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Phillies Claim Bradley Zimmer

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The Phillies announced Thursday that they’ve claimed outfielder Bradley Zimmer off waivers from the Blue Jays. He’ll take the active roster spot of center fielder Brandon Marsh, who’s headed to the 10-day injured list due to a sprained left ankle. Bryce Harper was transferred to the 60-day injured list to open a spot on the 40-man roster.

Zimmer, a former first-round pick and top prospect in Cleveland, was traded to the Jays on Opening Day and held a roster spot throughout the season due to his glovework and baserunning prowess. He’s posted a disastrous .105/.209/.237 batting line on the season, but that’s come in a minuscule sample of 87 plate appearances spread across 77 games.

Zimmer has never been a great hitter in the Majors, but he came into the 2022 season as a .225/.310/.347 hitter, so it’s fair to wonder whether he might’ve fared a bit better at the plate had he been given more than five to six plate appearances per week. At the time of his DFA, Zimmer had played in 22 games and received just 14 plate appearances over a span of more than six weeks.

At least in the short term, the Phils could have more at-bats to give Zimmer. He’ll give them a plus defender to slot in between lumbering sluggers Kyle Schwarber and Nick Castellanos in the outfield, providing some needed range to help offset the defensive deficiencies the Phillies face in the corners.

Marsh, acquired in a deadline deal sending top catching prospect Logan O’Hoppe to the Angels, hit .250/.294/.313 in 34 plate appearances with the Phillies before sustaining his current injury on a play at the center field wall. Like Zimmer, he’s a plus defender in center, though Marsh is also a recent second-round pick and top prospect whom the Phils hope can be their everyday option in center for the foreseeable future. It seems likely that once Marsh returns, Zimmer could again be squeezed off the roster, although with rosters expanding to 28 in September, perhaps the Phils will hang onto Zimmer to give them a second plus glove in the outfield as a late-game replacement.

Harper’s move to the 60-day injured list is procedural and does not reset his timeline for a return. The “60-day” term on the 60-day IL is retroactive to whenever a player was first placed on the IL, and Harper has been aiming for a September return anyway. In other words, it’s a technicality that is not reflective of any snags in his rehab or any setbacks. He’s been working to mend a broken thumb sustained when he was plunked by an errant Blake Snell fastball. Harper also has a tear in the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, which has limited him to DH work due to an inability to throw from right field. That’ll likely remain his role once he returns next month.

Padres To Sign Brandon Kintzler To Minor League Deal

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Right-handed pitcher Brandon Kintzler is set to sign a minor league deal with the Padres, reports Jesse Rogers of ESPN.

Kintzler, 38, appeared in 12 straight MLB seasons from 2010 to 2021, and will look to make it lucky 13 here in 2022. He began his big league career with the Brewers before going to the Twins, Nationals, Cubs, Marlins and Phillies. In 483 career games, he has a 3.50 ERA, largely due to his ground ball-inducing ways. His 16.8% career strikeout rate is below average, but he’s managed to get hitters to put the ball into the dirt on 56.4% of balls in play. He’s also avoided free passes, keeping walks down to a 6.5% rate.

He signed with the Phillies last year but endured a rough campaign. After registering a 2.68 ERA in 2019 and a 2.22 mark in 2020, it shot up to 6.37 last year. He still got strikeouts, walks and grounders at roughly his career rates, but his .369 batting average on balls in play was much worse than previous seasons. He also saw 29.2% of fly balls turn into homers, more than double his career rate. He was designated for assignment after the Phils made some acquisitions at the trade deadline, getting released in early August.

After now sitting on the sidelines for an entire year, Kintzler will gear back up with the Padres. The club has five relievers currently on the injured list, including four on the 60-day IL: Austin Adams, Pierce Johnson, Drew Pomeranz and Craig Stammen. Kintzler will presumably join the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas at some point and start to get into game shape, providing the Friars with some veteran bullpen depth.

Diamondbacks Select Stone Garrett, Designate Paul Fry

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The Diamondbacks announced that they have selected the contract of outfielder Stone Garrett. To create room for him on the active roster, infielder Seth Beer was optioned to Reno. To open a spot on the 40-man roster, left-hander Paul Fry was designated for assignment. Robert Murray of FanSided reported Garrett’s promotion before the official announcement.

