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Rays Select Erasmo Ramirez

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The Rays announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Erasmo Ramirez.  In corresponding moves, left-hander Jacob Lopez was optioned to Triple-A, and infielder Taylor Walls was shifted from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day injured list.

Today’s move kicks off what is officially Ramirez’s third stint with the Rays.  The righty first pitched for Tampa during the 2015-17 seasons, before moving on to pitch for five other teams in a journeyman’s trek around the majors until landing again in Tampa Bay last summer.  After the Nationals released Ramirez in June, he spent only a few days on the open market before inking a minor league contract with the Rays, and he ended up posting a 6.48 ERA over 33 1/3 innings and 15 appearances at the MLB level.  He elected free agency at season’s end, but Ramirez then returned to the Rays on another minors deal in December.

Ramirez has a 4.37 ERA over 828 1/3 career innings, working as a starter, reliever, swingman, and bulk pitcher (behind an opener) over his 12 Major League seasons.  There have been plenty of ups and downs over this long career, and Ramirez’s 3.76 ERA over 254 frames with Tampa in 2015-16 essentially represents his peak.  The right-hander then struggled to a 4.85 ERA over 221 innings from 2017-21 until finding some stability working out of Washington’s bullpen, and posting an impressive 2.92 ERA in 86 1/3 innings in 2022.  Advanced metrics weren’t as impressed with Ramirez’s revival, however, and the regression wave hit when he posted a 6.41 ERA in 60 1/3 combined innings last season with the Nats and Rays.

Given how the Rays frequently cycle through pitchers at the back end of their bullpen, it wouldn’t be a shock to see Ramirez designated for assignment relatively soon, despite the extra machinations to add him to the 40-man roster.  Ramirez has the right to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency, though if that situation comes, he could also choose to remain in a familiar situation in Tampa Bay rather than test the market once again.  In the meantime, Ramirez (who turns 34 on May 2) will likely at least get some innings under his belt to officially mark his 13th MLB campaign, and give the Rays a known quantity for covering innings in the relief corps.

Walls had hip surgery back in October, and since his 60-day IL stint is backdated to the start of his initial 10-day placement, the shortstop won’t be making his 2024 debut until late May at the very earliest.  Rays manager Kevin Cash told MLB.com and other media last week that Walls hadn’t had any setbacks in his recovery, but was “just not going as quick as maybe we had originally anticipated,” creating some doubt as to when exactly Walls will be back in action.  The shortstop will still need to take part in an extended Spring Training ramp-up and then a minor league rehab assignment, so even a late May return might be optimistic given the lack of updates on Walls to date.

Rockies Sign Peyton Battenfield To Minors Contract

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The Rockies have signed Peyton Battenfield to a minor league deal, as per the right-hander’s MLB.com profile page.  In a transaction that flew under MLBTR’s radar, Battenfield was released by the Mets last month, but the 26-year-old has now caught on with the fifth different organization of his pro career.

A ninth-round pick for the Astros in the 2019 draft, Battenfield was traded to the Tampa Bay the following offseason, and then to Cleveland at the 2021 trade deadline as part of the deal that sent Jordan Luplow to the Rays.  Battenfield was briefly called up to the Guardians’ active roster in 2022 but didn’t appear in a game, so his official MLB debut didn’t take place until 2023, when he posted a 5.19 ERA, 18.5% strikeout rate, and 8.2% walk rate over 34 2/3 innings for the Guards.

Some injuries in Cleveland’s rotation opened the door for Battenfield to make six starts and a relief appearance, but a bout of shoulder inflammation sent him to the 60-day injured list and he didn’t pitch in the Show again after May 17.  Cleveland ended up designating Battenfield for assignment at the end of August, and the Mets claimed the righty away through Battenfield didn’t see any time on New York’s big league roster.

Battenfield has a 4.19 ERA over 210 1/3 career Triple-A innings, and a 15.48% strikeout rate that represents a sharp drop from the much stronger K-rates he posted at the lower levels of the minors.  He was also burned by the long ball, after allowing seven homers in his 34 2/3 innings with the Guardians and 13 homers in 47 2/3 frames with Triple-A Columbus last season.

