Reds Outright Randy Wynne
Reds right-hander Randy Wynne went unclaimed on outright waivers and has been assigned to Triple-A Louisville, per a club announcement. He’ll remain with the organization but no longer occupy a spot on the 40-man roster.
Wynne, 30, made his big league debut earlier this month, tossing 2 1/3 innings and allowing a run on three hits and a walk. He’d been summoned from Louisville when a taxed and injury-riddled Cincinnati pitching staff needed a fresh arm, and Wynne found himself removed from the 40-man just one day after his debut in order for the Reds to get another fresh arm in the bullpen (righty Jake Wong, who’s now also been designated for assignment).
An undrafted free agent who spent three years in independent ball before the Reds signed him out of the Frontier League, Wynne is currently in his second season at the Triple-A level. He’s been tagged for a 5.12 ERA in 31 2/3 frames with Louisville this season and posted a 4.75 ERA in 133 2/3 innings there during the 2022 season. Wynne doesn’t throw particularly hard (89.4 mph average on his sinker) or miss many bats, but he’s displayed keen command of the strike zone throughout his time in pro ball, walking just 3.9% of his opponents between the minors and his brief big league tenure.
Red Sox, Dinelson Lamet Agree To Minor League Deal
The Red Sox and right-hander Dinelson Lamet are in agreement on a minor league contract, per the team’s transaction log at MLB.com. The Rockies designated Lamet for assignment on June 17 and released him a week later.
It’s been a tough season for the 30-year-old Lamet, who missed multiple weeks due to a back injury and has been hit hard when healthy enough to take the mound. The 6’3″ righty pitched 25 2/3 innings with Colorado but was tattooed for 33 earned runs on 38 hits and a dismal 22 walks in that time. Lamet’s 31 strikeouts in those 25 2/3 frames look like a strong number, but because of all the walks and long innings, he’s actually only fanned 23.1% of his opponents — well below his career mark of 30.2%. His 16.4% walk rate, meanwhile, is a career-high mark.
Once one of the top pitchers in the National League, Lamet has endured a precipitous decline in recent seasons. The righty showed enormous strikeout potential early in his career with the Padres, but Tommy John surgery wiped out his 2018 season. He had a solid return in 2019 and looked to be taking his game to new heights in 2020, when he posted a 2.09 ERA, 34.8% strikeout rate and 7.5% walk rate in 69 innings during the shortened 2020 season — good for a fourth-place finish in NL Cy Young voting.
Lamet entered the 2021 season locked into San Diego’s rotation, but forearm injuries limited him to 47 innings with a pedestrian 4.40 ERA. He’s struggled to get back on track. In 58 frames between the Padres, Brewers and Rockies over the past two seasons, he’s yielded a grim 8.53 ERA. Lamet’s fastball, which averaged 97 mph in 2020, was sitting at 95 mph in this year’s 25 2/3 innings. His strikeout rate, swinging-strike rate, opponents’ chase rate, walk rate and home-run rate in 2023 are all at career-worst levels.
Obviously, the past few seasons do little to inspire confidence in a turnaround. However, the Rockies are on the hook for the remainder of Lamet’s $5MM salary, meaning the Red Sox would only owe him the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the MLB roster. In other words, the minor league deal amounts to a free look at a big arm who as recently as 2021 was viewed as a potential high-end starting pitcher. At the very least, Lamet can provide rotation or bullpen depth in Triple-A, and if the Sox are able to get him back on track in a way that the Rockies weren’t able, he’ll only cost them a few hundred thousand dollars down the stretch. If not, they can move on with minimal investment in this particular dice roll.
Reds Outright Silvino Bracho
The Reds sent reliever Silvino Bracho outright to Triple-A Louisville, according to the transactions log at MLB.com. He was designated for assignment on Sunday.
Bracho has made five appearances for Cincinnati this season. He has tossed 7 1/3 innings of three-run ball, striking out and walking six batters apiece. Bracho has reached the big leagues in three of the past four seasons, but this year’s brief workload represents his largest since he tossed 31 innings for the D-Backs back in 2018.
The right-hander has pitched 21 1/3 frames over 21 outings in Louisville. His 4.22 ERA is fine but built on a huge 98.7% strand rate. Bracho has decent strikeout and walk numbers for the Bats. He’s allowed seven homers in that time, though.
It’s the second time this season in which the Reds have sent him through waivers. He bypassed the right to test minor league free agency in favor of the outright assignment in May. He’ll again have the option to rejoin Louisville or explore other opportunities.
Braves To Reinstate Kolby Allard From Injured List
The Braves will reinstate left-hander Kolby Allard from the 60-day injured list to start tomorrow’s game against the Twins, the team informed reporters (including Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution). It’ll be his season debut.
