Athletics To Promote Zack Gelof
The Athletics are planning to add infield prospect Zack Gelof to their roster prior to Friday’s game, reports Martín Gallegos of MLB.com. The club already has a vacancy on their 40-man after losing right-hander Adam Oller off waivers to the Mariners earlier today.
Gelof, 23, was selected by the A’s in the second round of the 2021 draft. He’s generally considered to be a very talented hitter, though one with a penchant for aggressiveness that can make him strikeout prone. Last year, he played 96 games between Double-A and Triple-A, hitting .270/.352/.463 for a wRC+ of 107. He walked in 11.4% of his plate appearances but struck out at a 27.5% clip. This year, he’s played in 69 Triple-A games, striking out in 27.9% of his trips to the plate but walking in 13.3% of them. His .304/.401/.529 batting line amounts to a wRC+ of 122 in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.
Defensively, Gelof was a third baseman in college but concerns around his throwing arm have led the A’s to gradually move him to second base, the only position he’s played this year. Speed could be a factor in his game as well, with Gelof having stolen 20 bases in 25 attempts this year. He’s currently considered the #3 prospect in the Athletics’ system by MLB Pipeline and #5 at FanGraphs.
The A’s have used various players at the keystone this year, none of whom have locked down a job. Tony Kemp has played regularly, though he’s hitting just .197/.286/.283 and is capable of playing other positions. It’s a similar story for Jace Peterson, who’s slashing .209/.299/.309 but is capable of moving elsewhere. Ditto for Aledmys Díaz, who’s hitting .209/.260/.286 in a multi-positional role. Jordan Diaz has hit at a subpar rate in a small sample of 32 games this year and can be optioned to the minors.
It seems like Gelof will get a chance to square off against big league pitching and see if he can take over the second base job in Oakland. This will be his first time on a 40-man roster, meaning the club can retain him for six seasons beyond this one, even if he’s up in the majors for good. Future optional assignments could potentially push that back but the focus in the immediate future will likely be on seeing how he performs. The club is the worst in the majors right now with a record of 25-67, giving them plenty of incentive to try out young players like Gelof as they try to build a better roster for future campaigns.
Anthony Bemboom Accepts Outright Assignment With Orioles
The Orioles announced that catcher Anthony Bemboom, who was designated for assignment last week, has cleared outright waivers and accepted an assignment to Triple-A Norfolk. He’ll stay in the organization and provide them with some non-roster depth behind the plate.
The O’s have Adley Rutschman firmly entrenched as their primary catcher and have had James McCann in the backup role for much of the year. Bemboom has been selected to the club’s roster twice this year, with each of those stints in the big leagues corresponding with McCann’s two trips to the injured list. He got into two games in April before being designated for assignment, clearing waivers and accepting an outright assignment. The same process has now taken place again over the past few weeks, with Bemboom getting into another four contests this time, bringing his tally for the year to six.
Bemboom has now appeared in 82 games dating back to the 2019 season with a line of just .161/.236/.260 to show for it. He’s generally fared much better in the minors, including this year. He’s walked more than he’s struck out in 89 plate appearances down on the farm this year while hitting .273/.371/.377 overall. Defensively, he has +3 Defensive Runs Saved in his big league career and positive grades from the framing metrics at FanGraphs and Baseball Prospectus.
He’s clearly comfortable with the organization, as this is the fourth time he’s chosen to accept an outright assignment since first joining the club on a minor league deal prior to the 2022 season. The O’s, meanwhile, clearly value experienced catching depth, as they have had players like Meibrys Viloria, José Godoy and Mark Kolozsvary in the organization at various points this year, along with Bemboom. With both sides seemingly content with the relationship, Bemboom will stick in Triple-A and await the next time he’s needed at the big league level.
White Sox Acquire Mike Mayers From Royals
The White Sox have acquired right-hander Mike Mayers from the Royals, per Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times, with cash considerations heading in the other direction.
Mayers, 31, signed a minor league deal with the Royals in the winter and was deployed as a starter in Triple-A. He took the ball eight times for the Storm Chasers through the middle of May and posted a 6.88 ERA in 34 innings. He was selected to the Royals’ roster at that time and made six appearances, including two starts, for the big league club. He registered a 6.15 ERA through 26 1/3 innings before getting designated for assignment in the middle of June. He cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment and has been back with Omaha in a relief role in recent weeks.