This vulnerability to home runs might not bode well for a move to the Rockies, but Battenfield will give pitching-needy Colorado some rotation depth.  With German Marquez and Antonio Senzatela already on the mend from Tommy John surgeries last year, Kyle Freeland was also just placed on the 15-day injured list with an elbow strain yesterday.  Peter Lambert will move from Colorado’s bullpen to take Freeland’s spot in the rotation, and given how the Rockies are in such dire straits when it comes to pitching, Battenfield might quickly get himself on the radar for a call-up if he performs well in the minors.

Marlins To Call Up Roddery Muñoz For MLB Debut

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The Marlins are going to bring up right-hander Roddery Muñoz as the 27th man for tomorrow’s double-header, per Isaac Azout of Fish on First. The righty will be making his major league debut, starting one of the two games of the twin bill.

It’s a belated birthday present for Muñoz, who just turned 24 on Sunday. The righty hasn’t been a Marlin for very long, as he actually came up as prospect in Atlanta’s system, but since July of last year, he bounced to the Nationals, Pirates and Marlins via waiver claims or cash deals.

The righty had a bit of a breakout in 2022. He made 19 starts at the High-A level that year, with a 4.03 earned run average in his 89 1/3 innings. He struck out 26.9% of batters faced while giving out walks at a 9.5% clip and getting grounders on 45.6% of balls in play. He was promoted to Double-A for three starts at the end of the year and allowed 12 earned runs in 11 innings, but the peripheral stats were pretty similar to his High-A work.

Going into 2023, Atlanta put him on their 40-man roster to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. Baseball America also ranked him the #22 prospect in that club’s system. But his results backed up a bit last year, which led to his aforementioned journey around the league’s DFA carousel. He eventually tossed 78 innings at his various stops throughout the year, with a 5.42 ERA in that time. His 23% strikeout rate was solid but his 15.1% walk rate was quite high.

The Marlins nonetheless took a shot on him and have since seen their starting pitching depth get thinned out. Sandy Alcántara required Tommy John surgery last year and was already known to be unavailable in 2024, but Eury Pérez has since followed him down that path. Edward Cabrera and Braxton Garrett also started the season on the injured list due to injuries, though Cabrera has now returned.

The rotation currently consists of Cabrera, A.J. Puk, Jesús Luzardo, Trevor Rogers and Ryan Weathers, but yesterday’s game was rained out, leading to tomorrow’s doubleheader. Since they need a sixth starter to get through this stretch, with no off-day until Thursday, the circumstances will allow Muñoz to make his debut. He has tossed 10 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level so far this year but has shown significant control problems, issuing 12 walks to just seven strikeouts.

That perhaps suggests this was mostly an emergency decision. The club also has Max Meyer and Darren McCaughan on the 40-man roster, but Meyer was just optioned to monitor his workload after he missed all of 2023 recovering from Tommy John surgery. McCaughan just pitched on Wednesday and would be pitching on short rest if recalled this weekend. Muñoz may be in for just one outing before being optioned back to the minors, but it’s undoubtedly an exciting day for him regardless.

Mets Outright Tyler Jay

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Mets reliever Tyler Jay went unclaimed on waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Syracuse, tweets Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. He’ll stick in the organization without holding a 40-man roster spot.

Jay, who turns 30 today, had a brief stint on the big league team. He pitched twice, allowing only one run over four innings. That cup of coffee was the culmination of a lengthy climb through the professional ranks. The sixth overall pick in the 2015 draft by the Twins, Jay never reached the big leagues with Minnesota. Injuries, most notably a 2017 thoracic outlet procedure, stopped the Illinois product from moving past Double-A.

It looked as if Jay would never get to the majors, but he reinvigorated his career in independent ball. Jay showed enough with the Frontier League’s Joliet Slammers between 2022-23 to earn a minor league opportunity from the Mets. He made six appearances with Syracuse late last season and began this year with 5 2/3 scoreless innings there.

Despite his strong start, the Mets designated Jay for assignment when they reacquired the out-of-options Michael Tonkin on Wednesday. Jay will head to Triple-A and look to pitch his way back to the big league bullpen later this season.

D-Backs Recall Jordan Montgomery, Designate Jace Peterson

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The Diamondbacks announced they’ve recalled Jordan Montgomery to make his team debut tonight against the Giants. Arizona also recalled outfielder Pavin Smith from Triple-A Reno. In corresponding moves, they placed starter Ryne Nelson on the 15-day injured list with a right elbow contusion and designated veteran infielder Jace Peterson for assignment.

