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Yankees Claim Duke Ellis

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The Yankees announced that they have claimed outfielder Duke Ellis off waivers from the Mariners. The latter club designated him for assignment in recent days. To open a 40-man spot, right-hander Ian Hamilton was transferred to the 60-day injured list.

Ellis, 26, is known for his standout speed. The White Sox briefly called him up earlier this year and he stole four bases in four tries. In 273 minor league games, he has stolen 134 bases while only being caught 18 times.

His work at the plate hasn’t as impressive. He has hit .238/.325/.339 in his minor league career, production which translates to an 85 wRC+, indicating he’s been 15% below league average. Still, the idea of having a speedy outfielder on the bench has been enough for Ellis to garner plenty of interest. After his brief look with the White Sox earlier this year, he has gone to the Mets, the Mariners and now the Yankees via waiver claims.

Finding a roster spot for such a specific skill set can be tricky but it’s possible that the Yankees will find room for Ellis as rosters expand next week, or perhaps in the playoffs where extra off-days lead to a club requiring fewer pitchers. A speedster such as Ellis could be a difference maker in a close game, particularly in the era of the free runner in extra innings. Ellis has a full slate of options and just a few days of service time.

Pirates Designate Jake Woodford For Assignment

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The Pirates announced that they have placed catcher Joey Bart on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain and recalled catcher Henry Davis, a swap that was reported yesterday. They also reinstated infielder Nick Gonzales from the injured list and designated right-hander Jake Woodford for assignment. Robert Murray of FanSided reported on X that Woodford was being designated for assignment prior to the official announcement. Prior to that, it was noted by members of the Pittsburgh beat that Woodford was clearing out his locker. Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review was among those to pass that along on X.

Woodford, 27, was selected to the club’s roster at the end of July. He has since tossed 22 innings for the Bucs over six appearances, allowing 6.95 earned runs per nine. When combined with his time with the White Sox earlier this year, Woodford has an 8.01 ERA on the season.

It’s the second straight rough campaign for Woodford, who had previously posted some decent results with the Cardinals. Over the 2021 and 2022 seasons, he tossed 116 innings for that club with a 3.26 ERA. His 15.4% strikeout rate in that time wasn’t special but he limited walks to a 7.5% clip and got grounders on 45.8% of balls in play. But his ERA jumped to 6.23 last year, which led the Cards to non-tender him, and his ERA has crept even higher here in 2024.

With the trade deadline in the rear-view mirror, the Pirates will have to place Woodford on waivers. Based on his struggles, the interest is likely to be minimal, meaning he should be a free agent in the coming days. When the White Sox designated him for assignment earlier this year, he passed through waivers unclaimed and then elected free agency, a right he had based on having at least three years of major league service time.

White Sox Claim Jacob Amaya, Designate Nick Senzel For Assignment

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The White Sox announced today that they have claimed infielder Jacob Amaya off waivers from the Astros. The latter club had designated him for assignment on the weekend. Infielder Nick Senzel was designated for assignment by the White Sox in a corresponding 40-man roster move for the claim of Amaya. Infielder Bryan Ramos has been recalled to take Senzel’s active roster spot. The Sox also recalled left-hander Sammy Peralta and optioned lefty Ky Bush.

Amaya, 25, has just five major league games and ten plate appearances but is now joining the fourth organization of his career. An 11th-round pick of the Dodgers, he was flipped to the Marlins in the January 2023 trade that sent infielder Miguel Rojas to Los Angeles. He spent just over a year in the Marlins’ system but was designated for assignment in April of 2024 before being flipped to the Astros for right-hander Valente Bellozo and cash considerations.

Prospect evaluators have long praised Amaya for his defense, but his bat has been more questionable, which is borne out by the numbers. In 450 minor league games from 2021 to the present, he has slashed .240/.335/.384 for a wRC+ of 86. His 12.3% walk rate in that time is strong but he hasn’t made a ton of impact when putting the bat on the ball.

