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Tigers To Select Drew Sommers

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The Tigers are calling up left-hander Drew Sommers, reports Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press. Detroit will need to make corresponding moves to open space for him on the active and 40-man rosters.

Sommers, now 25, was an 11th-round pick of the Rays in 2022. He was flipped to the Tigers back in February with Mason Englert going the other way. Sommers is a pure reliever and hasn’t generated a lot of prospect hype but he has continued to put up good numbers in the minors. Overall, he has thrown 154 minor league innings with a 3.10 earned run average. His 29.8% strikeout rate and 7.1% walk rate are both good figures and he has also racked up huge amounts of ground balls.

That includes this year. Since coming over to the Tigers in that deal, he has thrown 57 innings, split between Double-A and Triple-A. He has a 2.53 ERA, 27.8% strikeout rate, 7% walk rate and 63.8% ground ball rate.

He will now get a chance to try to carry those numbers over at the major league level. The Tigers currently have Tyler Holton as the only lefty in the bullpen, so Sommers will double the club’s southpaw contingent back there.

Photo courtesy of Rick Osentoski, Imagn Images

Astros Reinstate, Option J.P. France

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The Astros announced that right-hander J.P. France has been reinstated from the 60-day injured list and optioned to Triple-A Sugar Land. The 40-man roster had a vacancy from Tayler Scott being designated for assignment earlier this week, but it is now full. Houston also announced that outfielder Taylor Trammell has been placed on the 10-day IL due to a cervical muscle strain, with infielder Brice Matthews recalled as the corresponding move.

France, now 30, gave Houston some solid work a few years back. In 2023, he logged 136 1/3 innings with a 3.83 earned run average. Unfortunately, he couldn’t carry it over into 2024. He posted a 7.46 ERA in five starts before requiring shoulder surgery.

He got back on the mound a month ago, beginning a rehab assignment on July 21st. He made five rehab appearances, logging 13 innings with an 8.31 ERA. That’s obviously not a nice number but teams usually focus more on health than results when it comes to these long layoffs.

A rehab assignment for a pitcher comes with a 30-day maximum and France was at the end of that window. Despite all the injuries Houston has suffered this year, their rotation is currently in a decent spot. They have Hunter Brown, Framber Valdez, Cristian Javier, Spencer Arrighetti and Jason Alexander currently taking the ball. Lance McCullers Jr. is about to come off the IL and jump back into the mix, with Luis Garcia nearing a return as well. That will leave France squeezed into a Triple-A depth role, where he can continue shaking off the rust.

France has just one option year remaining. If he spends 20 days or more on optional assignment, then he will  burn that option this year and be out of options heading into 2026. If the Astros want to preserve that option, they could recall him for a long relief role when roster expand in September.

Photo courtesy of Kamil Krzaczynski, Imagn Images

Yankees Sign Paul Blackburn

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The Yankees announced that they have signed right-hander Paul Blackburn, with fellow righty Allan Winans optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre as the corresponding move. The Yanks have had an open 40-man spot since JT Brubaker was designated for assignment earlier this month. Tim Healey of The Boston Globe first noted that Blackburn was in the Yankee clubhouse. Blackburn tells Chris Kirschner of The Athletic that he expects to work out of the bullpen.

Blackburn has been having an injury-marred season but he is currently healthy and stretched out. About a month ago, he started a rehab assignment while on the Mets’ injured list due to a shoulder impingement. From July 22nd to August 8th, he made four rehab appearances, each lasting at least five innings. He didn’t allow more than two earned runs in any of them.

The Mets didn’t really have a rotation spot for him, so they reinstated him from the IL and put him in the bullpen. On August 13th, he tossed five innings of long relief against Atlanta, allowing two earned runs. Despite that generally solid run of results, the Mets designated Blackburn for assignment when they promoted prospect Nolan McLean on Saturday. Blackburn then cleared release waivers, allowing him to sign this deal with the Yankees.

Since he has been released, that also means he is essentially free for the Yanks. The Mets remain on the hook for the majority of his salary. The Yankees only have to pay him the prorated league minimum for the time he spends on the roster. That amount will be subtracted from what the Mets pay.