Garrett, 26, was a second round pick of the Marlins in 2014. He got some love from prospect evaluators in that time, ranking among the top ten Marlin farmhands in 2016 and 2017 by Baseball America. He made it as high as Double-A in Miami’s system in 2019, getting into 119 games, hitting 14 home runs and stealing 15 bases. His 28.7% strikeout rate and 4.1% walk rate were both worse than average, however, leading to a final batting line of .243/.289/.413, wRC+ of 103.

The minor leagues were canceled by the pandemic in 2020, with Garrett reaching free agency that fall. He signed on with the Diamondbacks and has since taken steps forward at the plate. He spent most of last year at Double-A, hitting 25 homers and swiping 17 bases, also making slight improvements in terms of walks and strikeouts. His .280/.317/.516 batting line in that time was 16% better than league average, by measure of wRC+. This year, a bump up to Triple-A has resulted in more progress, particularly in terms of plate discipline. His 7.6% walk rate and 23.4% strikeout rate are vaguely average-ish, a marked improvement over previous seasons. That doesn’t seem to have cost him in other areas, as he’s added 28 more long balls this year and another 15 steals. His .278/335/.574 batting line amounts to a 114 wRC+.

Arizona currently has a record of 53-63 and is 10 1/2 games out of the final Wild Card spot in the National League. Given that they’re unlikely to be in serious contention down the stretch, they can give Garrett some playing time to see if he can translate any of those minor league results to the big league level and perhaps earn himself a role on next year’s team. He will jump into an outfield mix that includes Alek Thomas, Daulton Varsho, Jake McCarthy and Jordan Luplow. Down the road, that group will also include Corbin Carroll, who is widely considered one of the best prospects in all of baseball and was promoted to Triple-A in July.

As for Fry, 30, he was acquired from the Orioles in a trade earlier this season. He’s only thrown one inning for the big league club, spending most of the year in the minors. In 18 Triple-A innings, he has a 5.50 ERA, 18.8% strikeout rate, 11.8% walk rate and 40.7% ground ball rate. Given those lackluster results, he will relinquish his spot on the 40-man roster. Since the trade deadline has passed, Arizona’s only options will be to place Fry on outright waivers or release waivers.

Players who clear waivers can reject an outright assignment and elect free agency if they have previously been outrighted in their career or if they have over three years of MLB service time. Fry qualifies in both cases, but since he has less than five years of service time, electing free agency would mean forfeiting the remainder of his salary. While still with the Orioles, Fry qualified for arbitration and agreed to a salary of $850K. That leaves just under $223K left to be paid out.

Mets Place Eduardo Escobar On IL, Designate R.J. Alvarez

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The Mets announced to reporters, including Tim Healey of Newsday, a series of roster moves. One of them is the previously reported selection of prospect Brett Baty, along with lefty Sam Clay being recalled to the active roster. The club also placed infielder Eduardo Escobar on the 10-day injured list with a strained left oblique and designated right-hander R.J. Alvarez for assignment.

Escobar, 33, has been playing hurt for most of the past week, leaving Friday’s game with the team referring to his ailment as “side tightness” at that time. Though he’s played in a couple of games since, it seems that the issue hasn’t abated and will now send him to the injured list. The infield depth was further banged up by Luis Guillorme suffering a groin strain and landing on the IL on Monday. With Escobar now following Guillorme onto the shelf, it seems the path has been cleared for Baty to get some regular work with the big league club.

The Mets and Escobar agreed to a two-year, $20MM deal in the offseason, though the infielder has hit just .216/.269/.384 for a wRC+ of 89. Outside of a miserable showing in the shortened 2020 season, that’s hit worst output in terms of wRC+ since 2016. He’s also striking out at a career-worst rate and walking less than he has in recent seasons. What role he has when he returns from the IL could depend on how well Baty fares in his first taste of MLB action.