Allard, a former first-round draftee, made his first three major league appearances with Atlanta in 2018. The Braves dealt him to the Rangers the following season. He spent four years in Texas but never posted an ERA below 4.96. At the start of last offseason, the Rangers traded him back to the Braves for Jake Odorizzi.
So far, neither team has gotten anything out of the swap. Odorizzi might not throw a pitch as a Ranger. He underwent arthroscopic shoulder surgery in April and will miss the entire season; he’s headed to free agency at year’s end. Allard has been down since suffering a Grade 2 oblique strain in Spring Training.
The southpaw has made just two rehab starts for Triple-A Gwinnett. He has combined for 6 2/3 innings of two-run ball with eight strikeouts. Allard tossed 62 pitches in his most recent outing on Thursday, so it’ll likely be a relatively brief start. The Braves optioned AJ Smith-Shawver yesterday, leaving a vacancy in the fifth rotation spot behind Spencer Strider, Bryce Elder, Charlie Morton and Jared Shuster.
Allard will reoccupy a spot on the 40-man roster. Atlanta already has a vacancy after designating Charlie Culberson for assignment last week. They’ll only need to make a corresponding active roster transaction tomorrow.
Wilson Ramos Signs With Long Island Ducks
Veteran catcher Wilson Ramos has signed with the Long Island Ducks of the Atlantic League, the club announced. He’d briefly appeared in the Mexican League earlier in the year before making the jump to independent ball.
Ramos, a two-time All-Star, is looking to play his way to the majors for a 13th season. The Venezuela native didn’t make it there last year, as his only affiliated experience was a three-game stint with the Rangers’ Triple-A team. He appeared in 44 games between the Tigers and Indians two seasons back but had his year cut short when he suffered a season-ending ACL tear in August.
Now 35, Ramos is unlikely to recapture his 2016-18 peak form. The bat-first backstop claimed a Silver Slugger award and some down-ballot MVP support in the first of those seasons and combined to hit .298/.343/.483 over that stretch.
He was still a productive hitter thereafter, posting a .262/.321/.407 line over three clubs between 2019-21. That wasn’t quite enough to compensate for Ramos’ shortcomings as a defender, though, and the knee injury dealt a major hit to his efforts to find his way back to the big leagues last season.
Red Sox Acquire Andres Nunez From Royals
The Red Sox have acquired right-hander Andres Núñez from the Royals, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. The return for the Royals isn’t listed, suggesting it’s likely a cash deal. Núñez wasn’t on a 40-man roster, so no corresponding moves will be necessary. He’s been assigned to Triple-A Worcester.
Núñez, 27, was selected by the Royals in the 29th round of the 2018 draft. The reliever has been quite effective in the minors but has seen his results take a step back this year. In 2018 and 2019, he posted a combined 2.43 ERA in 77 2/3 innings, pitching in Rookie ball and Single-A. The minor leagues were canceled by the pandemic in 2020 and Nunez has been in the upper levels since. He split 2021 between Double-A and Triple-A with a combined 3.98 ERA that year, then had a solid 3.61 ERA mark in Triple-A last year.
Here in 2023, however, things have generally gone in an unfavorable direction with a 6.66 ERA through 24 1/3 innings. He’s allowed a .355 batting average on balls in play and has a 59.6% strand rate, which could point to some bad luck. On the other hand, he generally ran strikeout rates of 25-30% in previous seasons but is down to 17.5% this year. Similarly, his walk rate has jumped to 12.3% after being much lower in previous seasons.
Those poor results have apparently prompted the Royals to accept some cash and move on, while the Sox clearly believe they can get him back on track. He’ll head to Worcester and give the club some extra bullpen depth in Triple-A. He’s yet to crack a 40-man roster but will be eligible for the upcoming Rule 5 draft if not added ahead of time.
Diamondbacks Place Merrill Kelly On IL, Option Joe Mantiply
The Diamondbacks announced a series of roster moves today, with right-hander Merrill Kelly being placed on the 15-day injured list due to right calf inflammation, retroactive to June 25. They also optioned left-hander Joe Mantiply to Triple-A Reno. In corresponding moves, righties Kevin Ginkel and Justin Martinez were recalled from Reno.
At this point, it’s unclear how serious Kelly’s injury is, but it’s a notable loss for the club nonetheless. The Diamondbacks have a fairly top-heavy rotation with Kelly and Zac Gallen being the two most effective members. Gallen has an excellent 2.84 ERA on the year and Kelly isn’t far behind with a 3.22 mark. Then there’s a notable drop to the 4.31 ERA of Tommy Henry, the 4.97 of Ryne Nelson and the 7.82 of Zach Davies.
