Rockies Select Victor Vodnik
5:45 pm: The Rockies have officially selected the contract of Victor Vodnik from Triple-A (Twitter link). In a corresponding move, Austin Gomber has been placed on the 60-day IL with lower back inflammation. With only 23 games remaining on the Rockies’ schedule, this move means the end of Gomber’s season, giving him the chance to rest up and set his sights on a healthy return in 2024.
1:27 pm: The Rockies are planning to place left-hander Austin Gomber on the 15-day injured list and select the contract of right-hander Victor Vodnik from Triple-A Albuquerque, reports Thomas Harding of MLB.com. Gomber hasn’t pitched since Aug. 28 after his last start was scratched due to back discomfort. Stints on the injured list can only be backdated up to three days from the time of placement, so the IL stint will presumably be retroactive to Sept. 5.
A timetable for Gomber, 29, isn’t yet clear. He’s tied with fellow southpaw Kyle Freeland for the team lead with 27 starts, though both pitchers have ERAs north of 5.00 — 5.50, in Gomber’s case. This year’s 139 innings represent a new career-high at the MLB level for Gomber, who currently has a 14.4% strikeout rate, 7.1% walk rate, 41.6% ground-ball rate and 1.68 HR/9.
While Gomber’s numbers on the year don’t stand out, he’s steadily improved as the 2023 campaign has progressed. The lefty was rocked for 22 runs in his first four starts this year and struggled for much of the season’s first two months. Since June 14, however, he touts a far more palatable 3.91 ERA in 78 1/3 frames. His 14.8% strikeout rate in that time is still one of the lowest in baseball, but his 4.9% walk rate is excellent and Gomber has significantly tamped down his home run issues during this stretch as well (1.15 HR/9). The Rockies can control him for another two seasons via arbitration.
As for Vodnik, he’ll be in line for his Major League debut. The flamethrowing 23-year-old went from Atlanta to Colorado in the deadline swap that sent righty Pierce Johnson to the Braves. He’s pitched 53 2/3 innings this season between Double-A and Triple-A, working to a combined 3.35 earned run average with a hefty 29.9% strikeout rate against a more troubling 13.4% walk rate. Vodnik reaches triple digits with his heater, and scouting reports at FanGraphs, MLB.com and Baseball America all credit him with a plus changeup that helps him induce weak contact on the ground. Command issues are a concern, and BA’s scouting report notes that he’ll at times tip his changeup, thereby undercutting the pitch’s effectiveness.
Vodnik is not yet on Colorado’s 40-man roster, so the Rox will need to make a move to create space. If the Rockies don’t believe Gomber will return this year, he could be placed directly on the 60-day IL. Kris Bryant, currently on the 10-day IL, has already missed 47 days and could be another 60-day IL option, depending on his own outlook. The Rox have also already passed Cole Tucker through waivers once this season, and he was only selected back to the MLB roster a couple days ago.
Reds Designate Kevin Herget For Assignment
The Reds announced that right-hander Fernando Cruz has been reinstated from the COVID-19 injured list, with righty Kevin Herget designated for assignment in a corresponding move.
The Reds have been endlessly cycling pitchers through their roster over the past week or so due to this COVID outbreak. Cruz was one of four pitchers to land on the IL due to the virus, alongside Hunter Greene, Ben Lively and Brandon Williamson. Those absences forced the club to make transactions on an almost daily basis to keep the staff stocked with available arms.
Herget, 32, was one of those fresh arms, getting selected to the roster earlier this week. He entered Wednesday’s game with the club down 8-3 to the Mariners and tossed 2 1/3 scoreless frames to finish the contest. But with Cruz now back from the IL, he’s been bumped from the roster. Players on the COVID IL don’t count against the 40-man roster, so the return of Cruz meant that Herget had to be removed from there instead of merely being optioned.
The right-handed Herget signed a minor league deal with the club in the offseason and has now been selected and then designated for assignment twice this year. He was also on the 40-man roster from early April to the middle of June, getting frequently optioned to Triple-A and back in that time. On the whole, he has thrown 24 1/3 innings in the bigs this year with a 5.18 ERA, 12.4% strikeout rate, 5.7% walk rate and 33.3% ground ball rate.
With the trade deadline long passed, the Reds will have to put Herget on waivers in the coming days. Back in June, he passed through unclaimed and could have elected free agency but decided to stick with the Reds. It’s possible the same sequence of events plays out now, though that remains to be seen.