Montgomery will take the ball opposite Blake Snell in the second game of their intra-division series. The southpaw officially signed with the D-Backs on Opening Day but agreed to an optional assignment to build into game shape. He started twice for Reno, allowing nine runs in 7 2/3 innings. While that’s clearly not the most impressive showing, his primary focus was building his workload. He threw 71 pitches in his start last Saturday. Montgomery’s contract stipulated that he’d be back in the majors no later than April 19, so the Snakes bring him up after a pair of rehab outings.

He joins Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly at the top half of the rotation. The D-Backs envisioned Eduardo Rodriguez holding a mid-rotation spot, but he’ll be out until at least late May because of shoulder issues. Brandon Pfaadt and Tommy Henry round out the starting five for now, as Montgomery steps into the spot which Nelson had been holding.

Nelson has allowed nine runs (eight earned) over his first 15 2/3 innings. The Oregon product has picked up 13 strikeouts and walked five. It was a slightly improved start relative to last season, when he pitched to a 5.31 ERA with a below-average 15.5% strikeout rate over 144 innings. A comebacker off the bat of Mike Yastrzemski got him in the throwing elbow last night, forcing him out of the game after two innings. It’ll cost him at least two weeks of action.

Arizona also makes a move on the position player side, almost certainly bringing an end to Peterson’s time in the desert. The D-Backs acquired him from the A’s in a deadline deal last summer. The versatile infielder was hitting .221/.313/.324 at the time. His bat slumped further after the trade, as he hit .183/.276/.258 without a home run in 41 games. Peterson didn’t play much of a role in the team’s pennant run and has gotten off to a very slow start in 2024.

The 33-year-old has collected just one hit, a single, in his first 22 at-bats. Since the D-Backs acquired him, Peterson owns a .157/.252/.217 slash line over 132 plate appearances. His recent production is a notable drop-off from the .243/.332/.376 mark which he managed for the Brewers between 2021-22.

That solid run in Milwaukee secured Peterson a two-year, $9.5MM free agent deal from Oakland. He’s making $5MM this year. The A’s agreed to pay $2MM as part of the trade, leaving the D-Backs on the hook for the remaining $3MM. That salary makes it a virtual lock he’ll go unclaimed on waivers. Peterson has more than enough service time to decline an outright assignment while retaining his entire salary, so the Snakes could simply release him within the next week. If he hits free agency, any team that signs him would pay him at the prorated $740K league minimum for whatever time he spends in the majors.

Rockies Place Kyle Freeland On Injured List With Elbow Strain

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4:25pm: Freeland told the Colorado beat that the injury is unrelated to the home plate collision (X link via Patrick Lyons). There’s no timetable for his return. The southpaw went for imaging but said he doesn’t expect it’ll reveal any ligament damage.

3:20pm: The Rockies announced that left-hander Kyle Freeland has been placed on the 15-day injured list with a left elbow strain, retroactive to April 16. Right-hander Noah Davis has been recalled in a corresponding move.

Freeland, 31 next month, is having a rough start to his season, having allowed 23 earned runs in 15 2/3 innings over his first four starts. Most recently, he was the subject of attention for a non-pitching appearance he made. After Freeland had started Sunday’s game, he entered Monday’s contest as a pinch runner.

Catcher Elias Díaz doubled with two outs in the top of the ninth, with the Rockies tied with the Phillies at the time. Freeland ran for Díaz and went to third on a wild pitch, then later tried to score on yet another wild pitch. But as he slid into home, he collided with pitcher Jeff Hoffman, who was receiving the ball from catcher J.T. Realmuto and attempting to make a tag. Freeland was ruled out and was visibly hurt on the play, grabbing at his non-throwing shoulder (Video via MLB.com).

After the game, manager Bud Black said that Freeland was fine, per Luke Zahlmann of the Denver Gazette. Black later explained to MLB Network Radio that a stomach virus was going around the club and a couple of guys on the team were not even present at the ballpark, meaning there was essentially no position player bench to draw from, which is why Freeland was tapped for the unusual assignment.

That injury was to Freeland’s right shoulder and today’s is a strain of his left elbow. The team has not commented on today’s injury announcement, though Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post says they’re unrelated.

Whether there’s any connection to the pinch-running situation or not, it’s bad news for the Rockies either way. They have started the season 4-15 and Freeland’s injury will further thin out a pitching staff that is arguably the worst in baseball. Collectively, Colorado pitchers have a 6.01 ERA, highest in the league. The Astros are 29th at 5.24 and will likely see some stabilization now that Justin Verlander is coming off the injured list, thus bumping everyone else down a peg.