Amaya can still be optioned for the rest of this year but will be out of options next year. He has mostly played shortstop but has also seen some time at second and third base. The rebuilding Sox don’t have a ton set in stone in their future infield. Nicky Lopez has appeared in 105 games for them this year but is hitting a tepid .240/.309/.293 for a wRC+ of 74. He could be retained via arbitration for next year but would be a due a raise on his $4.3MM salary and could be non-tendered. Paul DeJong was traded to the Royals. Yoán Moncada is in the final guaranteed season of his contract and club won’t have much interest in picking up his $25MM club option for 2025.

Perhaps that will get Amaya a chance to earn some playing time for the rebuilding club. Even if his bat doesn’t come around, having a glove-first infielder is a sensible move for a rebuilding team that will undoubtedly be giving plenty of chances to unproven pitchers in the future.

That same uncertainty is what opened a spot for Senzel. The White Sox signed him in the middle of July after he was released by the Nationals. He got 32 plate appearances with the Sox but hit just .100/.129/.133 in those. Those struggles have nudged him off the roster and the Sox will have to put him on waivers now that the trade deadline has passed.

The Nats signed him to a one-year, $2MM deal in the offseason after he was non-tendered by the Reds. He was designated for assignment by the Nats in July, when a trade was still possible, but he ended up released. Presumably, the interest hasn’t been raised during Senzel’s tenure with the White Sox, so he’s likely to end up a free agent again.

Though he was once a second overall pick and ten ten prospect in the sport, his bat hasn’t played at the major league level. He has over 1600 plate appearances to this point but has hit .232/.299/.363 in those for a wRC+ of 76.

The Nats are still on the hook for the majority of that $2MM salary. If another club is intrigued by Senzel’s past prospect pedigree, they could sign him and pay him only the prorated portion of the $740K major league minimum salary. That amount would be subtracted from what Washington pays.

Rays Select Erasmo Ramírez

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August 26: The Rays made it official today, announcing that they have selected Ramírez to the roster, with Lopez optioned as the corresponding move.

August 25: The Rays plan to select veteran right-hander Erasmo Ramírez from the Triple-A Durham Bulls, reports Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 Houston. He will join the team on Monday, in time for the first game of a three-game set against the Mariners. The Rays already have an open spot on the 40-man, although they will need to make room for Ramírez on the active roster.

Ramírez, 34, is a 13-year MLB veteran who has pitched for six different clubs since making his debut in 2012. Funnily enough, he spent the first seven years of his professional career (and his first three years in the majors) with the Mariners – the team he will likely face in his next big league outing. Ramírez spent the 2012-14 seasons with Seattle before the Mariners traded him to the Rays in March 2015. Two and a half years later, Tampa Bay flipped him back to Seattle at the 2017 trade deadline. He would remain with the M’s through the 2018 campaign.

After that, Ramírez spent time with the Red Sox, Mets, Tigers, and Nationals before finding his way back to the Rays in 2023. He re-signed with the club on a minor league deal this past offseason, and he has already spent one brief stint in the majors in 2024, pitching 16 innings with a 4.50 ERA and 5.22 SIERA. The Rays DFA’d him in May, but he accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A, where he has a 3.02 ERA over 47 2/3 frames.

Ramírez won’t be a high-leverage arm for the Rays, but he can be a valuable innings eater out of the bullpen. He threw 146 2/3 MLB innings from 2022 to ’23, and he regularly goes multiple innings in an outing. Tampa Bay’s relief corps ranks third in the majors in innings pitched since the All-Star break, so they could surely use the extra help. They may have the second-lowest bullpen ERA (2.29) and SIERA (3.11) in that time, but a fresh arm to help shoulder the workload is never a bad thing. The Rays optioned bulk reliever Joel Kuhnel to allow for Jacob Lopez to make a spot start today, so Kuhnel cannot be recalled for at least 15 days unless he is the 27th man for a doubleheader or replacing a pitcher on the IL. Presumably, Lopez will return to Triple-A, despite his strong performance today (5 IP, 1 ER), and Ramírez will take his spot on the 26-man roster.