Padres Select Jurickson Profar
Sept. 8: The Padres have formally announced the Profar and Rosario moves. San Diego has placed Sanchez on the 10-day injured list and moved righty Alek Jacob to the 60-day IL in order to open space on the roster.
Sept. 7: The Padres will select Jurickson Profar back onto the major league roster, reports Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. The Friars also plan to recall infielder Eguy Rosario from Triple-A. San Diego will presumably announce the moves before tomorrow’s series opener in Houston.
Profar returns to San Diego for the first time this year. The one-time top prospect spent the 2020-22 campaigns with the Friars. He hit .244/.333/.375 over that stretch, including a .243/.331/.391 showing in 152 games a year ago. He opted out of the final season of his contract and joined the Rockies on a $10MM free agent deal late in Spring Training, presumably after not finding the multi-year pact he’d been anticipating.
The 30-year-old’s stint in Denver didn’t work out. Profar slumped to a .236/.316/.364 slash despite spending half his games at Coors Field. While the delayed start to the season probably didn’t do him any favors, he never seemed to find a rhythm. Profar was hitting just .210/.288/.324 from the start of the second half until Colorado released him on August 27.
A few days later, the Padres brought him back on a minor league deal. Profar only suited up in four games for their top affiliate in El Paso before earning a return to the MLB roster. San Diego will have to formally select him onto the 40-man roster, though that won’t be an obstacle. The Friars could place any of Jake Cronenworth, Gary Sánchez or Ji Man Choi on the 60-day injured list to create a spot.
Profar has played exclusively left field at the MLB level over the past two seasons but picked up a couple starts at first base in Triple-A. He had plenty of infield experience earlier in his career and could potentially move around off the bench. With San Diego’s playoff hopes extinguished, it’s simply a depth add for the final few weeks. Profar will return to free agency at the start of the offseason. San Diego will pay him at the prorated $720K minimum level with the Rockies on the hook for the rest of his salary.
Marlins To Designate Devin Smeltzer, Select Enmanuel De Jesus
The Marlins plan to designate left-hander Devin Smeltzer for assignment prior to today’s game, reports Noah Berger of Fish On First. Daniel Alvarez Montes of El Extra Base adds that Smeltzer’s spot on the roster will go to southpaw Enmanuel De Jesus, whose contract is being selected from Triple-A Jacksonville.
This marks a jarring fourth DFA of the season for Smeltzer, who signed a minor league contract with Miami over the winter. He’s had his contract selected to the big league roster on four different occasions but been jettisoned to waivers after a brief stay in each instance. Most recently Smeltzer mopped up 3 2/3 innings in yesterday’s blowout loss to the Dodgers. Pitching on his 28th birthday, Smeltzer came into a 6-0 game and was tagged for four runs, though he spared the Marlins from depleting their bullpen in a game that was largely out of hand before he took the mound. In 22 1/3 innings this year, Smeltzer has a 6.45 ERA.
Smeltzer, a former Dodgers draft pick, went to the Twins as part of a Brian Dozier trade and spent parts of four seasons with Minnesota, pitching to a combined 3.99 ERA in 140 innings of work. That includes 70 1/3 frames of 3.71 ERA ball last year, though that success came with a tepid 13.9% strikeout rate. Smeltzer has never missed many bats at the MLB level, evidenced by a career 16.5% strikeout rate, but he’s also only walked 6% of his opponents — a far better-than-average mark. Overall, he has a 4.32 ERA in 162 1/3 big league innings. He’ll be placed back on waivers for a fourth time within the next five days.
De Jesus, 26, will make his big league debut the first time he takes the mound. Originally a Red Sox signee, he spent the 2022 season in the Giants’ minor league system and signed a minor league pact with the Marlins over the winter. He’s pitched 87 minor league frames for the Fish this year (all but seven coming in Triple-A), logging a 4.86 ERA with a 17% strikeout rate, 12.4% walk rate and 40% ground-ball rate.
In parts of three seasons at the Triple-A level, De Jesus has worked to a 4.69 earned run average. He’s been working out of the rotation in Jacksonville and could give Miami some length in the bullpen. The Marlins also still have Sunday’s starter listed as TBD, so De Jesus could potentially be an option that day if he’s not used in relief prior to that contest.
