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Mets Designate Abraham Almonte For Assignment

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The Mets announced four roster moves in between games of their double-header with the Braves today, including the news that outfielder Abraham Almonte has been designated for assignment.  Right-hander Denyi Reyes was optioned to Triple-A, while righty Tyson Miller was called up from Triple-A and outfielder Tim Locastro was reinstated from the 60-day injured list.

Almonte signed a minor league deal with New York during the offseason, but he didn’t make his 2023 debut until four days ago, after the Mets selected his contract to the active roster.  With his appearance in the first game of the Atlanta double-header, Almonte’s tenure with the Mets could be over after four games, and one hit over 12 plate appearances.

The four-game cup of coffee at least ensured an 11th consecutive MLB season for Almonte, an Immaculate Grid favorite who has seen action with eight different Major League clubs.  The switch-hitter has a career .235/.302/.374 slash line over 1371 PA, as Almonte is known most for his outfield versatility than his prowess at the plate, though his glovework has allowed him to find backup or part-time roles for over a decade.

Assuming he clears waivers, Almonte has the right to elect free agency in the event an outright assignment, since he has been outrighed before in his career.  The Mets could also choose to release Almonte entirely, if they prefer to use younger players down the stretch rather than keep a veteran around at Triple-A.

Locastro returns after undergoing thumb surgery in May, and his thumb injury occurred during a rehab assignment when Locastro was already on the injured list recovering from back spasms.  The lengthy absence has limited Locastro to just 11 games, and he looks to get some outfield work while the Mets try to fill the void left by deadline trades and Starling Marte’s IL stint.

Astros Place Jose Abreu, Phil Maton On Injured List

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The Astros announced that first baseman Jose Abreu has been placed on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to August 10), and that right-hander Phil Maton has been placed on the 15-day IL.  Abreu is dealing with lumbar spine inflammation while Maton has a right elbow contusion.  Infielder David Hensley and left-hander Parker Mushinski were called up from Triple-A in corresponding moves.

Abreu’s back has been an issue for both the last few days, and for much of the season, as he revealed to The Athletic’s Chandler Rome (Twitter links) and other reporters today.  The IL placement seemed to be sparked when an MRI revealed the inflammation, and Abreu received two cortisone shots to help ease the discomfort.

The back problem continues what has been a rough debut season for the veteran first baseman in Houston.  After signing a three-year, $58.5MM free agent contract with the Astros last winter, Abreu has stumbled to a .234/.291/.343 slash line and 10 homers over 464 plate appearances.  Abreu and the Rockies’ Jurickson Profar each have a 75 wRC+, tied for the lowest wRC+ of any player in baseball with at least 450 PA in the 2023 campaign.

It has been a surprising result for a player who was so consistently productive over his nine previous seasons with the White Sox, and yet Abreu made a point of not using his back problems as an excuse, telling Rome and company “this is not a justification for the hitter I’ve been for the past four months.”

The Astros selected Jon Singleton’s contract from Triple-A earlier this week, and the former top prospect will continue to get a good chunk of the first base playing time while Abreu is sidelined.  Hensley and Mauricio Dubon could also chip in, though Houston might also opt to use Yainer Diaz more often at the cold corner, when Diaz isn’t catching.  The rookie has hit very well in his first extended taste of MLB action, and the Astros have been using first base and the DH spot to keep Diaz in the lineup when Martin Maldonado is behind the plate.

Maton was hit in the elbow by a line drive in Friday’s game, which forced him to make an early exit from his relief outing.  Rome reports that initial x-rays didn’t show a fracture, but Maton will undergo more x-rays and an MRI in due course.

Injuries have plagued Houston’s rotation all season, but the bullpen has been relatively healthy, and a big reason why the Astros have been able to largely withstand their thinned-out starting staff.  Maton has enjoyed a very solid campaign, posting a 3.04 ERA and an above-average 26.2% strikeout rate.  Though Maton isn’t a hard thrower and his walk rate is below average, he has elite spin rates and his fastball and curveball, and his 23.1% hard-hit ball rate is the lowest in the majors.

The Astros can only hope that the further scans don’t reveal a more serious problem for Maton, as the club needs their bullpen to keep contributing during the playoff push.  Houston already added to their relief depth in acquiring Kendall Graveman at the trade deadline, a move that looks even shrewder now that Maton will miss at least the next 15 days.