The Yankees currently have a rotation consisting of Max Fried, Carlos Rodón, Luis Gil, Will Warren and Cam Schlittler, so Blackburn will slide into a long relief role. Though he’s been hurt for most of 2025 and has a 6.85 earned run average, he has past major league success. From 2022 to 2024, he tossed a combined 290 1/3 innings with a 4.43 earned run average, 20.2% strikeout rate, 7.5% walk rate and 44.8% ground ball rate. As mentioned, he’s been getting decent results lately and is cheap.

Photo courtesy of Jason Parkhurst, Imagn Images

Braves Claim Cal Quantrill

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The Braves have claimed right-hander Cal Quantrill off waivers from the Marlins, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. It was reported earlier this week that the Fish had put the righty on waivers in an attempt to dump his salary. It appears their division rival has helped them out in that regard. Atlanta has open 40-man space but would need to open an active roster spot for Quantrill once he reports to the team.

Quantrill, 30, is a veteran back-end starter. He doesn’t strike out a ton of guys but avoids walks and hasn’t been hurt very often. The Marlins gave him a one-year, $3.5MM deal coming into 2025. In return, he gave them 109 2/3 innings over 24 starts. His 5.50 earned run average and 17.4% strikeout rate aren’t amazing figures, but he had a good stretch in the middle, sandwiched around some rough outings.

At the end of April, Quantrill had made six starts and was sitting on an ERA of 8.10. He then settled in for three good months, making 15 starts over May, June and July with a 3.55 ERA, 21.3% strikeout rate and 5.6% walk rate. But he was then lit up for an 11.25 ERA in his three most recent appearances.

The Fish are playing out the string on another non-competitive season and have some other pitchers they could call upon to take Quantrill’s spot, so they put him on waivers to get out of paying the rest of his contract. Kevin Barral of Fish on First reports that Ryan Gusto, acquired in the Jesús Sánchez trade, will be recalled to start Friday’s game against the Blue Jays.

While the Marlins’ end of this transaction makes sense, it’s surprising to see Atlanta put in the claim. That club definitely needs innings with their injury-battered rotation but they are also winding down a lost season. They are 58-69, 9.5 games out of a playoff spot, two games behind the Marlins. Quantrill is still owed a little more than $700K, with $500K of performance bonuses also in the deal.

It’s unknown how Quantrill can trigger the bonuses but the $700K is notable on its own. It’s not really a ton of money relative to MLB payrolls but it’s odd that Atlanta is incurring that extra cost for a lost season. Quantrill is an impending free agent, so there’s no long-term benefit, unless the club wants to get a close-up look at him and offer him a deal for next year.

But as mentioned, in the short term, they could definitely use solid rotation innings. They have each of Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach, AJ Smith-Shawver, Reynaldo López and Grant Holmes on the injured list. Sale is the only one in that group who seems to have a shot at returning this season.

That leaves the club with a rotation consisting of Spencer Strider, Hurston Waldrep, Bryce Elder, Joey Wentz and Erick Fedde. Both Wentz and Fedde were recently scooped up after being cast off by other teams and now Quantrill joins them in that category. Wentz and Fedde are out of options, so one of them could end up in a long relief role or designated for assignment when Quantrill joins the club. It’s also possible Elder gets optioned down to Triple-A. Sale got up to four innings on his most recent rehab start and will be back in the mix soon as well.

Photo courtesy of Jordan Godfree, Imagn Images

Orioles Claim Josh Walker

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The Orioles have claimed left-hander Josh Walker off waivers from the Phillies, according to announcements from both clubs. The O’s have optioned the southpaw to Triple-A Norfolk. They already had a 40-man vacancy from outrighting outfielder Jordyn Adams a few days ago, so no corresponding move was required. The Phils designated Walker for assignment earlier this week.

Walker, 30, has a limited amount of big league experience. He has thrown a combined 27 1/3 innings over the three most recent seasons. In that time, he has a 6.59 earned run average, which is obviously not strong. His 10.9% walk rate is also a bit high. However, his 24.2% strikeout rate is a good figure. His ERA has seemingly been inflated by a .380 batting average on balls in play and 59.4% strand rate. His 3.99 FIP and 2.70 SIERA paint a more optimistic portrait.

Ultimately, it’s a small sample of work and the O’s are probably putting more stock in his minor league numbers. From 2022 to the present, Walker has thrown 125 innings on the farm with a 3.96 ERA. His 12% walk rate is a bit high but his 30.6% strikeout rate is very intriguing.

