Minor Moves: Duran, Fuentes, Bartsch, Gimenez
Here are the day’s minor signings from around the league:
- The Mariners have acquired minor league right-hander Sam Gaviglio from the Cardinals in exchange for minor league infielder Ty Kelly, the teams announced. Gaviglio, 24, had a 4.28 ERA with 8.3 K/0 and 3.0 BB/9 in 136 2/3 innings at Double-A this season. He made 25 appearances, with 24 being starts. Kelly, 26, hit .263/.381/.412 with 15 homers and 11 steals at Triple-A. The former Orioles draftee has a lifetime .280/.402/.409 batting line in 841 PA at that level.
Earlier Updates
- Left-hander Omar Duran has agreed to a minor league deal with the Tigers that includes a Spring Training invitation, MLBTR has learned. Duran, 24, had spent his entire career in the Athletics organization, never moving above the Double-A level. But he was consistently productive last year after matching his double-digit strikeout marks with manageable walk totals.
- The Royals announced that they have acquired outfielder Reymond Fuentes from the Padres in exchange for left-hander Kyle Bartsch (Twitter link). Fuentes, 23, was one of the four players San Diego received from the Red Sox in exchange for Adrian Gonzalez. The 23-year-old former first-rounder batted .294/.363/.416 with five homers and went 25-for-28 in stolen base attempts between Double-A and Triple-A in 2014. Bartsch, also 23, spent this season at Class-A Advanced Wilmington where he notched a 2.29 ERA with 8.5 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 in 55 innings of relief, showing effectiveness against both lefties and righties.
- The Rangers have added catcher Chris Gimenez and righty David Martinez to minor league deals with invitations to camp, the club announced. Gimenez, 31, bounced around quite a bit last year and ultimately managed a .241/.313/.328 line over 128 plate appearances at the big league level — the sixth year in a row that he spent at least some time on an active roster. Martinez, 27, has just 18 1/3 big league frames to his credit and had spent his whole career with the Astros. He has worked in a swingman capacity in the upper minors in recent seasons.
Padres Designate Boyer, Asencio For Assignment
The Padres announced that they have designated right-hander Blaine Boyer and outfielder Yeison Asencio for assignment.
Boyer, 33, returned to the Majors for the first time since 2011 this past season and pitched relatively well out of the San Diego ‘pen. The well-traveled veteran tallied a 3.57 ERA with 6.5 K/9, 1.8 BB/9 and a 42.5 percent ground-ball rate in 40 1/3 innings for manager Bud Black. Boyer has over five years of service time and projected to earn $1MM in arbitration (per MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz), and the Padres instead opted to use that roster spot to protect themselves heading into the Rule 5 Draft.
Asencio, who turned 25 last Friday, batted a combined .291/.330/.433 with 15 homers and eight steals in 572 plate appearances between Double-A and Triple-A. Baseball America ranked him 24th among Padres farmhands in each of the past two offseasons, more recently noting that he’s a bad ball hitter with an aggressive approach and a very strong arm in right field.
Giants Designate Juan Gutierrez For Assignment
The Giants have designated right-hander Juan Gutierrez for assignment, according to the club’s transactions page.
The 31-year-old Gutierrez was projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn $1.7MM in arbitration next season. He pitched 63 2/3 innings of 3.96 ERA ball with the 2014 World Champions, averaging 6.2 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 along the way. Gutierrez was bothered by biceps inflammation in the month of August, for which he eventually received a cortisone injection.
The hard-throwing Gutierrez has also spent time with the Astros, D’Backs, Angels and Royals in his career, accumulating more than five years of service time. If he latches on with another club and earns a big league roster spot, he’d be a six-year free agent next winter as long as he logs about four months of time on a big league roster, which he’s done in each of the past two seasons.
Outrighted: Bass, Mattheus, Walters, Morel
Several players were outrighted off of 40-man rosters today to clear space for players who needed to be protected from the Rule 5 draft:
- The Astros outrighted righty Anthony Bass, the club announced. Bass, 27, has seen his ERA rise over each of the last four years, and he suffered in 2014 from a sudden inability to miss bats.
- Right-handed reliever Ryan Mattheus was outrighted by the Nationals, also per the club. Mattheus has elected free agency. Though he has been effective in long stretches at times in D.C., Mattheus never regained his place in the bullpen after breaking his hand last May. The 31-year-old, out-of-options righty should certainly find a club willing to give him a chance to earn a job out of camp.
- The Mets announced that Jeff Walters has been removed from the 40-man. A 27-year-old right-hander, Walters has yet to see MLB action. He struggled mightily in 2014, his first attempt at Triple-A, and ultimately was diagnosed with a torn UCL that required Tommy John surgery.
- The Pirates announced that infielder Brent Morel has been outrighted. Morel has seen relatively scant MLB time since a run with the White Sox in 2011. Last year, at Triple-A, he slashed .271/.335/.375 over 376 plate appearances.
