OPS (plus some injuries to his competitors) led Marrero to break camp with the Giants as part of a left-field platoon with Jarrett Parker. However, Marrero hit just .132/.171/.211 across 41 plate appearances with the Giants before being designated for assignment to clear a spot for Christian Arroyo.
For all of his struggles in the Majors, Marrero has a much stronger .274/.340/.430 career batting line in parts of seven Triple-A seasons. That includes a robust .284/.344/.494 slash and a career-best 23 homers with the Red Sox’ Triple-A affiliate in 2016. If Marrero can find success overseas, he can certainly carve out a lucrative career playing in Japan. Alternatively, he could make some adjustments to his game and pique the interest of an MLB club, perhaps leading to another crack at the Majors somewhere down the line.
Orioles Claim Luis Sardinas
The Orioles have claimed shortstop Luis Sardinas off waivers from the Padres, per a club announcement. He had been designated for assignment recently.
Sardinas, a switch-hitting 24-year-old, gives the Baltimore organization another piece of infield depth. The club had an open 40-man spot to work with, but will need to make an active roster move as Sardinas is out of options.
Things haven’t gone well thus far for Sardinas, who slashed only .163/.226/.163 in his 53 plate appearances with San Diego this year. He has seen action in each of the past four MLB campaigns, including this one, though he has compiled just 480 total plate appearances and owns a lifetime .570 OPS.
That said, Sardinas ranked among the game’s Top 100 prospects according to both MLB.com and Baseball Prospectus in 2013 and 2014. He was praised as an excellent defensive shortstop while ascending through the minors, though that hasn’t borne out in his brief MLB experience to date. With the Orioles, Sardinas figures to serve in a utility capacity — a role that veteran Paul Janish is currently filling with the big league club.
Mariners Acquire Andrew Aplin, Designate Chris Heston
The Mariners have acquired outfielder Andrew Aplin from the Astros, per a club announcement. Cash or a player to be named later will head to Houston in return. To create room on the 40-man roster, Seattle has designated righty Chris Heston for assignment.
[RELATED: Updated Mariners Depth Chart]
Aplin, 26, had just been designated for assignment when the ‘Stros had a need for a 40-man spot. He’ll now head to the division-rival Mariners, who carry a variety of young outfielders on their 40-man roster — a situation with plenty of competition but also a good bit of opportunity.
Seattle is surely intrigued by Aplin’s ability to manage the strike zone, make contact, and get on base. He owns a .375 OBP through thirty games at Triple-A this year. But Aplin has also failed to show much else with the bat at the highest level of the minors, with a composite .245/.341/.329 batting line through 953 total plate appearances over four seasons. He did manage nine home runs in 598 plate appearances at the High-A level back in 2013, however. And Aplin is regarded as a quality defender who can play anywhere in the outfield; Baseball America credits him with a high-quality arm while noting that “his range and defense play up thanks to good routes and reads.”
The 29-year-old Heston, who’s best known for his 2015 no-hitter, has struggled badly in his limited major league opportunities over the past two seasons. Most recently, he was bombed in a spot start on Sunday. Still, Heston had managed a 3.41 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 over 31 2/3 innings this year at Triple-A Tacoma.
Orioles Release Michael Bourn
The Orioles have released outfielder Michael Bourn, according to a club announcement. Bourn exercised his opt-out clause yesterday, per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (via Twitter), and the team obviously elected not to add him to the active roster.
Bourn thrived with the O’s late last year, hitting .283/.358/.435 over 55 plate appearances. And he might well have earned an Opening Day roster spot had he not gone down with an injury during camp. At this stage, though, the opportunity wasn’t there.
While Baltimore surely would’ve preferred to maintain the depth that Bourn offered, there wasn’t really a place for him at the major league level. The club already carries two part-time, left-handed-hitting outfielders in Seth Smith and Hyun-Soo Kim, with righties Trey Mancini and Joey Rickard also part of the outfield picture alongside center field stalwart Adam Jones.
It’s possible, though hardly certain, that Bourn could command a big league job with another organization upon his return to the open market. His ability to handle center field is an obvious benefit. And he has reached base at a .373 clip through eleven games at Triple-A on the year, with ten walks against eight strikeouts, and has swiped three bases.
At the same time, Bourn carries only a .220 batting average through his 51 plate appearances at the highest level of the minors and has managed just two extra-base hits in that brief span. It’s worth bearing in mind, too, that Bourn had largely struggled at the plate over the prior two seasons before landing in Baltimore.
Minor MLB Transactions: 5/23/17
Here are the latest minor moves from around the game:
- The Blue Jays announced that catcher Michael Ohlman has cleared outright waivers and accepted an assignment to Triple-A Buffalo. Ohlman had the option to elect free agency, having been previously outrighted in his career, but he’ll return to Buffalo in hopes of another big league opportunity with the Jays. The 26-year-old went 2-for-9 in his brief MLB debut with Toronto this year, and he’s slashed a more impressive .246/.388/.594 with seven homers and three doubles through 23 Triple-A contests.