For the O’s, they are playing out the string on a lost season, so they are making moves focused on the future. They sold at the deadline and have grabbed a number of players off waivers since then. Walker is in his final option season. That means he can be kept in the minors for the rest of this year but will be out of options going into 2026. He has less than a year of service time, so he is still a ways away from arbitration and even further away from free agency. If he can carve out a role in Baltimore’s bullpen, they can cheaply retain him well into the future. It also wouldn’t a surprise if they try to pass him through waivers at some point in order to keep him as non-roster depth.

Photo courtesy of Vincent Carchietta, Imagn Images

Giants Select Joel Peguero

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The Giants announced a series of roster moves today, recalling outfielder Luis Matos and selecting right-hander Joel Peguero. In corresponding active roster moves, they have optioned outfielder Grant McCray and right-hander Kai-Wei Teng. Left-hander Erik Miller has been transferred to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man spot.

Peguero, 28, makes it to the majors for the first time. It was a long journey. He originally signed with the Rays as an international amateur way back in 2016. Even then he was a bit on the old side, as most international amateurs sign when first eligible at 16 and have verbal deals well before that. That was Peguero’s age-19 season.

In the following decade, he spent many years with the Rays but eventually moved around to the Rockies, Nationals and Tigers without getting a major league call. He signed a minor league deal with the Giants coming into 2025.

He has thrown 42 1/3 Triple-A innings this year with a 5.10 earned run average. That’s obviously not a great number but it’s come in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League and Peguero has a .353 batting average on balls in play and 68.3% strand rate this year, both unfortunate numbers. He is averaging close to 100 miles per hour on his two fastballs while also throwing a cutter, slider and changeup around 90 mph. That arsenal has helped him strike out 24.1% of batters faced, though also with a 12% walk rate.

The Giants have fallen to 6.5 games back of a playoff spot, so they are surely leaning towards decisions that prioritize the future over this year. They sold at the deadline and can now use the remainder of the season to get looks at some other players. They can throw Peguero out there in front of big league hitters and see how they handle his fiery stuff. If he can get outs, perhaps he can earn a role on next year’s club.

Sending Teng down to the minors opens a job in the rotation. Manager Bob Melvin tells reporters, including Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle, that Carson Whisenhunt will be coming up to start tomorrow’s game. However, Landen Roupp is also going on the injured list. It was reported yesterday that Roupp has a left knee sprain and is going on the IL.

Justin Verlander is starting today’s game, with Logan Webb and Robbie Ray scheduled for Saturday and Sunday. The Giants are off on Monday, so it’s theoretically possible that they go back to Verlander on Tuesday. They will need another starter at some point, however, as Tuesday’s game will be the first of nine in a row. Carson Seymour and Tristan Beck are currently working long relief roles and one of them could make a spot start, though the club also has a number of pitchers on optional assignment who could be recalled.

As for Miller, he landed on the 15-day IL in early July due to a mild sprain of the ulnar collateral ligament in his throwing elbow. He started a rehab assignment this month but the club informed reporters this week that a recent MRI showed more inflammation and that he’ll be shut down for another two weeks. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle was among those who relayed that update.

Miller’s 60-day count is retroactive to his initial IL placement, so he’ll be eligible for reinstatement in early September. However, based on the most recent information, it seems like he’ll just be finishing his shutdown period at that time. Even if he’s declared healthy at that point, he would likely need a bit of time to ramp up and go on another rehab assignment.

Photo courtesy of Rick Scuteri, Imagn Images

Astros Outright Jordan Weems

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The Astros have assigned right-hander Jordan Weems outright to Triple-A Sugar Land, according to the transactions tracker on Weems’s MLB.com profile page. Weems was designated for assignment earlier this week to make room for Tayler Scott on the club’s active roster.

The 32-year-old righty has pitched in parts of six MLB seasons at this point in his career. A third-round pick by the Red Sox back in 2011, Weems actually began his pro career as a catcher before converting to the mound in 2016. He reached Triple-A as a pitcher in 2019 with the Red Sox but struggled badly in eight appearances before electing minor league free agency and joining the A’s organization. He made his big league debut during the shortened 2020 campaign with Oakland and pitched quite well in nine appearances with a 3.21 ERA and a 31.0% strikeout rate in 14 innings of work.