Alvarez, 31, pitched in the majors in 2014 and 2015 but then didn’t appear in the big leagues again until last night. He was selected to the roster yesterday and then thrust into action when starter Taijuan Walker left after just two innings due to back spasms. Alvarez lasted 2 1/3 innings, surrendering four hits, three walks and three earned runs. He now loses his roster spot after a stint of nearly 24 hours and will head to the waiver wire in the coming days since the trade deadline has come and gone. Should he clear waivers, he would be eligible to reject an outright assignment by virtue of having been previously outrighted in his career. In 34 2/3 Triple-A frames this year, he has a 3.38 ERA, 22.3% strikeout rate, 13.4% walk rate and 44% ground ball rate.

As for Walker, he underwent an MRI and received “pretty good news, all things considered,” in the words of manager Buck Showalter, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. There was apparently no structural damage found by the MRI, though Walker may miss his next start to rest up a little. Since Carlos Carrasco was placed on the IL yesterday with an oblique strain, the club’s rotation with be doubly shorthanded until Walker is ready to take the mound again. The Mets have Max Scherzer, Jacob deGrom and Chris Bassitt lined up to pitch tonight through Friday, though it will get tricky after that. They are scheduled to play a doubleheader against the Phillies on Saturday and don’t have an off-day until next Wednesday, August 24.

Down the road, one hurler who could potentially rejoin the staff is lefty Joey Lucchesi. He’s been out of action since undergoing Tommy John surgery last year but will begin a rehab assignment on Sunday, Showalter tells DiComo. After such a long layoff, Lucchesi will need some time to ramp back up and won’t be able to help the Mets with their current arms shortage. However, rehab assignments for pitchers are a maximum of 30 days, meaning he should be an option for helping the team by mid-September.

Twins Claim Jake Jewell From Guardians

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The Guardians have announced that right-hander Jake Jewell has been claimed off waivers by the Twins.

Jewell, 29, signed a minor league deal with the Guardians in the offseason and has had a nice showing in the minors this year. Through 43 1/3 innings in Triple-A, he had an ERA of 2.49 along with a 27% strikeout rate, 8.4% walk rate and 63.3% ground ball rate.

Based on that strong minor league showing, he got selected up to the big league club in early August but was optioned a few days later without getting into any game action and then designated for assignment after just over a week on the 40-man roster. That’s been something of a theme in Jewell’s career in recent years, as he’s often thrown quite well in the minors but without getting extended looks in the big leagues. He has 38 1/3 MLB innings thus far, spread out over three different campaigns.

For the Twins, they had an open spot on their 40-man roster, meaning no corresponding move will be necessary. Since Jewell has one option year remaining, they could send him to Triple-A as depth and keep him there for the final weeks of the season.

Pirates Designate Austin Brice For Assignment

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The Pirates have made a series of roster moves prior to tonight’s game, with right-hander Roansy Contreras being recalled to the active roster and catcher Tyler Heineman being reinstated from the injured list. To make room for those two, catcher Jose Godoy has been optioned while right-hander Austin Brice has been designated for assignment.

For Brice, 30, this is the second time this year he’s been given a brief stay on the Pirates’ roster. Signed to a minor league deal in the offseason, he had his contract selected in late June and was designated in early July. After clearing waivers and accepting an outright assignment, he was selected back to the roster last week but has again lost his spot rather quickly. In between those transactions, he’s managed to throw 6 2/3 innings for the Bucs with a 4.05 ERA.

In 34 2/3 Triple-A frames for the year, Brice has a 4.41 ERA with a 27.2% strikeout rate, 8.6% walk rate and 47.8% ground ball rate. Despite those strong peripherals, the ERA is being inflated by the long ball, with Brice having allowed six in that time, a 19.4% HR/FB rate.

Brice will now be placed on waivers in the coming days, since the passing of the trade deadline eliminates the chance of any deal being made. If he clears waivers, he will be eligible to reject an outright assignment, though he forewent that right the last time he passed through waivers in July.

Rangers Designate Garrett Richards For Assignment

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The Rangers announced that right-handed pitcher Joe Barlow has been activated from the 15-day injured list. To make room for Barlow on the active roster, righty Garrett Richards was designated for assignment. Additionally, outfielder Kole Calhoun has been sent on a rehab assignment.