Cubs Reinstate Brad Boxberger
The Cubs reinstated right-hander Brad Boxberger from the 60-day injured list and optioned fellow righty Keegan Thompson to Triple-A Iowa, the team announced. The activation of Boxberger, who’s been out since mid-May with a forearm strain, brings Chicago’s 40-man roster to capacity.
Boxberger, 35, signed a one-year deal worth a guaranteed $2.8MM this offseason (in the form of a $2MM salary and an $800K buyout on a $5MM mutual option). He’s been limited to just 14 2/3 frames on account of this injury, however.
As one would expect from a pitcher dealing with forearm issues, the results in that timeframe were far from Boxberger’s previously established levels. The veteran righty’s velocity was down 0.8 mph from its 2022 levels and 1.5 mph from where it sat in 2021, and Boxberger was tagged for nine runs on 13 hits and nine walks. The resulting 5.52 ERA would be the worst mark of his 12-year MLB career, while his 20% strikeout rate would be his second-worst and his 13.8% walk rate would tie for his third-worst.
Difficult as the early stages of the season were for Boxberger, he of course has a lengthy track record of success. The right-hander spent the past two seasons with the division-rival Brewers, for whom he compiled 128 2/3 innings of 3.15 ERA ball while picking up five saves and 52 holds. Boxberger has pitched to a sub-4.00 ERA in eight of his 11 full big leagues seasons and dropped under the 3.00 mark four times (most recently last year’s 2.95). He carries a lifetime 3.51 earned run average in the Majors, with a hearty 28.8% strikeout rate against an 11.5% walk rate that has been his primary downfall during his worst seasons. Boxberger has 92 career holds and 84 saves, so he’s no stranger to working in leverage spots.
The Cubs will hope that they’re getting a healthier version of Boxberger whose results align more closely with his broader track record. Boxberger stumbled early in his minor league rehab stint but made four straight scoreless appearances (totaling 3 2/3 innings) before being activated — including scoreless outings on back-to-back days (his first time working on consecutive days since early May).
Rockies Outright Coco Montes
The Rockies have sent infielder Coco Montes outright to Triple-A Albuquerque, according to the transactions log at MLB.com. He was designated for assignment on Tuesday and apparently went unclaimed on waivers.
Montes, 27 next month, made his MLB debut with the Rox this season. He appeared in 18 games, hitting .184/.244/.316 through his first 41 trips to the plate. Montes saw most of his limited action at second base while the club was without Brendan Rodgers.
The former 15th round pick has played the majority of the year on optional assignment to Albuquerque. He’s hitting well, even in the context of a very hitter-friendly setting. Montes has hit .313/.397/.550 with 19 homers over 443 plate appearances. He’s striking out in just over a quarter of his trips but has walked at a strong 11.3% clip.
This is Montes’ first career outright assignment. He doesn’t have the service time to elect free agency, so he’ll remain in the organization and try to play his way back onto the Colorado roster.
Angels Select Jhonathan Diaz
The Angels announced they’ve selected left-hander Jhonathan Diaz onto the big league roster. Gerardo Reyes was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake in a corresponding move. The Halos already had three vacancies on the 40-man roster.
Diaz will get the start tonight against the Guardians. It’s his first MLB appearance of the season. The Venezuelan-born hurler pitched in seven games (starting five) between 2021-22. He owns a 3.49 ERA in 28 1/3 MLB frames but has only struck out 16% of opponents while walking nearly 14% of batters faced.
The Angels declined to tender Diaz a contract last offseason. That took him off the 40-man roster, but he returned to the club on a minor league pact. Diaz has logged 87 innings over 38 appearances (including eight starts) in Salt Lake. He owns a 4.55 ERA in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. Diaz’s 21.1% strikeout percentage and 11.5% walk rate are each worse than average, though he’s keeping the ball on the ground at a solid 48% clip.
Diaz still has all three option years remaining, so the Angels can shuttle him between Orange County and Salt Lake for the foreseeable future if they keep him on the 40-man roster. He’ll try to stake a claim to a spot heading into the winter.
Michael Mariot Accepts Outright Assignment With Reds
Right-hander Michael Mariot has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Louisville, reports Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer. The righty had been designated for assignment earlier this week.
The Reds have been dealing with a number of injuries to their pitching staff this year and saw that problem become exacerbated by an outbreak of COVID-19, which added four more pitchers to the injured list. To try to combat those absences, the Reds have been making moves almost daily to supply fresh arms to the roster.
