Minor MLB Transactions: 8/27/15
Here are the day’s minor moves:
- The Orioles have outrighted outfielder Nolan Reimold to Triple-A, the club announced. While Reimold could have declined the assignment and elected free agency, he’s chosen to accept it, Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports on Twitter. The 31-year-old put up a .227/.306/.340 batting line over 108 plate appearances in his return to Baltimore this year.
- Infielder Alberto Callaspo has been given his release by the Dodgers, the club announced (per MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick, on Twitter). Callaspo was designated for assignment when the Dodgers recently added Chase Utley. He signed with the Braves over the winter but was dealt to Los Angeles in the Juan Uribe deal. All told, Callaspo, 32, has slashed .235/.315/.278 over 261 turns at bat.
White Sox Release John Mayberry Jr.
The White Sox have released outfielder John Mayberry Jr., the team’s Triple-A affiliate announced (Twitter link).
Mayberry had signed a minor league pact with the Sox back on Aug. 7, though his stay with the team’s Triple-A affiliate lasted just 13 games. In those 13 games, the 31-year-old was unable to correct the struggles he displayed earlier this season with the Mets, batting .162/.225/.189 in 40 plate appearances. Typically a potent weapon against left-handed pitching, Mayberry has slashed a combined .175/.246/.381 in 69 plate appearances versus southpaws in the Majors and minors. Throughout his big-league career, Mayberry has hit .260/.315/.517 against lefties.
Chris Perez Retires
Right-hander Chris Perez has retired, as the International League transactions page first reflected and as the Orioles have confirmed to Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (via Twitter). Baltimore had inked Perez while he was in the midst of a 50-game suspension for recreational drug use.
Perez is only 30 years old, though he’s seen action in seven MLB campaigns and thrown 379 1/3 career innings from the pen. He compiled a 3.51 ERA in that span, averaging 8.6 K/9 against 3.9 BB/9 while racking up 133 total saves.
Things haven’t been very smooth for Perez in recent years, on or off the field. Cleveland released him after a mediocre 2013 season (and otherwise would have non-tendered him), and he continued to put up marginal results after signing an incentive-laden free agent contract with the Dodgers.
Perez was twice hit with bans relating to a drug of abuse, and failed to reach the majors this season after signing a minor league pact with the Brewers. He opted out of that deal earlier in the year, but has not made any appearances since.
Of course, Perez did have some quality moments in his career. He’d been a regular contributor previously, but 2010 marked the emergence of the then-24-year-old as a late-inning arm. Including that campaign and the two that followed, he put up 180 1/3 frames of 2.84 ERA pitching while serving as the Indians’ closer — the role for which he’ll be best remembered.
Rangers Claim Chris Rearick
The Rangers have claimed lefty Chris Rearick off waivers from the Padres, Texas executive VP of communications John Blake announced on Twitter. Rearick was designated recently by San Diego to clear space for the addition of righty Jon Edwards to the 40-man roster.
Rearick, 27, has spent most of his time pitching in the upper minors over the last several seasons. While he compiled good numbers throughout his minor league career heading into the 2015 campaign, walks have become a sudden problem. He has averaged six or more free passes in his 44 MiLB frames and his three MLB innings while seeing his overall strikeout rates plummet.
Yankees Activate Michael Pineda, Designate Chris Capuano
The Yankees have designated lefty Chris Capuano yet again, as Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets. His roster spot was needed for the activation of righty Michael Pineda. (New York also optioned Nick Rumbelow and activated Nick Goody, both of whom are also right-handed pitchers.)
Remarkably, this marks the fourth time in the last month that Capuano has hit DFA limbo. With a $5MM salary for this season and an unsightly 7.71 ERA, Capuano has cleared outright waivers and accepted an assignment to Triple-A on the three prior occasions.
The return of Pineda came somewhat sooner than had been expected, as he ultimately missed about a month with a right forearm strain. His health and effectiveness will obviously be critical down the stretch as the Yankees fight for the division title. And Pineda will also be pitching for his next contract, as he’ll hit arbitration for the second (and second-to-last) time over the winter looking to build off of his $2.1MM salary from the present season.
Minor MLB Transactions: 8/26/15
Here are the day’s minor moves:
- The Pirates have outrighted right-hander Josh Wall to Triple-A, as the MLB.com transactions page reflects. Wall has indeed cleared waivers and accepted his assignment, MLBTR’s Zach Links has learned. Though he was called up recently by the Bucs, Wall never made an appearance and was designated for assignment on Friday. He does have a smattering of big league action over the last three seasons, but Wall has spent most of his time of late at Triple-A. This year, he’s worked to a 2.84 ERA with 8.8 K/9 against 2.6 BB/9 (and a career-low 6.5 hits per nine) across 31 2/3 frames at Indianapolis.