Earlier Moves
- Right-hander Al Alburquerque has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Omaha, the Royals announced on Tuesday. Kansas City designated the veteran 30-year-old for assignment over the weekend after just four innings with the big league bullpen. Alburquerque has totaled just six innings in the Majors over the past two seasons after serving as a regular in the Detroit ‘pen from 2013-15. The hard-throwing Alburquerque has no trouble missing bats but has long been prone to control issue as well. Alburquerque has the option to reject the assignment in favor of free agency.
- Per an Orioles announcement, catcher Francisco Pena has been outrighted to Triple-A after clearing waivers. The out-of-options 27-year-old has seen limited action in the majors in recent years, but has slashed .249/.295/.452 in his 1,221 career plate appearances at Triple-A. While he’s a highly regarded defender, Pena may need to boost his on-base abilities before he’ll earn a full shot at the majors.
- The Phillies have released southpaw Mario Hollands, per Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com (via Twitter). Once a promising young reliever, Hollands seemingly never fully recovered from Tommy John surgery. The 28-year-old has produced middling results in the upper minors over the past two seasons since sitting out all of 2015. This year, he has allowed a dozen walks in his 13 frames at Double-A.
- Also hitting the open market is former Phillies righty Dalier Hinojosa, per Matt Eddy of Baseball America. The 31-year-old worked to a 1.51 ERA with 7.8 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 through 35 2/3 MLB frames in 2015-16, but clearly hadn’t convinced teams that was sustainable. Hinojosa hasn’t yet pitched this year due to a shoulder injury.
- It seems that righty Daniel Bard is back at a career crossroads, as he has been released by the Cardinals, according to Eddy’s report. Bard, once an elite bullpen arm with the Red Sox, ran up 19 walks in 8 2/3 outings at the Double-A level as he has continued to struggle to stay in the zone.
- The Braves released veteran minor-leaguer Blake Lalli, per BA. The 34-year-old catcher saw a bit of action at the major league level last year, but he has mostly plied his trade in the upper minors in recent seasons. He was off to a rough start at the plate this year at Triple-A, with a .167/.226/.271 batting line through 53 plate appearances.
- Outfielder Tyler Holt has been released by the Dodgers, Eddy reports. Holt has seen action in each of the last three major league campaigns and appeared in 106 games last year with the Reds, but he’s slashing just .228/.306/.274 in 318 plate appearances at the game’s highest level. The 28-year-old was struggling badly in the upper minors with the Los Angeles organization, but will surely hope to regain some lost momentum with another organization.
- The White Sox have snapped up righty Jake Johansen, who was released recently by the Nationals, according to Eddy. A second round pick back in 2013, Johansen had failed to make the jump to the upper minors and was cut loose after allowing eight earned runs in 11 2/3 innings at Double-A this year.
- Veteran infielder Chris Nelson has joined the Royals on a minors deal, per Eddy. Once a semi-regular player with the Rockies, Nelson has bounced around in recent years and hasn’t seen any major league action since 2014. He spent time in 2016 at Triple-A with the Rockies organization, slashing .232/.273/.310 in 218 plate appearances.
- Finally, the Reds have added MLB veteran Vin Mazzaro on a minors deal. He had been working in indy ball, throwing six scoreless frames for the Somerset Patriots, but will now try to crack the bigs for the ninth consecutive year. Mazzaro had a nice run with the Pirates in 2013, but has not seen much MLB action since. He did work to a 3.22 ERA over 67 Triple-A frames last year, with 5.8 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9, though obviously he didn’t convince many teams with his underlying skills.
Top Prospect Promotions: Travis, Lamet
Here are the latest top prospect promotions of note:
- The Red Sox have announced that first baseman Sam Travis has been called up for his first taste of the majors. The team demoted righty Hector Velazquez to create roster space. Travis, 23, missed much of last year with a torn ACL. He has hit well in 139 plate appearances this year at Triple-A, though, slashing .286/.353/.452 with four home runs while taking 13 walk against 24 strikeouts. Travis, a right-handed hitter, was taken in the second round of the 2014 draft out of Indiana University — where he was a teammate of young Cubs outfielder/catcher Kyle Schwarber — and currently rates third among Red Sox prospects in the eyes of MLB.com.