Giants Acquire Nate Furman As PTBNL In Alex Cobb Deal

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The Giants have acquired minor league infielder Nate Furman from the Guardians as the player to be named later in the trade that sent Alex Cobb from San Francisco to Cleveland, per announcements from both clubs. Cleveland also sent young lefty Jacob Bresnahan to San Francisco at the time of the swap. Robert Murray of FanSided reported Furman’s swap prior to the deal being made official.

Furman, 23, was Cleveland’s fourth-round pick back in 2022. He’s not ranked prominently among the team’s prospects but posted a big .338/.417/.500 batting line in 176 plate appearances at High-A this season before struggling in 13 games in the wake of a promotion to Double-A (.125/.300/.200 in 51 plate appearances). It’s possible that health played a role in those struggles with the Guards’ affiliate in Akron, however. Furman hit the injured list with a strain in his right shoulder late in June, was transferred to the minor league 60-day injured list in July, and has still yet to return to action.

With the Guards, Furman played primarily second base and third base. He played both middle infield slots in college at the University of North Carolina. Scouting reports tout him as a plus runner who’ll likely settle in at second base. While Furman didn’t show much power in college (three career homers) and didn’t hit a home run in 2023, he popped seven long balls in High-A this season. He’s also 47-for-54 in stolen bases during his young professional career, and he’s shown a plus approach at the plate, with a 13.6% walk rate against a 13.9% strikeout rate. Furman has high-end speed and bat-to-ball skills, but he’ll need to continue to add power and/or break out as a high-level defender at second base in order to profile as a regular.

The trade of Furman finalizes the return for the veteran Cobb, whom Cleveland has thus far only been able to utilize for two starts. The veteran righty pitched 10 1/3 innings and allowed five runs during that pair of outings and has since been placed back on the 15-day injured list due to a finger injury. Those are the first two starts Cobb has made this season. He opened the year on the injured list while rehabbing from offseason hip surgery and dealt with shoulder and blister issues that delayed his return to the big leagues.

Red Sox Designate Joely Rodriguez For Assignment

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The Red Sox announced Monday that they’ve designated left-handed reliever Joely Rodriguez for assignment and selected the contract of righty Brad Keller from Triple-A Worcester in his place.

Rodriguez was selected to the 40-man roster himself on Friday, and the Sox used him heavily over the weekend. The 32-year-old southpaw pitched in three straight games from Friday through Sunday, logging 2 2/3 innings and allowing a run on four hits and no walks with one strikeout. Rodriguez was surely unavailable today for what’s effectively a doubleheader — the Sox will finish their suspended game against the Blue Jays and then play a second game versus the Jays this evening — and will be jettisoned from the roster for a fresh arm in Keller.

This weekend’s stretch of three solid appearances from Rodriguez helped to pare down a rough earned run average that now sits at a still-unsightly 5.93 on the season — albeit in just 13 2/3 innings. Rodriguez’s under-the-hood numbers are far, far better. He’s fanned a below-average 18.8% of his opponents but also sports a pristine 3.1% walk rate and a massive 59.2% ground-ball rate in this season’s 14 appearances. Metrics like xFIP (3.07) and SIERA (2.87) are much more bullish on his performance than his ERA.

That’s nothing new for Rodriguez, who sports a roughly average 22.5% strikeout rate in his career, a higher-than-average 10% walk rate and a terrific 56% ground-ball rate. In 170 2/3 innings, he’s posted a 4.80 ERA, but his respectable ability to miss bats and huge ground-ball tendencies have long led ERA alternatives to forecast better bottom-line results. Rodriguez has at times had success in the majors, but his whiffs and grounders have been undercut by persistent struggles with men on base; his career 64% strand rate is about eight percentage points worse than average.