Cubs, Emilio Bonifacio Agree To Minors Deal
The Cubs and Emilio Bonifacio are in agreement on a minor league contract, tweets Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. The 30-year-old switch-hitter was recently designated for assignment and released by the White Sox, with whom he had signed a one-year, $4MM contract this winter.
Bonifacio struggled greatly with the White Sox in 2015, hitting just .167/.198/.192 in at plate appearances and missing time on the disabled list due to a left oblique strain. By signing with the Cubs, he’ll return to the team with which he’s had the most recent success in his career. Bonifacio spent most of the 2014 season with the Cubs and batted .279/.318/.373 with a pair of homers and 14 steals.
Bonifacio has been inconsistent throughout his career, but the overall result of his efforts in the Majors is a .259/.316/.337 batting line with 13 homers and 165 stolen bases (in 213 attempts). Bonifacio’s speed is his greatest asset, and that could come in play for the Cubs in September, when he could potentially serve as a late-inning pinch-running option. Bonifacio stole at least 26 bases each season from 2011-14, including 30 steals in just 64 games back in 2012.
Minor MLB Transactions: 8/25/15
Here are the day’s minor moves from around the league…
- Shortstop Pedro Florimon cleared waivers and was assigned outright to Triple-A Indianapolis, the Pirates announced today (on Twitter). Florimon was designated for assignment last week to clear room on the roster for right-hander Josh Wall (who has since been designated himself). The 28-year-old offers little at the plate but has speed and, more importantly, an excellent glove at shortstop. He’s played sparingly in the Majors since serving as the Twins’ primary shortstop in 2013.
- Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register tweets that third baseman Conor Gillaspie cleared waivers after being designated for assignment by the Angels and has been outrighted to Triple-A Salt Lake City. Gillaspie has spent the past three seasons as the White Sox’ primary option at the hot corner, but he struggled in 2015 and was designated for assignment by Chicago. The Halos claimed him, but he didn’t fare much better in Anaheim before being designated a second time. He’s slashed a combined .228/.269/.359 between the two clubs this season — a far cry from the .265/.322/.404 line he compiled in 2013-14.
Blue Jays Claim Donn Roach From Reds
The Blue Jays announced today that they have claimed right-hander Donn Roach off waivers from the Reds. Michael Saunders has been transferred to the 60-day DL to create room on the 40-man roster for Roach, who was designated for assignment by Cincinnati over the weekend. Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet tweets that Roach will head to Triple-A for the time being, though he could obviously be a candidate for a call-up when rosters expand on Sept. 1.
Roach, 25, has appeared in the Majors with the Padres and Cubs over the past two seasons, totaling 33 2/3 innings of 5.35 ERA ball with 18 strikeouts against 16 walks. Those numbers aren’t particularly impressive, of course, but Roach’s extreme ground-ball nature — he has a 65 percent ground-ball rate in those 33 2/3 innings — probably appealed to the Blue Jays, who play in a very homer-friendly park. Roach has allowed just two homers in the Majors, and in 580 minor league frames, he’s averaged 0.4 homers per nine innings.
Orioles Select Paul Janish, Outright Eddie Gamboa
The Orioles have officially selected the contract of infielder Paul Janish, as David Hall of the Virginia Pilot reported on Twitter. Baltimore also announced that righty Eddie Gamboa has been outrighted, though Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com notes on Twitter that a 40-man spot was not needed to accommodate Janish.
Baltimore’s infield was in need of another option with J.J. Hardy hitting the DL. Janish, 32, has not seen time in the big leagues since 2013. All told, he owns a .214/.284/.288 slash over 1,206 plate appearances in the majors. Janish has not been much better offensively at Triple-A this year, carrying a .584 OPS, but is a versatile and highly-regarded defender.
As for the knuckleballing Gamboa, 30, a major league appearance still remains out of reach. He’s now pitched at the Double-A and/or Triple-A level in every season since 2009 without a call-up. Gamboa has thrown 109 1/3 innings on the year at Triple-A Norfolk, working to a 4.36 ERA. Though his knuckler remains quite difficult to square up (7.1 H/9 and 0.4 HR/9), he’s walked 6.8 batters against 6.3 strikeouts per nine innings.