- Meanwhile, the Padres will get their first look at interesting pitching prospect Dinelson Lamet, per Craig Mish of Sirius XM (Twitter links). He’ll start on Thursday, per the report. Lamet, 24, has shown well in his first full attempt at the highest level of the minors. After streaking through the system last year, he has started the current campaign with 39 innings of 3.23 ERA ball on the back of 11.5 K/9 against 4.6 BB/9. He opened the year rated tenth among Padres’ prospects, according to MLB.com, which noted that his ability to improve his command will likely dictate whether he can stay in the rotation for the long run.
Rockies Re-Sign Stephen Cardullo
The Rockies have reached a new minor-league contract with outfielder/first baseman Stephen Cardullo, per a club announcement. He had been released recently, even as the sides contemplated a new contract.
The 29-year-old Cardullo is expected to miss several months with a fractured wrist. That, evidently, explains the procedural moves; Cardullo will leave the 40-man roster entirely rather than going on the 60-day DL (for reasons that remain unclear). But he’ll still be able to rehab with the organization in hopes of representing an option when he returns to health.
A long-time independent ball player, Cardullo joined the Rockies organization last year and quickly became a fairly notable part of the team’s plans. He has slashed .308/.371/.516 over 483 plate appearances at Triple-A, though he has struggled in brief action at the MLB level.
Indians Sign David Lough
The Indians have signed outfielder David Lough to a minor-league deal, per a club announcement. He’ll report to Triple-A Columbus.
Lough, 31, joined the Tigers on a minors deal over the winter but failed to crack the Opening Day roster. He had struggled to a .169/.210/.203 batting line over 63 Triple-A plate appearances, leading to his release.
While he has never been an impactful hitter, the southpaw-swinging Lough has shown more in the past. In over two thousand trips to the plate at the highest level of the minors, he has slashed .287/.338/.427 with 34 home runs.
Seeing action over each of the past five MLB campaigns, Lough hasn’t quite produced enough with the bat to hold down a steady job. All told, he owns a .254/.300/.371 batting line with 13 long balls through 820 big league plate appearances. But he has typically graded out as a plus defender in the corners and has also seen fairly frequent action in center, making him a flexible option.
For the Indians, Lough represents a depth piece as the club continues to develop its outfield mix. Lonnie Chisenhall and Michael Brantley are both hitting well, but the rest of the group is in some flux. Top prospect Bradley Zimmer has shown talent through six games, but he’s also striking out at a prodigious (42.1%) rate. Daniel Robertson is currently up with three other outfielders — Abraham Almonte, Brandon Guyer, and Austin Jackson — shelved on the 10-day DL.
Cubs Designate Jake Buchanan
The Cubs have designated righty Jake Buchanan, per a club announcement. His 40-man spot will go to lefty Zac Rosscup, whose contract was selected. In a corresponding move, right-hander Dylan Floro was optioned to Triple-A.
Buchanan, 27, has seen limited MLB action in each of the past three seasons. He landed in Chicago early last year after he was released by the Astros. Buchanan had been working at Triple-A to open the 2017 campaign, posting a 4.75 ERA with 6.3 K/9 against 4.1 BB/9 over 41 2/3 innings.
As for Rosscup, he’ll return to the majors for the first time since 2015. He spent all of 2016 rehabbing after shoulder surgery, but had shown well thus far at Triple-A. Through 15 2/3 innings over nine appearances, Rosscup owns a 3.45 ERA with an impressive combination of 25 strikeouts against just three walks.
Tigers Option Anibal Sanchez
The Tigers have optioned veteran righty Anibal Sanchez to Triple-A, manager Brad Ausmus told reporters including Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter links). Sanchez, who would’ve had the right to reject any minor-league assignment, will return to working as a starter at Toledo.
The move was driven by Sanchez himself, per Ausmus. He would like to return to working from the rotation after opening the year in the bullpen. Through 21 innings over 11 outings, Sanchez had allowed 21 earned runs on 34 hits while compiling 22 strikeouts against nine walks.
That was the first time Sanchez had functioned as a reliever for such a dedicated stretch. The vast balk of his dozen-year MLB career has come from the rotation, where Sanchez once thrived. But the results just haven’t been there over the past two seasons — he owns a 5.65 ERA since the start of 2015 — and Detroit wasn’t willing to give him a starting role this year.
It seems optimistic to hope that Sanchez can turn things around by returning to a starting role, though stranger things have happened. It’s worth noting that he’s registering a 10.1% swinging-strike rate in the early going, his best since 2013, and could perhaps boost that yet further if he can get batters to chase outside the zone at a rate closer to his career average. Sanchez’s batted-ball results — .379 BABIP; 3.86 HR/9; 55.9% strand rate — may fall at his feet to large extent, but there’s probably some poor fortune mixed in as well.
Regardless of how things go, Sanchez will earn $16MM this season — the final guaranteed year of the contract he signed before the 2013 campaign. He’ll also earn a $5MM buyout over the winter, unless the Tigers make the surprising decision to pick up his $16MM option.