Now that Rodriguez has been designated for assignment, he’ll be placed on waivers and made available to the other 29 clubs. A new team would owe him a prorated $2MM base salary for any time spent on the big league roster or injured list (about $344K for the remainder of the season). If he goes unclaimed, he can reject his outright assignment, become a free agent, and hope to latch on with a new club as a depth option prior to the Aug. 31 postseason eligibility deadline.

Today’s move is a swap of one veteran for another. Keller will rejoin the team after being previously designated for assignment himself, electing free agency, and returning on a minor league deal. He’s appeared in 15 games for Boston this season and pitched 37 2/3 innings of 5.30 ERA ball with a 17.8% strikeout rate, 7.7% walk rate and 49.3% ground-ball rate. He’s been working primarily as a starter in Worcester and is stretched out for long relief if needed. In 30 innings with the WooSox this season, Keller has a 3.00 ERA.

Keller is in his first season with the Red Sox organization but spent six years as a fixture on the Royals’ pitching staff. From 2018-20, he was a regular in the rotation and a steady source of quality innings. His results dipped in 2021, and by 2023 his command had deteriorated to the point where he walked a stunning 45 batters in 45 1/3 innings. Keller eventually hit the injured list and was diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome, which required season-ending surgery. He’s yet to rediscover his 2018-20 form (360 1/3 innings, 3.50 ERA, 16.8% strikeout rate, 9.1% walk rate, 52.1% grounder rate), but he’s still relatively young at 29 and has been outstanding in the minors recently. Over his past 22 innings in Triple-A, Keller sports a 0.82 ERA and 15-to-1 K/BB ratio.

Nationals Promote Dylan Crews

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Aug. 26: The Nationals have formally selected Crews’ contract, per a team announcement. Their 40-man roster is now at capacity.

Aug. 25: The Nationals announced that they have optioned catcher Riley Adams to Triple-A, making room for Crews to join the active roster tomorrow.

Aug. 23: The Nationals are planning to promote prospect Dylan Crews, reports Grant Paulsen of MLB Network Radio on X. Crews will be making his major league debut when the Nats host the Yankees on Monday. The young outfielder is not currently on the club’s 40-man roster but they already have a vacancy there. Unless they use that roster spot over the weekend, only a corresponding active roster move will be necessary.

Crews, now 22, was selected with the second overall pick in last year’s draft, after his Louisiana State teammate Paul Skenes was taken first by the Pirates. Crews put up huge numbers at the plate throughout his college career and carried that over into his professional career. After drafting him last summer, the Nats got his feet wet with some time at the Complex League level, Single-A and Double-A. He slashed .292/.377/.467 in 159 plate appearances for a wRC+ of 135.

Coming into 2024, Crews was already considered one of the top ten prospects in the sport and he has continued to justify that status here in 2024. The Nats started him at Double-A and he got into 51 games at that level this year. He slashed .274/.343/.446 for a 122 wRC+ while also stealing 15 bases. He was then promoted to Triple-A and has played in 48 games at that level, producing a line of .271/.343/.464 and a 108 wRC+ while swiping another 10 bags.

In addition to that strong work at the plate and on the basepaths, Crews is considered a strong defender who could stick in center field for the long term. The Nats have given him a bit of time in the corners but have mostly had him up the middle, and will likely view him as a fit there for the future.

With his ability to contribute in all facets of the game, he is unanimously viewed as one of the best prospects in the sport at the moment. Baseball America currently lists him fourth overall, though fellow Nat James Wood is listed #1 and has since graduated from prospect status, effectively putting Crews in the #3 spot. The other two guys ahead of Crews are already in the majors: Jackson Holliday of the Orioles and Junior Caminero of the Rays. FanGraphs has Crews at #6, with MLB Pipeline at #3, ESPN at #12 and Keith Law of The Athletic at #7.