The Rockies play in a very hitter-friendly setting but it’s still been bleak. As of a few years ago, the Colorado rotation was anchored by Freeland, Antonio Senzatela and Germán Márquez, with the Rockies signing extensions with all three of those pitchers. But the latter two both required Tommy John surgery last summer, leaving Freeland as the only member of that trio left standing.

As mentioned, Freeland wasn’t out to a great start, but in a tiny sample size. Over his entire career, he has a 4.53 earned run average despite pitching half his games at Coors Field. The Rockies gave him a five-year, $64.5MM extension going into the 2022 season. To this point, it’s unclear if Freeland is facing a significant absence, but the fact that he has an elbow strain will at least lead to some worry that yet another pitcher will be going under the knife. Even if that doesn’t come to pass, the Rockies will nonetheless be proceeding without any of their core starters for the next few weeks at least.

Davis was starting in the minors so perhaps he will step in Freeland’s rotation spot for the time being alongside Cal Quantrill, Dakota Hudson, Austin Gomber and Ryan Feltner. The club will presumably provide more details about Freeland’s prognosis, either before or after tonight’s game.

Red Sox Designate Joe Jacques For Assignment

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The Red Sox have designated left-hander Joe Jacques for assignment, with Chris Cotillo of MassLive among those to relay the news. His roster spot will go to Cam Booser, whose promotion was reported yesterday.

Jacques, 29, was first added to Boston’s roster last year. To this point, he has thrown 28 1/3 innings in the majors with a 5.08 earned run average. His 16.8% strikeout rate is subpar but his 7.6% walk rate is solid and his 64.8% ground ball rate is very strong.

His production in the minors has been fairly similar, though with a few more punchouts. He tossed 39 Triple-A innings last year with a 2.54 ERA, keeping the ball on the ground at a 60.4% rate. He struck out 21.6% of batters faced while walking 8%.

The Sox seemingly prefer to get a look at the fireballing, late-blooming Booser, as opposed to the soft-tossing Jacques. The latter throws his sinker, which averages just over 90 miles per hour, roughly two thirds of the time. Booser, meanwhile, can get his fastball up into the high 90s.

Boston will now have a week to trade Jacques or pass him through waivers. There’s often demand for lefty relief and Jacques still has options, meaning he wouldn’t need an active roster spot if any team were to acquire him.

Reds Claim Liván Soto From Orioles

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The Reds have claimed infielder Liván Soto off waivers from the Orioles, per announcements from both clubs. The O’s had recently designated him for assignment. The Reds transferred Tejay Antone to the 60-day injured list in a corresponding move and optioned Soto to Triple-A Louisville. The O’s also announced that catcher David Bañuelos, also recently designated for assignment, has cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A Norfolk.

Soto, 24 in June, has been riding the roster carousel all year. He began the year with the Angels but went to the Orioles via waivers in February. The Angels claimed him right back shortly thereafter but the O’s claimed him a second time last week. But when Tyler Wells suddenly developed some elbow inflammation earlier this week and the O’s didn’t have time to get a fresh arm from the minors, they added Bañuelos, who was already on hand as part of the taxi squad. But doing so required bumping Soto off his roster spot yet again.

He continues to garner interest based on his speed and defensive versatility. He has racked up a decent number of steals in the minors while playing the three infield positions to the left of first base, as well as a very brief stint in the outfield.

Offensively, he’s hit .375/.414/.531 in his major league career, though in a tiny sample of 71 plate appearances. His larger body of work in the minors hasn’t been as impressive, as he’s hit .246/.340/.355 for a wRC+ of 86 in 1,505 plate appearances since the start of 2021. Nonetheless, the defense and speed are attractive, especially since he has two options and doesn’t require an active roster spot.

The Reds came into this year with a surplus of infield talent, so much so that Spencer Steer and Jonathan India were seemingly ticketed for either outfield work or multi-positional roles. However, Noelvi Marté was given an 80-game PED suspension and then Matt McLain required shoulder surgery, subtracting two of their planned everyday options. The club acquired Santiago Espinal for a bit of extra infield depth and now Soto can give them a bit more.

The Reds effectively had a roster spot to burn since Antone required season-ending surgery last week. That made him destined to be transferred to the 60-day IL at some point, which has now come to pass and allowed the club to add Soto to the system.