Pirates Designate Ike Davis, Ramon Cabrera
The Pirates have designated first baseman Ike Davis and catcher Ramon Cabrera for assignment, the club announced.
Davis came over to Pittsburgh from the Mets after New York finally gave up on a player who was once thought to be a franchise cornerstone. Things started out well in his new home, but Davis ultimately ended up with a .235/.343/.378 slash and ten home runs over 397 plate appearances with the Bucs.
For a player who swatted 32 long balls in his age-25 season, that was obviously not what he hoped for. With Pedro Alvarez likely shifting across the diamond, there was no roster space for Davis.
Still just 27, Davis will undoubtedly get another look. But at a projected $4.4MM arbitration salary, it seems reasonably likely — though far from certain — that he will clear waivers and find his next home on the open market.
Cabrera, meanwhile, was brought into the fold on a waiver claim in August. He only had time to play 12 games in the Pittsburgh system. On the year, in total, Cabrera saw 480 plate appearances at Double-A and slashed .273/.325/.364.
Rays To Designate Jose Molina For Assignment
The Rays will designate catcher Jose Molina for assignment tonight, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (on Twitter). Molina was set to make $2.75MM in 2015 — the second season of a two-year deal.
The 39-year-old Molina is known as one of the game’s best defensive catchers — a driving factor behind his two-year deal — but his offense dipped to a point in 2014 where the Rays likely felt that his glove’s benefit did not outweigh his bat. Molina batted just .178/.230/.187 in 247 plate appearances. Of his 40 hits, just two — a pair of doubles — went for extra bases. In his Offseason Outlook for the Rays, MLBTR’s Zach Links speculated that Molina’s lack of offense might lead to the Rays looking elsewhere at the catcher position.
Molina has thrown out 37 percent of base-stealers in his career and is known as an excellent pitch framer. That defensive prowess has helped him remain in the Majors for parts of 15 seasons despite the fact that he is a career .233/.282/.327 hitter in nearly 2800 plate appearances.
If Molina is out of the picture, the Rays will likely rely on Ryan Hanigan and rookie Curt Casali to split their catching duties, barring the acquisition of a catcher from outside the organization.
Diamondbacks Designate Mike Bolsinger, Charles Brewer
The D’backs have designated a pair of righties in Mike Bolsinger and Charles Brewer, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (via Twitter). The move was done in concert with the team’s 40-man additions today.
The 26-year-old Bolsinger threw 52 1/3 innings of 5.50 ERA ball at the MLB level last year, mostly as a starter. He managed a solid 8.3 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9 in that stretch, along with a 52.4% groundball rate, but was victimized by the long ball and the dreaded high BABIP/low strand rate combo. Across 193 2/3 career frames at the Triple-A level, Bolsinger has a 4.32 ERA with 8.6 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9.
As for Brewer, also 26, his six innings of big league action last year are insufficient to say much about his future. He has amassed 399 2/3 innings at Triple-A, putting up a 5.29 ERA along the way. Brewer has struck out 6.9 and walked 2.5 batters per nine, but has also allowed 10.8 hits per nine in that stretch.
Mariners Claim Edgar Olmos
The Mariners have claimed lefty Edgar Olmos off waivers from the Marlins, Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel reports on Twitter. The 24-year-old has moved to a relief role in recent seasons.
Olmos had a promising 2013, at least in terms of outcomes, that led to his first cup of coffee at the MLB level. But he saw his ERA rise to 4.06 in the upper minors last year, and Olmos did not earn a call-up. On the other hand, he did post a 3.5 BB/9 walk rate that was by far the best of his young career.
Pirates Claim Pedro Florimon
The Pirates have claimed infielder Pedro Florimon off waivers from the Nationals, Washington announced today.
Florimon, 28 next month, is a switch-hitting shortstop with a questionable bat and outstanding glove. He saw the lion’s share of playing time at shortstop for a last-place Twins club in 2013 and batted .221/.281/.330, hitting a somewhat surprising nine homers and swiping 15 bases. That offense certainly isn’t much to look at, but combined with his glove, he generated 1.8 rWAR and 1.3 fWAR. Defensive Runs Saved pegs Florimon as 21 runs above average over the course of 1700 big league innings at short.
Rockies Designate Juan Nicasio
The Rockies have designated righty Juan Nicasio for assignment, the club announced. Projected to earn $2.4MM through arbitration by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz, the 28-year-old proved too costly a gamble for new Colorado GM Jeff Bridich.
Nicasio should draw interest around the league given his big arm, even if it has never quite all come together for him. Odds are he will clear waivers, as that price tag is substantial for a player who owns a career 4.85 ERA.
Of course, Nicasio’s future role remains a question mark. He had started in all 55 of his MLB appearances heading into this year, but transitioned to the bullpen after a rough early going. He proved better in that capacity, posting stronger overall run prevention (3.48 ERA vs. 5.92 ERA as a starter) and better metrics across the board.