Diamondbacks Designate Kristian Robinson For Assignment

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The Diamondbacks announced that they have selected the contract of infielder Buddy Kennedy. In corresponding moves, they optioned infielder Emmanuel Rivera and designated outfielder Kristian Robinson for assignment.

Robinson hit .271/.384/.452 in 185 combined plate appearances at three different minor league levels — a game of rookie ball, 32 games at A-level Visalla and 10 games at high-A Hillsboro.  It marked his first on-field action since the 2019 season, as Robinson had been on the restricted list for almost three years.  Back in May, MLBTR’s Anthony Franco detailed the legal and visa hurdles that stalled Robinson’s career, stemming from an April 2020 incident that initially resulted in Robinson pleading guilty to a felony assault charge.  The charge was reduced to a misdemeanor if Robinson completed an 18-month probation period, and while that probation period was up in the spring, Robinson had to essentially put his baseball career on hold until its completion.

Though Robinson’s numbers in the minors are pretty solid, and he is only a couple of years removed from top-100 prospect status, the D’Backs are willing to move on from the 22-year-old outfielder.  Claiming Robinson would require a 40-man roster spot from an interested team, but it would seem like someone will certainly take a flier on a player with his pedigree.  That said, it would stand to reason that Arizona might’ve shopped Robinson on the trade market while opting for the DFA, but apparently didn’t find any acceptable offers.  Because Robinson was on the 40-man roster, he is ineligible to be dealt after the trade deadline.

Rivera’s .267/.311/.376 slash line over 238 PA doesn’t quite tell the whole story of the infielder’s season, as Rivera got off to a blazing start and started getting regular duty at third base in place of Evan Longoria and Josh Rojas.  However, Rivera has markedly slowed down at the plate, with only a .519 OPS in his last 123 PA.  With Rivera sent to Triple-A to regroup, Longoria on the 10-day injured list, and Rojas traded to the Mariners as part of the Paul Sewald deal, utilityman Jace Peterson and Kennedy now look like the starting platoon at third base.

Kennedy was a fifth-round pick for the Diamondbacks in the 2017 draft, and he made his MLB debut last season in the form of 30 games and 94 plate appearances (hitting .217/.287/.325).  The D’Backs outrighted him off the 40-man roster after the season and he has been tearing up Triple-A pitching in 2023, hitting .318/.447/.480 over 407 PA with Triple-A Reno with five homers and 22 doubles.

Most of Kennedy’s professional playing time has come as a third baseman, though he logged a lot of innings at second base and gotten some work at first base and left field.  It could be that Kennedy will just be a stopgap until Longoria is able to return, but it represents another move at a position that has been a problem area for the Diamondbacks all season.  The revolving door at third base is just one of many issues for a struggling Arizona team that is 8-25 since the start of July, and currently mired in a nine-game losing streak.

Scott Blewett Signs With CPBL’s Uni-Lions

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Right-hander Scott Blewett has signed with the Uni-Lions of the Chinese Professional Baseball League, per CPBL Stats.

Blewett, 27, signed a minor league deal with the Braves at the end of March. He’s since made 17 appearances for their Triple-A club, including 13 starts, logging 72 2/3 innings. He allowed 4.21 earned runs per nine innings in that time, struck out 24.7% of batters faced, walked 9.4% of them and got grounders on 42.6% of balls in play.

The Braves recently got Max Fried back from the injured list, rejoining the rotation next to Spencer Strider, Charlie Morton, Bryce Elder and Yonny Chirinos. Spot starts this year have gone to players on the 40-man roster like Allan Winans, Michael Soroka, AJ Smith-Shawver, Dylan Dodd and Jared Shuster.

Despite Blewett’s generally solid work this year, his path towards a role on the big league club was a steep one. But it will get him a chance to prove himself in Taiwan, likely with a higher salary than he was earning in the minor leagues.

Prior to this year, Blewett spent most of his career with the Royals, who selected him in the second round in 2014. He was able to make his major league debut with that club, tossing eight innings over 2020 and 2021 with a 3.38 ERA. He was outrighted at the end of that latter campaign, then spent 2022 with the White Sox on a minor league deal without getting called back to the big leagues.

Mariners Outright Juan Then

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The Mariners announced that right-hander Juan Then has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Tacoma. It had not been previously announced that he was designated for assignment, so this move drops their 40-man roster count to 39.