Richards, 34, has largely been a starting pitcher for years, working exclusively out of the rotation from 2014 to 2019. He transitioned into more relief work over the past couple of seasons, showing some promise in that department last year. With the Red Sox last year, he had a 5.22 ERA as a starter but a 3.42 mark as a reliever.

Based on that showing, the Rangers grabbed Richards this offseason, hoping that a permanent bullpen role would unlock a new gear for him. He and the club agreed to a one-year deal with a $5.5MM guarantee, which came in the form of a $4.5MM salary and $1MM buyout on a $9MM club option for 2023.

Unfortunately, the bullpen breakout hasn’t emerged as hoped. Richards has thrown 42 2/3 innings over 32 appearances this season with a 5.27 ERA and a subpar 19.5% strikeout rate. Based on those poor results, the Rangers have decided to cut bait and remove Richards from the roster. With the trade deadline now passed, their only options will be to put Richards on waivers, either the outright variety or the release kind. There’s little distinction between the two in this case, as Richards has more than five years service time, meaning he could reject an outright assignment and elect free agency without forfeiting any salary.

There’s still about $1.18MM left to be paid out of that salary, along with the $1MM buyout on the 2023 option. It seems likely that he will go unclaimed on waivers and become a free agent, with the Rangers on the hook for paying out the remainder of that money. Once he is a free agent, however, interested teams could find some reasons for optimism in his work this year. His 7% walk rate is a couple ticks below the 9.1% league average for relievers this season. His 57.3% strand rate is unusually low and should be due for some positive regression. His 52.6% ground ball rate is also quite strong, much better than the league average rate of 43.3%. Perhaps a move to a better defensive team would be a better fit for his low-strikeout approach, as the Rangers rank 21st in the league with -1 Defensive Runs Saved, 18th with a -0.4 Ultimate Zone Rating and 23rd in Outs Above Average with a -12.

As for Barlow, he showed enough promise this year to get some work as the closer in Texas, racking up 13 saves. He landed on the injured list in the middle of July due to a blister, only now returning after over a month. Through 30 1/3 innings on the year, he has a 3.26 ERA with a quality 6.6% walk rate, though subpar strikeout and ground ball rates of 19% and 35.6%, respectively.

Yankees Place Clay Holmes On 15-Day Injured List

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The Yankees have placed closer Clay Holmes on the 15-day injured list due to back spasms, as one of a series of transactions.  Miguel Andujar and Tim Locastro were optioned to Triple-A, while Ron Marinaccio, Estevan Florial, and Oswaldo Cabrera were all called up from Triple-A.  (Florial and Cabrera’s promotions were reported earlier today.)

Holmes’ placement is retroactive to August 14, and he hasn’t pitched since August 12.  There was increasing expectation that Holmes would need an IL trip to fully recuperate from his back problem, though New York manager Aaron Boone told MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand and other reporters that the team is hopeful Holmes only misses the 15-day minimum.

Since being acquired from the Pirates prior to the 2021 trade deadline, Holmes has been outstanding in the pinstripes, posting a 2.10 ERA over his 77 innings in New York.  This outstanding performance elevated Holmes to the closer’s job when Aroldis Chapman went on the IL himself earlier this season, and with Chapman struggling even before he got injured, the Yankees kept Holmes as the top ninth-inning choice even after Chapman’s return.

However, just as the Yankees have looked shaky over the last five weeks of play, Holmes has also come back to earth after his incredible start.  The righty has a 9.00 ERA over his last 12 games and 11 innings pitched, and he has blown four of his last five save chances.  As a result, it now appears quite possible that Chapman (who has pitched better since his return from the IL) will reclaim the closer’s job in Holmes’ absence, and perhaps for the remainder of the season.  The Yankees could also essentially use both pitchers as closers or set-up men depending on the situation, rather than have a strict order to their late-game plans.

Pirates Injury Notes: Hayes, Keller

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The Pirates placed third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes on the 10-day injured list yesterday, retroactive to August 13.  Hayes has missed the Bucs’ last four games due to a middle-back muscle strain, and he’ll now get a few more days to recuperate while the Pirates can play with a full roster.  Kevin Padlo (recently claimed off waivers from the Mariners) was called up from Triple-A to take Hayes’ spot on the open roster.