The Sox are 38-54 and seem destined to do some selling prior to the August 1 trade deadline. They’re only eight games back in the weak American League Central but they would have to leapfrog three different clubs to get to the top and are even further back in the Wild Card race. It’s been speculated by many observers that impending free agents will be shopped and Lucas Giolito was recently ranked the #1 trade candidate by MLBTR for that very reason. Other pitchers like Lance Lynn, Joe Kelly, Keynan Middleton, Mike Clevinger and Reynaldo López make some sense as trade candidates to varying degrees, with the club reportedly willing to deal just about any pitcher except for Dylan Cease.
If that indeed comes to fruition and the Sox ship out a few arms from their big league staff, they may need to turn to a few of their depth pitchers in the final months of the season. Mayers has mostly served as a reliever in his career but has also made a handful of starts, including this year, allowing him to potentially fill either role in the months to come. He has a career ERA of 5.21 in 262 2/3 innings dating back to 2016. If he gets selected back to the roster at any point, he is out of options but could be retained for 2024 via arbitration if the club so chooses.
Mariners Claim Adam Oller
2:45pm: The Mariners have now officially announced the claim and that Oller will report to Triple-A Tacoma.
1:15pm: The Mariners have claimed right-hander Adam Oller off waivers from the Athletics, reports Jessica Kleinschmidt. The A’s hadn’t formally announced it, but Oller had recently been placed on outright waivers. The Mariners will assign Oller to Triple-A Tacoma for the time being, a source tells MLBTR. The Mariners haven’t announced the move yet, but they had multiple openings on the 40-man roster, so a corresponding move won’t be necessary.
Oller, 28, was acquired from the Mets alongside fellow right-hander J.T. Ginn in the trade that sent Chris Bassitt from Oakland to New York. He’s appeared in each of the past two seasons with Oakland — his first big league experience — but struggled to a 7.09 ERA with a 12.9% strikeout rate against an 11.9% walk rate in 94 innings. At the time of the trade, Oller was ranked 20th among Mets farmhands, per Baseball America, whose report tabbed him as a largely MLB-ready back-of-the-rotation starter or bulk reliever. Oller hasn’t thrown his slider as hard as advertised, however, and his swinging-strike rate and overall strikeout rate have both suffered as a result.
Oller posted a 3.45 ERA in 120 innings between the Mets’ Double-A and Triple-A affiliates in 2021, winning the organization’s minor league pitcher of the year award in the process. Though he struggled in the Majors last year, he still put up a 3.69 ERA at the Triple-A level. In 2023, however, he’s been hit hard both in the big leagues and the minors; he’s sitting on a 7.11 ERA in 50 2/3 frames, albeit with a solid 25.2% strikeout rate against a 10.3% walk rate.
For the Mariners, Oller will serve as depth either in an injury-plagued rotation or in a swingman role. Seattle lost 2021 AL Cy Young winner Robbie Ray to flexor and Tommy John surgery early in the season, and the M’s currently have Marco Gonzales (forearm strain) and Bryce Miller (blisters) on the injured list at the moment. They’re currently using rookie Bryan Woo in the rotation and also turned to journeyman southpaw Tommy Milone for a start not long before the break. Oller, who’s in the second of three minor league option years, can provide some up-and-down depth moving forward.
The Mariners have done well with low-profile pitching acquisitions in recent years, most notably turning minor league signee Paul Sewald into a high-end reliever. They’ve also coaxed strong performances out of unheralded trade acquisition Justin Topa and waiver pickups like Gabe Speier and Tayler Saucedo so far in 2023. They’ll aim to add Oller to that growing list of pitching successes.
Oller becomes the second pitcher acquired during the Athletics’ fire sale to depart the organization in under two years. The A’s also lost left-hander Zach Logue — acquired in the Matt Chapman trade — to the Tigers on waivers over the winter. Of the seven young pitchers they’ve tried in the rotation since acquiring them as part of the latest teardown, only southpaw JP Sears (4.32 ERA) has an ERA under 6.00. Not every arm they’ve acquired has pitched in the Majors yet, of course, but the early results of the Athletics’ latest wave of trades have not boded well, to say the least.
Dodgers Acquire Tyson Miller From Brewers
The Dodgers announced that they have acquired right-hander Tyson Miller from the Brewers in exchange for cash considerations. The righty had been designated for assignment by Milwaukee on the weekend. To open a spot on their 40-man roster, the Dodgers transferred righty Daniel Hudson to the 60-day injured list.
Miller, 28 later this month, has been with the Brewers since being claimed off waivers from the Rangers in November. He has spent this year as an up-and-down depth arm, getting frequently optioned to Triple-A and recalled as needed. He has thrown 9 1/3 innings in the majors with a 5.79 ERA in that small sample. In 25 2/3 Triple-A innings, he has a 3.86 ERA, striking out 24.5% of hitters while walking 9.1% of them and getting grounders on 45.7% of balls in play.