Mariot, 34, was one of those fresh arms, getting selected to the roster earlier this week. He made one appearance for the Reds, tossing 2 2/3 innings in Monday’s game, allowing one earned run. That was his first major league appearance in many years, as his previous big league experience was with the Royals and Phillies from 2014 to 2016. He now has a combined major league ERA of 5.85 in 52 1/3 innings for his career.
After clearing waivers, Mariot could have rejected this assignment and elected free agency, though finding a better opportunity would have been challenging. Since it is after September 1, Mariot would not have been postseason eligible if he signed with any new club. Instead, he’ll stick with the Reds and serve as some non-roster depth as they continue their playoff push. They are currently half a game back of the Marlins for the final Wild Card spot in the National League.
Since his last appearance in the big leagues, Mariot bounced around on various minor league deals, in addition to playing in the Mexican League and the Chinese Professional Baseball League in Taiwan. He started 2023 with the Cleburne Railroaders of the independent American Association of Professional Baseball, striking out 29 opponents in 26 2/3 innings. That led to a minor league deal with the Reds and 37 2/3 innings for the Bats with a 6.93 ERA.
D-Backs Promote Jordan Lawlar
September 7: The Diamondbacks have now made Lawlar’s promotion official, announced that move and Ahmed’s DFA today. They also activated catcher Seby Zavala, claimed off waivers this week, and recalled right-hander Ryne Nelson. Catcher José Herrera and right-hander Bryce Jarvis were optioned in corresponding moves for Zavala and Nelson.
September 6: The Diamondbacks are calling up top infield prospect Jordan Lawlar, reports Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link). They’ll presumably make the move official tomorrow in advance of a pivotal four-game series against the Cubs. Arizona is designating Nick Ahmed for assignment in a corresponding move.
Lawlar seems likely to take over as the primary third baseman. Piecoro wrote this afternoon that the Snakes were considering him as an option at the hot corner. Lawlar made his first professional start there with Triple-A Reno last night. That’s obviously a very limited look, but teams generally feel comfortable moving shortstops to other infield positions.
A Dallas native, Lawlar was regarded as one of the top prospects in the 2021 draft class coming out of high school. He somewhat surprisingly lasted until the sixth pick, though Arizona went above slot with the third-highest signing bonus to add him to the system.
Lawlar’s draft season was cut short by an injury to his left shoulder, which required surgery. He didn’t show any signs of rust the following year, though. The right-handed hitter put together a .303/.401/.509 batting line in his first full professional season. He reached Double-A Amarillo late last year, an impressive achievement for a player who had just turned 20 years old.
That huge showing cemented Lawlar’s status as one of the sport’s most talented prospects. Arizona assigned him back to Amarillo to begin the 2023 campaign. He started relatively slowly but has caught fire since the weather warmed up. Lawlar has an OPS north of .900 in the minors for each month since June. He hit .263/.366/.474 in 410 Double-A plate appearances overall to earn a bump to Reno in mid-August. Lawlar has only appeared in 16 games there, mashing at a .358/.438/.612 clip.
While he’s had the benefit of playing in favorable hitting environments, Lawlar’s cumulative .278/.378/.496 line on the year is strong. He’s walking at a quality 11.4% clip against a decent 20.6% strikeout rate. He has popped 20 homers, 23 doubles and four triples and gone 36-41 in stolen base attempts.
Baseball America recently slotted Lawlar as the sport’s #9 overall prospect, while Kiley McDaniel of ESPN placed him 25th. As his numbers indicate, he’s generally viewed as a well-rounded player with solid tools across the board. McDaniel suggests that a lack of a standout carrying tool could keep Lawlar more as a quality regular than a true star. Even if Lawlar doesn’t have quite the same upside as some top prospects, most evaluators seem confident in him being a productive everyday player at the major league level.
Whether that’ll be the case immediately could have an impact on this year’s playoff picture. Arizona beat Colorado this afternoon and remains tied with Miami, half a game behind the Reds for the final NL Wild Card spot. The Cubs occupy the second Wild Card position, so Arizona has a chance to directly make up ground when they head to Wrigley.
There’s risk with any prospect, particularly one who only has a year and a half of minor league reps under his belt. Yet Lawlar brings more offensive upside than Arizona’s current third base mix. The Snakes have used a combination of Jace Peterson, Emmanuel Rivera and occasionally Evan Longoria at the hot corner. While Rivera had played reasonably well early in the season, they’ve gotten almost nothing out of the position lately. Arizona third basemen are hitting .195/.298/.305 since the All-Star Break.