That strong performance during the 60-game campaign was cause for optimism about Weems’s future, but he’s mostly been relegated to an up-and-down role in the years since then. He posted a 6.55 ERA across the next two seasons with Oakland, Arizona, and Washington but settled in with D.C. and stuck around there for the 2023 campaign. That turned out to be a career year for Weems, as he posted a 3.62 ERA in 51 middle relief appearances for the Nationals with a solid 25.9% strikeout rate. He was held back by a lackluster 12.1% walk rate, however, and underlying metrics like FIP (4.90) were far less impressed with his performance.

Weems stuck around with the Nats for the 2024 campaign, but it didn’t go nearly as well as the year prior. The right-hander was torched to the tune of a 6.70 ERA in 41 appearances. His strikeout rate plummeted to just 17.9% while his 12.2% walk rate actually ticked up slightly from the year prior. That brutal season left Weems to sign with Atlanta on a minor league deal this past offseason, but he posted a 5.09 ERA in 17 2/3 innings of work for the club’s Triple-A affiliate in Gwinnett before being released back in May. He’s been in the Astros organization ever since and has made two brief cameos on the major league roster where he’s surrendered seven runs on nine hits and three walks without recording a strikeout in 4 1/3 innings of work.

Brutal as those brief cups of coffee in the majors have been, Weems has actually looked quite good while pitching for Sugar Land. He’s posted a 3.06 ERA in 17 2/3 innings of work with a solid 24.3% strikeout rate and a more manageable 9.5% walk rate. While work at Triple-A only goes so far for a 32-year-old journeyman, the fact that he’s done all of this while pitching in the inflated offensive environment of the Pacific Coast League does lend further legitimacy to his strong performance. Now that Weems has been outrighted to Triple-A, he’ll likely continue serving as a depth option for the Astros who can be called upon when there’s a gap in the roster, as was the case in each of his two call-ups to Houston this year.

Mariners Sign Michael Fulmer To Minor League Deal

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The Mariners have signed right-hander Michael Fulmer to a minor league deal, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He had been with the Royals on a minor league deal but the log indicates he was released from that pact a few days ago.

Fulmer, 32, is having a nomadic year. He signed a two-year minor league deal with the Red Sox ahead of the 2024 season. He had undergone UCL surgery and was going to miss that entire campaign. He came into 2025 with a chance to earn a job on Boston’s roster. He didn’t break camp with the club but was called up by mid-April. He was designated for assignment a few days later, clearing waivers and electing free agency.

From there, he landed a minor league deal with the Cubs. He was selected to the big league roster in June but was again cut a few days later. He cleared waivers and elected free agency again, which led him to the Royals.

Around those transactions, he has thrown 5 2/3 big league innings, allowing three earned runs on six hits and two walks with three strikeouts. He has also thrown 54 1/3 Triple-A innings with a 3.98 earned run average, 29.8% strikeout rate and 10.5% walk rate.

Fulmer also has past success on his track record. He initially broke in as a starter with the Tigers and won American League Rookie of the Year in 2016. His results tailed off from there and he wound up in the bullpen, which led to some more good results. He tossed 190 1/3 innings from 2021 to 2023 with a 3.55 ERA, 24.6% strikeout rate and 9.4% walk rate.

As mentioned, Fulmer missed the 2024 season while recovering from surgery. This year, he’s mostly been stuck in the minors but is still getting strikeouts. The M’s recently lost Trent Thornton to an Achilles tear, subtracting a bit of bullpen depth. Fulmer fills in some of that depth without taking up a roster spot.

Photo courtesy of Nathan Ray Seebeck, Imagn Images

Reds Place Tyler Stephenson On Injured List With Thumb Fracture

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The Reds announced today that catcher Tyler Stephenson has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a thumb fracture. In a corresponding move, the club has selected the contract of catcher Will Banfield from Triple-A. He’ll take the 40-man roster spot of Jake Fraley, who was designated for assignment over the weekend and claimed off waivers by the Braves yesterday.

Stephenson, 29, was selected 11th overall by Cincinnati back in 2015 and has been the club’s primary catcher since 2021. Long considered a bat-first option behind the plate, he’s also seen occasional time at DH and first base over the years but entered the 2025 season with a solid .267/.343/.427 (107 wRC+) slash line for his career, including a 113 wRC+ during the 2024 campaign. Unfortunately, he’s struggled to produce at the plate this year and has ceded much of his playing time to Jose Trevino behind the dish. Stephenson gotten into 72 games this year, with a .226/.313/.393 (90 wRC+) line in 288 plate appearances. Most concerning is his massive 34.4% strikeout rate, which is eleven points north of his career mark of 23.4%.

