Minor MLB Transactions: 3/20/16
Here are today’s minor moves from around baseball, with the newest transactions at the top of the post…
- The White Sox acquired right-hander Brandon Sinnery from the Diamondbacks in exchange for cash, Colleen Kane of the Chicago Tribune reports (via Twitter). Sinnery will report to the Sox minor league camp. The righty went undrafted out of the University of Michigan but signed with the D’Backs in 2013 after a season of independent ball. Sinnery has a 4.09 ERA, 2.77 K/BB rate and 5.9 K/9 in 477 1/3 innings, starting 78 of his 80 career games in Arizona’s system.
Chone Figgins Retires
Chone Figgins has officially announced his retirement, as per an Angels press release. He will sign a ceremonial one-day contract with the Halos tomorrow in order to leave baseball in the same uniform in which he spent eight of his 12 MLB seasons.
Figgins was originally drafted by the Rockies in the fourth round of the 1997 draft, and wasn’t a particularly heralded prospect. Faint praise became a positive for Figgins, as he related in his retirement statement:
“There was a quote written about me during my second year in the minors that I’ll never forget. It was a story about all minor leaguers and how scouts projected the progress of their careers. Mine said at best I would be a fringe big leaguer, if I ever made it. To me, that was the greatest quote I ever read about myself. Fringe is usually not a compliment in pro ball, but in my eyes, it meant I could be in the big leagues one day.”
A trade to the Angels in July 2001 led to a big league debut in late 2002 at the high point in Anaheim baseball history. Figgins went from a late season callup to earning a World Series ring, appearing in six postseason games as a pinch-runner during the Angels’ run to their only championship.
After that auspicious debut, Figgins became a key part of the Angels’ lineup over the next seven seasons with a game built around versatility, speed, and high average and on-base skills. Figgins spent most of his time as a third baseman but also saw significant action in center field as well as right, left, short and second. He hit .291/.363/.388 over 4075 PA as an Angel, and is the team’s all-time leader in stolen bases (280) and second on its all-time triples list (53).
Figgins’ all-around value peaked with a 7.7 rWAR/6.5 fWAR season in 2009, which was good timing as he headed into free agency that winter and resulted in a four-year, $36MM contract with the Mariners. Unfortunately for both Figgins and the club, 2009 was his last productive season. Figgins badly struggled in Seattle and was released prior to his final year of that deal.
He briefly signed a minor league deal with the Marlins after that release but was cut in Spring Training and sat out the 2013 season before catching on with the 2014 Dodgers for what ended up being his final 38 games in the Show.
All told, Figgins ended his career with a .276/.349/.363 slash line over 5360 PA, 1298 hits, 341 stolen bases and just under $52MM in career earnings. We at MLBTR congratulate Figgins on a fine career and wish him the best in his post-playing days.
Rafael Soriano Retires
TODAY: Soriano made his retirement official in a statement from the Blue Jays media department today, as the reliever thanked fans, teammates, and personnel from his former clubs for their support over the course of his career.
THURSDAY: Right-hander Rafael Soriano is set to retire, according to James Wagner of the Washington Post (via Twitter). The 36-year-old was set to join the Blue Jays on a minor league deal but had yet to report due to apparent visa issues.
Soriano had a short stint last year with the Cubs after waiting until mid-season to sign. He was limited due to a shoulder injury and ultimately made only six appearances with Chicago before he was released.
Before that, of course, Soriano enjoyed a lengthy run as a prominent late-inning reliever. All told, he’s racked up 636 1/3 innings of 2.89 ERA pitching with 9.1 K/9 against 2.8 BB/9 over 14 MLB campaigns.
That neat summation of his career probably doesn’t do justice to the volume of interesting transactional news that Soriano provided to MLBTR readers over the years. In many ways, his career functions as a crash course in recent hot stove developments.