The Nats have been in rebuilding mode for a few years and have been gradually building a core of young and controllable talent. In addition to the aforementioned Wood, they have shortstop CJ Abrams, pitcher MacKenzie Gore and others. Their record is 58-70 this year, well out of contention, so they can focus on playing young players and getting them acclimated to the big leagues.

It’s likely not a coincidence that Crews is being promoted at this part of the calendar, as the Nats should be able to keep his rookie status intact for 2025. To lose rookie status, a position player needs to either spend 45 days on an active roster or log 130 at-bats. There are now less than 45 days left in the 2024 season, so the Nats will undoubtedly manage his playing time in such a way that he doesn’t get to that 130 at-bat threshold.

That is significant due to the prospect promotion incentive. In an attempt to mitigate service time manipulation, the collective bargaining agreement allows clubs the chance to earn an extra draft pick if they promote a top prospect for a full season and that player goes on to win Rookie of the Year or meet other awards voting criteria. By keeping Crews a rookie for 2025, the Nats will have a chance to reap that reward if he ends up sticking on their roster for all of next year.

For now, it will be interesting to see how the Nats deploy Crews in the outfield. As mentioned, Crews is considered a capable defender in center but has seen some time in the corners. The Nats currently have Jacob Young, one of the best defensive center fielders in the league. Young has hit just .248/.308/.318 this year for a 79 wRC+ but he has 13 Defensive Runs Saved and 18 Outs Above Average. That OAA total is tops among all fielders at all positions this year, while the DRS mark is third among center fielders behind Jarren Duran and Daulton Varsho.

Perhaps the club will have Wood in left, Young in center and Crews in right, though they could also have Alex Call in right and bump Young down to fourth outfielder status. Call is slashing .347/.429/.531 this year in his 112 plate appearances.

Regardless of how they disperse the playing time, it’s yet another promotion that is part of the Nats putting together a young group they can build around. As they push towards opening a new competitive window, their payroll slate is fairly clean. With the Patrick Corbin contract off the books after this season, their two notable commitments will be for catcher Keibert Ruiz and retired star Stephen Strasburg. Perhaps that will make them an interesting player in the upcoming offseason, though that might depend on how their young players perform in the remainder of the schedule.

Cubs Outright David Bote

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The Cubs have sent veteran infielder David Bote outright to Triple-A Iowa, according to his transaction log on MLB.com. He had been designated for assignment on Friday when the Cubs claimed Gavin Hollowell off of waivers from the Diamondbacks.

Bote has the right to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency. However, he is a few days shy of the five years of MLB service time he would need to reject the assignment without forfeiting the guaranteed salary remaining on the five-year, $16MM contract he signed with the Cubs during the 2019 campaign. With just under 20% of the season left to play, that works out to about $1.05MM in salary this year, plus a $1MM buyout on his club option for 2025. That’s significantly more money than Bote could command if he elected free agency and signed on with a new team, so he will almost certainly accept the assignment and report to the Iowa Cubs.

In 37 games for the Chicago Cubs this year, Bote hit .304 with a 105 wRC+ over 48 plate appearances. He spent most of his time playing third base, though he also filled in at first and second. Despite his positional versatility and solid offensive numbers off the bench, he was an easy choice for the Cubs to DFA when they needed to free up a spot on the 40-man roster. Not only has he struggled over the past month (2-for-12 since the All-Star break), but given his unique contract situation, the Cubs knew they could remove him from the roster without the risk of losing him completely. Thus, he will continue to serve as additional depth for the team at Triple-A, where he has 37 doubles, 21 home runs, and a 109 wRC+ in 126 games over the past two seasons.

Pirates To Recall Henry Davis, Place Joey Bart On 10-Day IL

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Henry Davis is on his way back to Pittsburgh. The Pirates will place catcher Joey Bart on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain, reports Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. To replace Bart on the active roster, the team will recall former top prospect Henry Davis from Triple-A Indianapolis. Presumably, the Pirates will announce these transactions before tomorrow’s game against the Cubs at PNC Park.