Then, 23, was added to the Mariners’ roster in November of 2020 to protect him from being selected in the Rule 5 draft. A starting pitching prospect at that time, he posted a 6.46 ERA over 14 High-A starts in 2021 and then missed most of 2022 due to injury, only logging 12 innings in the minors.

This year, he’s been used primarily as a reliever. He tossed 11 innings in the majors with a 4.91 ERA, only striking out 10.4% of batters faced but keeping the ball on the ground at a 63.4% clip. But in 26 minor league frames, his ERA is an unsightly 10.04.

Since Then was added to the roster almost three years ago, he’s in his final option season and will be out of options next year. That fact, combined with his poor results of late, likely led to him passing through waivers unclaimed. This is his first outright and he has less than three years of service time, meaning he won’t have the right to reject this assignment in favor of free agency. He’ll stay in the organization without occupying a roster spot but will qualify for minor league free agency at season’s end if not added back onto the roster.

A’s Select Francisco Pérez

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The Athletics announced that they have selected the contract of left-hander Francisco Pérez, with lefty Sam Long optioned in a corresponding move. They already had a vacancy on the 40-man roster, which is now full.

Pérez, 26, signed a minor league deal with the A’s in April and has been working in the minors since then. Between Double-A and Triple-A, he’s tossed 40 2/3 innings, allowing 4.43 earned runs per nine. His 31.2% strikeout rate is quite strong but his 11.8% walk rate is on the high side.

Prior to this season, he was able to throw 15 1/3 innings in the majors, split between Cleveland and Washington in 2021 and 2022. He currently has a career ERA of 5.87 in that small sample. The Nats passed him through waivers after last year, which led him to the open market but he’s now back in the big leagues.

He still has an option season remaining and won’t reach one year of service time here in 2023, allowing the A’s to cheaply retain him as a depth piece with roster flexibility for years to come, as long as he continues to justify his 40-man roster spot.

Cardinals Promote Drew Rom For MLB Debut

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Aug. 21: The Cardinals announced that Rom has been promoted for his debut. Right-hander Guillermo Zuniga was optioned to Triple-A Memphis to open a spot on the roster.

Aug. 20: The Cardinals are planning to call up left-hander Drew Rom from Triple-A Memphis to start Monday’s game against the Pirates.  Matthew Liberatore was initially slated to start that game, but Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol told reporters that Libertore will be pushed to Wednesday due to a sore back.

The reshuffled rotation will result in a big league debut for Rom, just three weeks after he joined the St. Louis organization as part of the deadline day trade that sent Jack Flaherty to the Orioles.  Rom was briefly called up to the Orioles back in May, but his two-day stint on the active roster didn’t result in any in-game appearances.

The 23-year-old Rom was a fourth-round pick for Baltimore in the 2018 draft, and he has a 4.75 ERA over 134 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level.  However, he has looked sharp since the trade, allowing just one earned run over 11 innings and two starts with the Cardinals’ top affiliate.  This small sample size in Memphis includes an eye-popping 43.9% strikeout rate, which is a marked step up from even the solid strikeout rates Rom has posted throughout his minor league career.

Baseball America ranks Rom as the 15th-best prospect in the St. Louis farm system, noting that his fastball sits in the low-90s.  This seems to be his best pitch, as the BA scouting report feels Rom needs to throw his secondary offerings (a splitter and a slider) in the strike zone more frequently and with greater efficiency to make his overall arsenal more dangerous to hitters.

While this might end up being just a spot start for Rom, it is an opportunity to both perhaps earn more innings down the stretch as the Cardinals continue to evaluate players for 2024.  Starting pitching is a stated need for the Cards going into the offseason, but even if the front office achieves its goal of adding three new starters, depth is always a necessity, making Rom valuable as a big league-ready starter.

Rays Reinstate Josh Fleming, Transfer Shane McClanahan To 60-Day IL

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The Rays have reinstated left-hander Josh Fleming from the 60-day injured list, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. In corresponding moves, right-hander Cooper Criswell was optioned to Triple-A while lefty Shane McClanahan has been transferred to the 60-day IL. McClanahan will now be ineligible to come back until early October, meaning he won’t return in the regular season. Manager Kevin Cash said a few days ago that it was “highly unlikely” McClanahan would return this year.

Fleming, 27, tossed 48 2/3 innings for the Rays earlier this year, allowing 4.62 earned runs per nine frames. He landed on the injured list in early June due to elbow inflammation but has now returned after just over two months. He had previously been working in a multi-inning role, making starts or serving as a bulk pitcher behind an opener. He will likely return to that role, as his four rehab outings were all two innings or longer.