Soriano had uneven results in his first several seasons, but established himself as a quality pen presence with the Mariners in 2006. He was dealt to the Braves after that season and enjoyed a solid three-year run. Atlanta offered him arbitration when he hit the open market after 2009, with intentions of recouping draft compensation under the old Type A/B system, but was surprised when he decided to accept. Thus began a dizzying series of trade rumors, with Soriano ultimately heading to the Rays in exchange for Jesse Chavez.
In his lone season in Tampa Bay, Soriano turned into a dominant closer, leading the league with 45 saves and posting a 1.73 ERA in his 62 1/3 frames. Entering the open market (again, as a Type A free agent), he landed with the Yankees as Mariano Rivera‘s set-up man. The deal promised the then-Scott Boras client $35MM over three years, and included two consecutive opt-outs.
Soriano’s first year in New York didn’t go as hoped, and he passed on his first opt-out opportunity. But he excelled in 2012, taking over as closer for an injured Rivera, and elected to head back to free agency. Of course, intervening rule changes had since swapped in the qualifying offer system, so this time Soriano declined a $13.3MM qualifying offer and again came with draft compensation attached to his name.
The Nationals added Soriano for two years and $28MM (with half of it deferred) on a contract that included a vesting clause. The veteran displaced an incumbent closer, Drew Storen, and ultimately gave the Nats 128 2/3 innings of 3.15 ERA pitching over a somewhat uneven tenure. (Storen ultimately re-took his closing duties, but the stage had been set for last year’s controversy and his eventual departure from D.C.)
In the aggregate, Soriano topped 200 career saves and was a net positive for the vast majority of his career. While it appears he won’t be taking a shot at a comeback, despite reportedly showing well in the Dominican winter league, Soriano has already completed a ten-year run as one of the game’s most productive overall relievers. MLBTR wishes him the best of luck in his future pursuits.
Braves Claim Jesse Biddle From Pirates
The Braves have claimed lefty Jesse Biddle, MLB.com’s Adam Berry tweets. The Pirates had designated Biddle for assignment last week. It was originally reported that the Pirates had released Biddle with the intention of re-signing him to a minor-league deal, but perhaps they had simply placed him on release waivers, which would have allowed the Braves to claim him.
Biddle will miss the 2016 season after having Tommy John surgery. The Pirates acquired him from Philadelphia earlier this offseason. He struggled the last two seasons in the high minors, but was once one of the Phillies’ top prospects. MLB.com ranked him the No. 53 prospect in baseball after the 2013 season, when he posted a 3.64 ERA with 10.0 K/9 and 5.3 BB/9 in 138 1/3 innings as a 21-year-old at Double-A Reading.
Nationals Release Logan Schafer
Here are today’s minor moves from around the league.
- The Nationals have announced that they’ve released outfielder Logan Schafer. (They also reassigned infielder Jason Martinson to the minors.) The Nats had signed Schafer to a minor-league deal in November. He hit 4-for-20 in Spring Training. The 29-year-old can play all three outfield positions and generally rates as a solid defender, particularly in a corner, but he hasn’t shown enough offense to stick in the Majors. Schafer appeared in all of the last five seasons with the Brewers, accumulating a career .212/.286/.319 line in 646 career plate appearances, including 143 last year. Milwaukee outrighted him after the season.
Cardinals Sign Ruben Tejada
The Cardinals have announced that they’ve signed shortstop Ruben Tejada to a one-year, big-league contract. Tejada will receive $1.5MM, Jon Heyman tweets. MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch was first to report that a deal was imminent (Twitter links). Tejada is a client of the Legacy Agency.
The Mets released Tejada earlier this week. He reportedly rejected a minor-league deal with the Yankees in hopes of finding a big-league deal with another team, and it appears he’s found one. Jhonny Peralta is out ten to 12 weeks after having thumb surgery, which had left the Cardinals without a legitimate starting shortstop — Jedd Gyorko, Greg Garcia and Aledmys Diaz topped the team’s list of internal options.