Davis, 24, was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 draft, and he was a consensus top-100 prospect in the game entering the 2022 and ’23 seasons. However, he struggled in the majors last year, batting .213 with a .653 OPS over 62 games in his rookie campaign. Drafted as a catcher, he also struggled to adjust to his new role in right field, producing -6 Outs Above Average (OAA) and -9 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) in just 417 1/3 defensive innings.

The Pirates returned Davis to his natural position in 2024, but his results at the plate were no better to kick off his sophomore campaign. He hit so poorly over the first month of the season (.486 OPS in 23 games) that he was optioned to Triple-A in May. Although he immediately turned things around in the minor leagues, slashing .296/.436/.642 over 23 games, Davis struggled once again after earning another promotion to the majors; he went 2-for-17 over six games in June. His tough luck continued when a concussion forced him to the IL, and after he was cleared to play, he was optioned back to Triple-A, in large part because Bart was performing so well.

Indeed, Bart, 27, has been nothing short of excellent for the Bucs in 2024. The Pirates traded for him in April after he was designated for assignment by the Giants. He missed most of June with a thumb injury, but aside from that, he has been one of the team’s best hitters all season. Across 63 games, Bart is batting .272 with 12 home runs and an .844 OPS. His defensive metrics behind the plate are below average but not dreadful, and that’s more than acceptable with the way he’s been hitting the ball. The Pirates will hope his hamstring injury proves not to be too serious.

While Bart is out, Davis will get another chance to prove himself against big league competition. It’s already clear he has nothing left to prove at Triple-A. As usual, he was red-hot during his latest stint with Indianapolis, batting .314 with six home runs, seven stolen bases, and an .881 OPS over 34 games since coming off the IL. Veteran backstop Yasmani Grandal has been hitting well for the Pirates in the second half (.906 OPS in 14 games – not to mention his walk-off home run this afternoon), but Pittsburgh, now eight games back in the NL Wild Card race, has little incentive not to give Davis the bulk of the playing time while Bart is on the mend.

Marlins To Promote Griffin Conine

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The Marlins will promote outfield prospect Griffin Conine before their game against the Rockies on Monday, the team announced. Conine is the son of two-time World Series champion Jeff Conine, known to fans as Mr. Marlin and widely considered one of the better players in the franchise’s history. The younger Conine, 27, is enjoying a solid season at Triple-A Jacksonville (19 home runs, .825 OPS). He will make his MLB debut as soon as he gets into a game.

Drafted by the Blue Jays in 2018, Griffin Conine joined the Marlins organization in 2020 as the player to be named later in a trade that sent Jonathan Villar to Toronto. He earned a promotion to Triple-A last August, and while he struggled at first, he has looked much more comfortable there this season, bringing down his strikeout rate and continuing to show off the power that has always been his strongest tool. The lefty slugger has hit especially well over the past three weeks, batting .310 and walking in 12.1% of his plate appearances. He has an .859 OPS and 127 wRC+ since August 3.

According to Christina De Nicola of MLB.com, Conine will not play every day. That said, the Marlins would not have called him up if they weren’t going to give him a good amount of playing time. Miami already has two lefty-batting corner outfielders on the roster – Jesús Sánchez and Kyle Stowers – but Conine could see plenty of reps as a DH against right-handed pitching.

The Marlins have not yet announced any corresponding moves, but De Nicola reports that the team will place shortstop Xavier Edwards on the 10-day IL, thereby opening a space for Conine on the active roster. Edwards, who is suffering from lower back pain, underwent an MRI yesterday. The scan came back negative, but evidently, the club believes he needs more time off his feet.

The Marlins will also need to free up space for Conine on the 40-man. Miami’s 40-man roster is currently overflowing after the team claimed right-hander Mike Baumann earlier this afternoon.

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