Geraldo Perdomo has also cooled off at shortstop after an All-Star first half. Yet he’s playing well enough overall to keep the hold onto that job, seemingly pushing Lawlar to the other left side infield position for now. It stands to reason Arizona still views Lawlar as a shortstop option if Perdomo gets injured or goes through an extended slump.
He’ll retain his rookie eligibility going into next season. If the D-Backs carry him for a full service year, Lawlar could net them an extra draft choice if he plays well enough to win Rookie of the Year or finish top three in MVP balloting during his pre-arbitration seasons. That’s a much further off possibility. For now, his focus will be on trying to help a young and increasingly exciting Arizona team to the postseason.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Padres Claim Glenn Otto, Designate Ben Gamel
The Padres announced Thursday that they’ve claimed righty Glenn Otto off waivers from the Rangers, who designated him for assignment earlier in the week. San Diego designated outfielder Ben Gamel for assignment in a corresponding move.
Otto, 27, was a fifth-round pick by the Yankees out of Rice University back in 2017. He went to the Rangers alongside Ezequiel Duran and Josh H. Smith in the 2021 trade that sent Joey Gallo from Arlington to the Bronx.
At the time of the swap, Otto was one of the more well-regarded prospects in the Yankees’ system, ranking 19th on New York’s top-30 list at Baseball America. He placed 15th among Rangers’ farmhands heading into the 2022 season, with BA labeling him a potential fourth starter who could likely be moved to the ‘pen if things didn’t pan out in the rotation.
Otto has gotten looks in the Majors in each of the past three seasons with Texas, but he’s yet to find his footing. While the right-hander tossed 135 2/3 innings over 27 starts last year, he posted a rather pedestrian 4.64 ERA and fanned just 18.2% of his opponents against an unpalatable 10.6% walk rate along the way. He also struggled in six starts down the stretch following the trade in 2021, and he was hit hard in six bullpen appearances this year. Overall, Otto has pitched 169 2/3 innings in the Majors but carries just a 5.69 ERA with worse-than-average strikeout, walk and home-run rates (in addition to a roughly average ground-ball rate).
That said, there’s plenty in Otto’s minor league track record to give the Friars some optimism. He posted a strong 3.20 ERA in 96 2/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A during the 2021 season that saw him traded, and that year’s 35.3% strikeout rate and 6.2% walk rate in the minors were both excellent. Otto has never posted an ERA higher than 3.48 at any minor league level, and he’s punched out 32% of his total opponents in the minors.
Otto missed the first three months of the 2023 season due to a lat injury, so he’s pitched just 40 total innings this year. While his 10.13 ERA in the big leagues (12 runs in 10 2/3 frames) is an eyesore, he’s also posted a sharp 3.38 ERA with his typically promising strikeout tendencies (32.5%) in 29 1/3 Triple-A frames. Otto also has a pair of minor league option years remaining beyond the current season, plus an additional five years of team control remaining. Given that context, it’s not a surprise to see a Padres club that could lose a good bit of pitching depth this winter take a more or less free look at the former prospect.
San Diego, after all, could see each of Blake Snell, Josh Hader, Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, Rich Hill and Nick Martinez reach free agency this winter, either via the expiration of their current contracts or via opt-outs/player options that could be declined. The Padres aren’t going to firmly bank on Otto replacing anyone from that group, but he’s a controllable depth option who could earn his way into the mix and help patch some of those gaps. If nothing else, he could be called upon as a spot starter or extra bullpen arm next year in the event of injuries on the MLB roster.
As for the 31-year-old Gamel, he appeared in just six games with the Padres before today’s DFA. The veteran outfielder has been quite good between the Triple-A affiliates for San Diego and Tampa Bay, batting a combined .286/.402/.498 in 332 plate appearances, but the Friars are prepared to cut ties after just 15 plate appearances, during which Gamel collected three hits (two singles, one double).
In parts of eight Major League seasons between the Mariners, Pirates, Brewers, Padres, Guardians and Yankees, Gamel is a .252/.332/.384 hitter. He’s drawn walks at a healthy 10.1% clip but also fanned in just under a quarter of his plate appearances. Gamel is primarily a corner outfielder but lacks the prototypical power associated with those positions, evidenced by a career-high 11 home runs and a tepid .131 ISO in his career (slugging percentage minus batting average). Now that Gamel has been designated for assignment, the Padres will place him on outright waivers or release waivers within the next five days.