He’s also seen some brief time in the majors with the Cubs and Rangers in previous seasons, currently sporting a 7.92 ERA over 25 career innings. His 4.75 ERA in 225 1/3 Triple-A innings might not excite much either, but he’s struck out 25.1% of hitters at that level and the Dodgers will surely try to coax more of that out of him going forward. He is in his final option year here in 2023, allowing the club to potentially keep him in the minors for the next few months but he’ll be out of options next year. But he has less than a year of service time and won’t be able to get to that one-year mark, meaning he could stick with the Dodgers for another six seasons if he can take a step forward.
The Dodgers essentially had a roster spot to burn as Hudson suffered an MCL sprain last week that’s going to keep him out of action for significant time. This transfer means he’ll be officially ineligible to return until 60 days from that initial IL placement, which would be early September. They’ve used Hudson’s roster spot and a bit of cash to add Miller to the system for a bit more depth on a club that’s dealt with a number of injuries this year, with 12 different pitchers currently on the IL.
Nationals, Rico Garcia Agree To Minor League Deal
The Nationals have agreed to a minor league deal with right-handed reliever Rico Garcia, reports Jessica Kleinschmidt. The Gaeta Sports client is headed to Triple-A Rochester for the time being.
Garcia, 29, rejected an outright assignment from the A’s earlier this week, instead electing to become a free agent. He’d pitched 8 2/3 innings out of the Oakland bullpen prior to being designated for assignment. In that short stint, he was tagged for eight runs on 13 hits and five walks with six punchouts while averaging 95.5 mph on his heater. Overall, Garcia has a 6.29 ERA in parts of four Major League seasons, but that’s come in a minuscule sample of just 32 2/3 innings between the A’s, Orioles, Giants and Rockies.
At the Triple-A level, Garcia has had considerably better results — particularly over the past two seasons. After pitching to a 2.34 ERA in 34 2/3 frames with the Orioles’ top affiliate last year, he’s logged 25 1/3 innings of 3.20 ERA ball with the Athletics’ Triple-A club so far in 2023. Since last year, Garcia has a 2.70 ERA with a 28.7% strikeout rate but a troublesome 13.7% walk rate. That includes an 18.6% rate of issuing free passes this year, but command issues of that magnitude haven’t existed in the past; Garcia has walked only 8.4% of his nearly 2000 opponents in the minor leagues overall.
Nationals relievers currently rank 28th in Major League Baseball with a collective 5.03 ERA, though their top relievers have been far more successful. That’s a group that includes trade candidates such as Kyle Finnegan, Carl Edwards Jr. and Hunter Harvey. Given the already shaky bullpen performance and the possibility of trading some of their steadiest arms as the team’s rebuild progresses, it’s only natural to see president of baseball ops Mike Rizzo stashing some additional depth in the upper minors.
Garcia entered the 2023 season with just under a year of Major League service time and crossed that threshold during his stint with the A’s. If he’s able to crack the Nationals’ roster and pitch well enough to hold down a roster spot, he’d be controllable for another five years.
Rangers, Matt Bush Agree To Minor League Deal
Less than a year after being traded from Texas to Milwaukee, right-hander Matt Bush is back in the Rangers organization. The 37-year-old Bush, released by the Brewers last week, has signed a minor league deal with the Rangers, per the team’s transaction log at MLB.com. The Full Circle Sports Management client has been assigned to Double-A Frisco for the time being.
Traded from the Rangers to the Brewers in exchange for utilityman Mark Mathias and lefty Antoine Kellylate last July, Bush never quite found his footing in Milwaukee. At the time of the deal, he boasted a 2.95 ERA (2.77 SIERA), 29.8% strikeout rate and 6.6% walk rate in 36 2/3 innings. Bush’s strikeout rate actually improved a slight bit down the stretch in Milwaukee, but his walk rate crept up two percentage points as well. Most problematically, he became quite susceptible to home runs, yielding six long balls in 23 innings down the stretch.
Bush still posted a serviceable 4.30 ERA in Milwaukee, home run troubles notwithstanding, and his strong strikeout/walk numbers were enough for the team to tender him a contract. The two parties agreed to a $1.85MM salary for the current season, but Bush took a step back in nearly every notable category. After averaging 97.4 mph on his fastball in 2022, the right-hander sat at 94.8 mph in limited work with the Brewers this season. That’s perhaps attributable to tendinitis in his right rotator cuff, which sent him to the injured list for nearly two months, but whatever the reason, the results were grim.