That Stephenson is injured isn’t exactly a surprise, seeing as he suffered the injury on a pitch caught from Hunter Greene last week against the Phillies. He’s played just one game since then due to the issue, and now that he’s on the shelf it’s unclear when he’ll be back in the lineup. The Reds have given no indication about his timeline for return at this point, and that leaves Trevino to take over regular duties behind the plate after spitting time with Stephenson throughout the year.

After getting his start with the Rangers back in 2018, Trevino developed into a top-tier defender behind the plate before being traded to the Yankees. He posted a wRC+ of just 81 across his three seasons in the Bronx but won a platinum glove for his work at catcher before being shipped to Cincinnati in exchange for Fernando Cruz and Alex Jackson over the offseason. The 32-year-old hasn’t looked quite as good this year behind the plate and is hitting just .176/.205/.206 since the start of July, but remains a plus pitch framer. Still, for a club with an excellent rotation but a lackluster offense, losing Stephenson’s bat from the lineup is a considerable blow as the Reds look to sneak their way into the NL Wild Card conversation.

For the time being, Trevino will be backed up by Banfield. The 25-year-old spent his whole career in the Marlins organization before electing free agency and signing a minor league deal with the Reds last November. He’s struggled badly at the plate in 73 games at Triple-A this year, hitting just .220/.277/.304 with a wRC+ of 53. Brutal as that slash line may be, however, Banfield is viewed as a solid defender behind the plate who should serve as an adequate backup for Trevino while Stephenson’s thumb recovers. Behind Banfield, the club’s additional catching depth leaves much to be desired. P.J. Higgins and Eric Yang are both in the club’s minor league system but Yang has just one game of big league experience and is hitting poorly at Triple-A while Higgins is generally viewed as a lackluster defender behind the plate, hasn’t appeared in the majors since 2022, and has hit just .210/.291/.348 (85 wRC+) in 83 games at the big league level for his career.

Guardians To Promote Parker Messick

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The Guardians list left-hander Parker Messick as the probable starter for tomorrow’s series finale in Arizona. He’ll go opposite Brandon Pfaadt in his major league debut. Cleveland has an opening on the 40-man roster after outrighting reliever Trevor Stephan last week. They’ll only need to make an active roster transaction tomorrow.

Messick, 24, was a second-round pick out of Florida State in 2022. The 6’0″ southpaw has never blown evaluators away with his velocity, but he has carved through minor league hitters behind an excellent changeup. Messick has only used the changeup around a quarter of the time in Triple-A this year. He has gone to his four-seam fastball, which sits between 92 and 93 MPH, half the time. He has both a slider and curveball, neither of which get more than fringe-average grades from scouts, and infrequently uses a sinker.

It has seemingly left evaluators split on his value. Baseball America and MLB Pipeline each rank him between 12th and 15th in the Cleveland farm system, projecting him as a stable back-end arm. Eric Longenhagen at FanGraphs has him much higher, slotting him fourth among Guardians prospects and among the top 50 prospects in the sport. Longenhagen projects Messick as a league average starter and grades the changeup as a potential plus-plus offering. While it doesn’t seem there’s a huge gap in his perceived upside, FanGraphs appears to place a higher value than do the other outlets on Messick’s big league proximity and minor league success.

That’s all the more true now that Messick has shown it at the top minor league level. After recording 165 strikeouts between High-A and Double-A a year ago, he has spent this whole season at Triple-A Columbus. Messick has turned in a 3.47 earned run average across 20 starts, striking out 29% of batters faced. He has issued walks at a career-high 10.3% clip while averaging fewer than five innings per start, but he has worked at least into the sixth inning in six of his past seven appearances.

Messick last pitched on Thursday, so he’ll be operating with an extra day of rest. The Guardians optioned Joey Cantillo over the weekend, giving Messick a good chance to hold a rotation spot for the rest of the season. John Means could be a late-season factor as he works back from elbow surgery, though that could also come in long relief. For now, Messick slots behind Gavin Williams, Tanner Bibee, Slade Cecconi and Logan Allen in Stephen Vogt’s starting five. The Guardians have fallen three games back in the Wild Card picture after being swept by Atlanta over the weekend.

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