Now in his third MLB season, Hayes has yet to fully live up to his top-prospect billing, at least at the plate.  The 25-year-old is making plenty of hard contact, but it has translated to only a .251/.323/.358 slash line and six home runs over 434 plate appearances this season.  After exploding onto the scene with a 1.124 OPS in 95 PA in his 2020 rookie campaign, Hayes has only a .685 OPS in 830 subsequent PA in the majors.

On the plus side, Hayes has already established himself as an elite defensive player.  Hayes leads all players in the majors in Defensive Runs Saved (+16) and only four players have more Outs Above Average than Hayes’ +12 total.  While Nolan Arenado is also up near the top of both lists, Hayes certainly looks like at least a finalist for this year’s NL Gold Glove at third base.

It doesn’t appear as though Hayes’ injury is too serious, so the Pirates can only hope he can return to action in short order and continue to garner more experience.  A cornerstone piece of Pittsburgh’s rebuild, Hayes signed an eight-year, $70MM extension in April that stands as the largest contract in Pirates history.

Mitch Keller is another younger player the Bucs had tabbed as a key part of the future, and like Hayes, Keller’s early returns in his MLB career have been mixed.  It also seems like Keller is facing some injury problems, as right shoulder fatigue forced him out of last night’s start against the Red Sox after two innings of work.

Keller’s average velocity was down on all of his pitches, yet the right-hander chalked the performance up as “just one of those days.”  Speaking to MLB.com’s Justice delos Santos and other reporters, Keller said his shoulder was feeling better after the game, though it remains to be seen if the Pirates might at least skip or push back Keller’s next start, even if an IL trip isn’t necessary.

After a rough 2021 season that saw him post a 6.17 ERA/4.98 SIERA in 100 2/3 innings, Keller’s 2022 campaign has at least been an improvement in bottom-line numbers.  The right-hander has a 4.49 ERA/4.29 SIERA in 114 1/3 frames this year, due in part to only a .329 BABIP (down from his sky-high .388 figure last year).  However, any above-average BABIP isn’t a good sign for a pitcher who relies on grounders more than strikeouts, as Keller has only a 20.7% strikeout rate over his career and his walk rates have also been below average.

Keller will be arbitration-eligible for the first time this winter, and his relative lack of success at the MLB level should result in a pretty modest 2023 salary.  Considering the number of question marks in Pittsburgh’s rotation, Keller probably isn’t likely to be non-tendered, though a trade might be a possibility if the Pirates no longer see Keller as a building block.

Giants Claim Andrew Vasquez, Designate Steele Walker

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The Giants have claimed left-hander Andrew Vasquez off waivers from the Phillies.  To create roster space, San Francisco has designated outfielder Steele Walker for assignment.

Vasquez was DFA’ed himself two days ago, and the southpaw will now be joining his third new organization since the start of August.  The Blue Jays signed Vasquez just after the lockout ended, but he struggled to an 8.10 ERA in limited action (6 2/3 innings) in the big leagues, and Vasquez also missed over six weeks due to an ankle injury.  Toronto designated Vasquez after the trade deadline and the Phillies put in a claim, and now Vasquez’s Philadelphia tenure will end after four appearances with Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

The Giants have assigned Vasquez to their own Triple-A affiliate for now, and given San Francisco’s tendency to cycle through players on the back end of their roster, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Vasquez either up in the majors soon or perhaps even back on the DFA treadmill in relatively short order.  Vazquez has an 8.10 ERA over 13 1/3 career innings in the majors (21 total games with the Blue Jays, Dodgers, and Twins from 2018-22) but he has some very solid numbers and a lot of strikeouts over his minor league career.  His Triple-A resume consists of a 3.72 ERA over 87 innings, though with a high walk rate.

Walker made his MLB debut this season, appearing in five games with the Rangers before the Giants claimed him off waivers on August 7.  The White Sox selected Walker in the second round of the 2018 draft, but he has a modest .257/.329/.416 over 1405 career PA in the minor leagues.  Chicago dealt Walker to the Rangers for Nomar Mazara in 2019, and thus Walker (a native of Prospect, Texas) eventually got his first taste of the majors while playing for his hometown team.

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