Tejada now looks like the Cardinals’ presumptive starter at the position until Peralta returns. Tejada’s sudden appearance on the free agent market at this late date provided the Cardinals with the opportunity to acquire something resembling a proven shortstop, albeit one with some drawbacks. The 26-year-old batted a reasonable .261/.338/.350 with New York last season and generally does a good job reaching base, thanks to a good batting eye. He has little power, however and has yet to have a truly strong offensive season, with a .696 OPS as a 21-year-old rating as his finest season at the plate. Metrics rate his defense as about average over the course of his career, though both DRS and UZR were down on his work in 2015. He also irked the Mets at times with his lack of physical conditioning.
Nonetheless, given Tejada’s experience and his ability to keep his head above water as a big-league shortstop, it’s not surprising that the Cardinals pursued him. He can become a free agent after the season due to a clause in his arbitration agreement with the Mets that awarded him an extra day of service time. (I previously wrote, incorrectly, that there was a possibility the Cardinals could take him through arbitration next winter.)
Tejada and the Mets avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $3MM deal last offseason, although the Mets’ plans changed when they acquired middle infielders Neil Walker and Asdrubal Cabrera, and they ultimately owed Tejada only $491K of that $3MM contract after they decided to release him. The Mets’ $3MM deal will therefore have no particular impact on his deal with the Cardinals.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Tigers Outright Montreal Robertson
The Tigers announced today that they’ve outrighted right-hander Montreal Robertson off the 40-man roster and assigned him to minor league camp, clearing a spot on the club’s 40-man roster.
As MLive.com’s Chris Iott writes, Robertson, who was only just added to the 40-man roster this past November, suffered a subluxation in his right shoulder while working out in the weight room last month, sidelining him for a total of six to eight weeks. That injury allowed the Tigers to sneak Robertson through waivers and clear a 40-man spot. The 25-year-old Robertson has a fastball that sits in the upper 90s but has battled control throughout his pro career. He split the 2015 season between Detroit’s Class-A Advanced and Double-A affiliates, working to a 3.31 ERA with 7.7 K/9 against 4.6 BB/9 in 68 innings out of the bullpen. MLB.com ranked Robertson as the club’s No. 26 prospect, while he placed 30th on the same list from Baseball America.
White Sox Outright Zach Phillips, Who Elects Free Agency
The White Sox have outrighted lefty Zach Phillips, Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago was among those to report (via Twitter). Phillips rejected an assignment to Triple-A and elected free agency.
Chicago had added the 29-year-old southpaw to its 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. He spent last year at Triple-A for the organization after coming back over from Japan, working to a 3.13 ERA over 5 2/3 innings with 10.5 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9. Phillips has made 19 total big league appearances over parts of three seasons, but hasn’t cracked the majors since 2013.
Mariners Re-Sign Justin De Fratus To Minors Pact
The Mariners have re-signed righty Justin De Fratus, according to a team press release. He was recently released from the MLB deal he signed with the club earlier in the winter, and will now return to major league camp on a minor league contract.
De Fratus was brought in with hopes that he could return to the form he showed with the Phillies back in 2014. He struggled last year, ultimately losing his roster spot in Philadelphia, and he’s reportedly been unable to regain his former velocity thus far in camp. His results reflect that, but Seattle obviously saw enough to want a continued look — without the commitment of a 40-man slot.
Braves Return Rule 5 Pick Evan Rutckyj To Yankees
The Braves have returned Rule 5 selection Evan Rutckyj to the Yankees, according to an announcement from New York. He obviously cleared waivers given that he’s going back to the New York system, indicating that the rest of the league passed on a chance to step into his Rule 5 rights.
Rutckyj, a 24-year-old southpaw, reached the Double-A level last year for the Yankees and will be shipped to Triple-A upon his return. He spent most of the year at High-A in 2015, and in total ran up 61 2/3 innings of 2.63 ERA pitching with an impressive 12.0 K/9 against 3.1 BB/9.
Atlanta obviously didn’t think that Rutckyj was quite ready to carry that production to a full season in the majors. He got three innings this spring, allowing only one hit but surrendering five free passes.