As for Bañuelos, as mentioned, he was hastily added to the O’s roster when they had an open spot and he was already with the club. They put him into the game late, allowing him to make his major league debut when he hit for Colton Cowser and flied out. Bañuelos described it as “one of the coolest moments of my life,” though the O’s designated him for assignment the next day. Now that he’s cleared waivers, he will return to his previous role, providing the O’s with non-roster depth in the catching position.

White Sox Sign Cody Sedlock To Minor League Deal

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The White Sox have signed right-hander Cody Sedlock to a minor league deal, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He’s been assigned to the Complex League for now but will presumably move up to a higher affiliate after ramping up.

Sedlock, 29 in June, has a tiny amount of major league experience, more like a sip of coffee than a cup of coffee. He appeared in one game for the Orioles in 2022, tossing three innings. He allowed five earned runs that day while issuing one walk and striking out three opponents. After that one outing, he was outrighted off the roster and traded to the Tigers. He become a free agent at season’s end and didn’t sign anywhere for the 2023 season.

Prior to that major league debut and gap year, the righty was a notable prospect for the Orioles. Selected 27th overall in 2016, he was considered the #2 prospect in that club’s system by Baseball America in 2017. However, injuries have largely gotten in the way since then, something that Keith Law of The Athletic attributes to a heavy workload during Sedlock’s college years.

The righty tossed 101 1/3 innings for Illinois in his draft year and then another 27 frames at Low-A after being selected, but he hasn’t been able to reach 100 innings pitched in any season since then. Along the way, he had forearm and shoulder injuries and also required surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome. He has a combined 4.46 earned run average in the 422 minor league innings that he’s thrown over the years, striking out 21.6% of batters while walking 10.7%.

It’s hard to know what to expect from Sedlock at this point. There will likely be some rust after sitting out all of last year but it’s also possible the rest allowed his body to recover in some way. For the Sox, there’s little harm in taking a flier on a former first-rounder to see what happens.

If Sedlock looks good after getting into game shape, he’ll give the staff some non-roster depth. The Sox have recently traded away most of the best pitchers as part of their ongoing rebuild and are likely to make make even more trades this summer since they are currently the worst team in the league at 3-15. If Sedlock gets into good form in the next few months, there could be a path for him to get back to the big leagues.

Braves Select Luke Williams

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The Braves announced that they have selected the contract of infielder/outfielder Luke Williams, with outfielder Forrest Wall optioned in a corresponding move. The club had an open spot on the 40-man roster.

Williams, 27, is a versatile player who has bounced around the league in recent years. He was drafted by the Phillies and made his debut with that club in 2021. But in 2022, he went to the Giants, Marlins and Dodgers via small trades or waiver claims. The Dodgers non-tendered him after that season and re-signed him to a minor league deal. He made their roster during the 2023 campaign but then went to Atlanta via waivers. For a second straight year, he was non-tendered and then re-signed a minor league deal with the club that cut him.

While collecting all those jerseys, he also found time to play all four infield positions and all three outfield slots. He even threw one inning on the mound for the Dodgers last year. His 263 major league plate appearances have led to a batting line of .225/.281/.295, wRC+ of 60. That’s obviously subpar offense but he’s also stolen 17 bases in 23 tries and provides the aforementioned defensive versatility.

His offense has naturally been better in the minors. Going back to the start of 2022, he has hit .267/.356/.435 for a wRC+ of 97. That’s still a bit below average but it’s not bad for a guy who can swipe a bag from time to time while also wearing multiple different gloves. The combination is clearly appealing to teams, based on how many of them have acquired him in the past few years.

Atlanta recently lost Ozzie Albies to the injured list due to a broken toe, so their needs on the infield are a little higher than in the outfield. They have Luis Guillorme and David Fletcher on hand to cover second base but Williams can give them some extra cover there, while also potentially moving to the outfield.

Wall has been with the club all year but has barely played, as he’s been put into two games as a late substitution, only taking one plate appearance. The club has Ronald Acuña Jr., Michael Harris II, Jarred Kelenic and Adam Duvall taking regular playing time on the grass, with Marcell Ozuna as the designated hitter.

Rather than have Wall sit on the bench, it seems the club will send him to Triple-A for regular playing time down there. Williams can take over as the occasional pinch runner or defensive replacement while also giving the club a bit more infield depth. Williams still has an option so the club can decide to send him back down to the minors later without being exposed to waivers.

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