In 12 appearances this year, Bush pitched just 10 1/3 innings while allowing 11 runs on 11 hits and five walks. Five of those 11 knocks were homers, and Bush’s strikeout rate plummeted nearly 10 percentage points (from 30.3% to 20.8%) while his walk rate spiked more than five percentage points (from 7.4% to 12.5%).
The Rangers have been searching for bullpen upgrades for some time — they acquired Aroldis Chapman from the Royals in the only notable trade of deadline season thus far — so it’s not altogether surprising that they’d take what’s basically a free look at a pitcher they know quite well. Bush regularly worked in high-leverage spots with the Rangers from 2016-22, totaling 177 2/3 innings of 3.34 ERA ball with a 24.8% strikeout rate, 7.6% walk rate, 46 holds and 12 saves in that time. He won’t be viewed as any kind of definitive solution for the Rangers, who’ll presumably remain in the market for relief upgrades even after acquiring Chapman, but Bush could be a second-half option if he can get back on track in the minors.
Giants Acquire Jack Larsen From Mariners
The Giants acquired minor league outfielder Jack Larsen in a trade with the Mariners over the weekend (h/t to Chris Hilburn-Trenkle of Baseball America). San Francisco assigned the left-handed hitter to their top affiliate in Sacramento, where he made his organizational debut on Sunday.
Seattle’s return is unspecified, though most transactions of this nature see cash sent the other way. Larsen hadn’t been on the M’s 40-man roster, so he does not take a spot on San Francisco’s 40-man.
Larsen, 28, had spent the season with the M’s Triple-A club in Tacoma. The UC-San Diego product appeared in 25 games, hitting .313/.466/.338 across 103 plate appearances. Larsen only connected on two extra-base hits (both doubles), but he walked at an elite 21.4% clip against a 23.3% strikeout rate.
Plate discipline has been his calling card through seven professional campaigns. Larsen is a .267/.380/.441 hitter in more than 2200 minor league plate appearances. He got a cup of coffee in Seattle last summer, tallying one plate appearance (a strikeout) in his MLB debut. The M’s outrighted him off the 40-man thereafter.
Larsen has some center field experience but has played almost exclusively in the corner outfield this year. The Giants have Heliot Ramos and Bryce Johnson as 40-man outfielders in Sacramento. Larsen joins 27-year-old Michael Gigliotti as non-roster depth options on the grass.
Reds Outright Michael Mariot
The Reds sent right-hander Michael Mariot outright to Triple-A Louisville, according to his transaction log at MLB.com. That suggests he went unclaimed on waivers after being designated for assignment over the weekend.
Mariot had an exceedingly brief stay on the Cincinnati roster. The Reds selected his contract on Saturday and carried him for one game. He didn’t pitch and was DFA on Sunday. The 34-year-old is still looking to make his first MLB appearance in seven years.
Owner of a 5.98 ERA over 49 2/3 career major league innings, Mariot joined Cincinnati on a minor league pact a month ago. He started four times for Louisville, working to a 2.59 ERA through 24 1/3 frames. He struck out fewer than 15% of opponents but kept his walks to a pristine 4.2% clip.
Mariot has been outrighted before in his career. He’ll have the right to test minor league free agency as a result, although he could choose to stick with the organization that signed him out of the independent ranks just a few weeks back.
Rays Release José López
The Rays released left-hander José López, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. The southpaw had been designated for assignment last week.
López, 24, came up through the Rays’ system and seemed to have a breakout season in 2022. He went from High-A to Double-A and then Triple-A last year, tossing a combined 59 1/3 innings across those three levels. He registered a 2.43 ERA in that time, striking out a tremendous 37.7% of batters faced, though also issuing walks to 15.1% of them.
Despite that strong season, the Rays couldn’t fit him onto their crowded roster ahead of the Rule 5 draft and he was nabbed by the Padres. His control issues continued to manifest in Spring Training, as he walked five batters in six innings. He wasn’t able to crack the Opening Day roster in San Diego and the Friars offered him back to the Rays, who accepted and sent him to Triple-A Durham.
Through June 10, he had tossed 26 innings at that level with a 5.19 ERA. He had lowered his walk rate to 11.1% but was also getting strikeouts at a reduced 23.1% clip. The Rays selected him to their 40-man roster at that point and he was able to make his major league debut by tossing two innings against the Rangers, allowing one earned run.
The Rays frequently cycle through pitchers at the fringes of their roster and quickly optioned Lopez back to Durham the next day. He was placed on the minor league injured list in early July, designated for assignment five days later and has now been released.