The Rays have a fair amount of rotation uncertainty, with Jeffrey Springs and Drew Rasmussen already out for the year due to elbow surgery. It also seems highly likely that McClanahan could be in that category as well. As mentioned, Cash has said it’s not likely he’ll be back this year, with “everything on the table.” That includes Tommy John surgery, which would put McClanahan’s 2024 season in doubt as well. The path forward hasn’t been confirmed, but this transfer means that the best-case scenario has him returning for the playoffs in October.

The current rotation consists of Tyler Glasnow, Zach Eflin, Aaron Civale and Zack Littell, with Fleming likely factoring in as well, either via traditional starts or bulk outings. All of those guys have fairly significant injury histories, to various degrees, making rotation depth a key focus for the club going forward. Taj Bradley has been optioned to the minors and could be recalled at some point.

The Rays are 70-48 and currently possess the top Wild Card spot in the American League. They will surely be hoping to keep their remaining starters as healthy as possible for the rest of the regular season schedule and a potential postseason push thereafter.

Mets Designate Jimmy Yacabonis For Assignment

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The Mets have announced to reporters, including Tim Britton of The Athletic, that right-hander Jimmy Yacabonis has been designated for assignment. His roster spot will go to Denyi Reyes, whose selection was reported yesterday.

Yacabonis, 31, began the year with the Mets on a minor league deal. This is the second time he has been designated for assignment by the club this year, as he was also on the roster from mid-April until late May, though he spent most of that time on the IL with a left quad strain. His first DFA resulted in him clearing waivers and accepting an outright assignment, which got him back onto the roster a week ago.

Between those two stints, he’s tossed 13 2/3 innings over seven outings, allowing 6.59 earned runs per nine frames. In last night’s 7-0 loss to Atlanta, he tossed 3 2/3 innings in relief of starter Tylor Megill, allowing one earned run. Though manager Buck Showalter was appreciative of that performance, it likely made him unavailable for today’s doubleheader. Since he’s out of options, he’s been squeezed off the roster and into DFA limbo for a second time this year.

The Mets will now have a week to put him on waivers. The last time this happened, he cleared and stuck around, which could perhaps play out again. Though it’s also possible some new job openings have opened up after various trades were made prior to the recent deadline. Yacabonis has a career ERA of 6.08 in 131 2/3 innings dating back to 2017. Though he’s out of options, he has less than two years of service time and could be theoretically retained for future seasons without a huge cost.

Pirates Sign Joe Perez To Minor League Deal

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The Pirates have signed infielder Joe Perez to a minor league deal, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He’s been assigned to Double-A Altoona for now.

It’s something of a birthday present for Perez, who turns 24 years old today. He quickly finds himself a new job after being released by the Astros last week. He had been on their 40-man roster until they acquired Justin Verlander, which led to Perez being designated for assignment and clearing waivers.

The ’Stros selected him in the second round of the 2017 draft but injuries and the pandemic would limit his opportunities in the years to come. By the start of 2021, he had only played in 54 games as a professional. But 2021 was something of a breakout for him, as he was finally healthy and able to thrive. He hit 18 home runs in 106 games across three different levels, going from Single-A to High-A and Double-A. His .291/.354/.495 batting line amounted to a wRC+ of 125.

The Astros added him to their 40-man roster that November to protect him from being selected in the Rule 5 draft and he went into 2022 considered the club’s #5 prospect at Baseball America and #8 at FanGraphs. He got the briefest of debuts in April of that year, striking out in one plate appearance before getting optioned back to the minors. Shortly thereafter, the injury bug bit him again, with an oblique strain putting him out of action for a couple of months. He was eventually able to get into 83 minor league games that year, hitting .290/.359/.417 for a wRC+ of 103.

Coming into this season, BA still had him ranked 13th in the Astros’ system but he hasn’t had a great year. His .255/.328/.399 Triple-A batting line amounts to a wRC+ of 74 in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. FanGraphs released their Astros prospect list in June and had Perez down at #36.

Despite his subpar results this year, it’s a sensible pickup for the Pirates. Perez is not too far removed from being a top 10 prospect with Houston and missed a lot of time due to injuries and the pandemic. He’s still young and could perhaps still develop with more reps. Defensively, he’s primarily been a third baseman but has also spent time at first, second and the outfield corners. If he is able to get a roster spot, he will still have one option year remaining after this one.

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