The Diamondbacks are leading the National League West but have a couple of clubs on their heels as each of the Dodgers and Giants are within three games. With the All-Star break now effectively two weeks away, they will have to forge ahead without Kelly for at least that long. Drey Jameson has been with the big league club in a long relief role and could perhaps step into the rotation. Brandon Pfaadt got some big league starts earlier this year but posted an 8.37 ERA in those before getting optioned back down. Konnor Pilkington is also on the 40-man but has been struggling in the minors this year.
As for Mantiply, he posted a 2.85 ERA last year and even got selected to the All-Star game but has taken a step back this year. He’s gone on the injured list a couple of times already, once due to left shoulder inflammation and another time for a right hamstring strain. Around those ailments, he’s tossed 15 2/3 innings with a 5.74 ERA. His peripherals are still pretty similar to last year’s as a 50.8% strand rate seems to be pushing his ERA up. Nonetheless, he now finds himself headed to Reno to get into a groove.
Martinez, 21, will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game. He served largely as a starting pitcher in the lower levels of the minors but required Tommy John surgery in 2021. After a long injury layoff and the minor leagues getting cancelled by the pandemic in 2020, he came back as a reliever last year. He tossed 38 innings across four different levels, finishing the year at Triple-A. He posted a 3.32 ERA in that time with an incredible 36.7% strikeout rate but 13% walk rate.
Despite the free passes, the club was intrigued enough to add him to the roster in November to prevent him from being selected in the Rule 5 draft. This year, he’s been in Triple-A, tossing 28 innings thus far. He has a 4.18 ERA, striking out 29.7% of opponents but with an astonishing 21.1% walk rate. Despite the control issues, he was recently ranked the club’s #21 prospect at Baseball America and #12 at FanGraphs.
Rockies Select Matt Koch
The Rockies announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Matt Koch. They already had an open roster spot on both their 40-man and active rosters, meaning no corresponding move will be necessary.
Koch, 32, signed a minor league deal with the Rockies over the offseason and has been in Triple-A this year. He’s tossed 34 2/3 innings over 29 appearances with a 7.27 ERA but stronger peripherals in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. His 21.5% strikeout rate and 7% walk rate are each close to typical major league averages, but his .362 batting average on balls in play and 59.3% strand rate are on the unfriendly side of par. That’s led to a 5.90 FIP that’s more than a full run better than his ERA.
Prior to this season, he appeared in 40 big league games with the Diamondbacks and Mariners dating back to 2016. He has an ERA of 5.00 in those, striking out just 13.2% of opponents but limiting walks to a 5.3% clip.
The Rockies’ pitching staff has been stretched in recent days after they were trounced 25-1 by the Angels on Saturday. They then optioned Karl Kauffmann and recalled Nick Mears before bouncing back with a 4-3 victory on Sunday. After that game, they optioned Noah Davis and have now brought up Koch to keep a fresh arm on hand. Koch is out of options but has just over a year of service time.
Cubs To Select Jared Young
3:30pm: Infielder Miles Mastrobuoni was optioned in a corresponding active roster move, per Sullivan. Left-hander Brandon Hughes, who will require season-ending surgery, has been transferred to the 60-day IL to open a 40-man spot for Young.
3:05pm: The Cubs will be selecting the contract of infielder/outfielder Jared Young, reports Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune. Young’s presence at Wrigley Field was first reported on Twitter by @crawlyscubs. Young isn’t on the club’s 40-man roster, so they will have to make a corresponding move or moves in order to make room for him.
Young, 27, was selected to the club’s roster in September of last year and got a cup of coffee in the majors. He had a solid .263/.364/.368 line in 22 plate appearances but was outrighted off the roster in November. He’s spent all of this year mashing in Triple-A. He has 13 home runs in 52 games while walking in 13.8% of his plate appearances and striking out at just a 20.5% rate. His .326/.426/.605 batting line amounts to a 154 wRC+, indicating he’s been 54% better than league average.
Defensively, he’s played a bit of third base and the outfield corners but has seen most of his time at first base. The Cubs haven’t gotten much production at the cold corner this year, as Eric Hosmer hit .234/.280/.330 on the year. He was released and replaced by Matt Mervis, who slashed .167/.242/.289 before getting optioned to the minors. The club returned Cody Bellinger from the injured list before he was 100%, hoping to have him at first instead of his usual center field position but he’s hit just .160/.214/.200 since being activated. Trey Mancini has also seen some time there and hit a tepid .245/.317/.364 on the year.
With all those struggles, it’s understandable that the Cubs are looking for new approaches, especially as they’ve now climbed back into contention. Their 37-39 record isn’t especially impressive but they are just three games back of the lead in the wide open National League Central and they have the best run differential in the division. They’ll now give Young a chance to test his skills against big league pitching again, with just over a month before the club will have to decide whether or not to pursue upgrades at the trade deadline.
Mariners Designate Chris Flexen For Assignment
2:55pm: MLBTR’s Steve Adams reports that Flexen can reject an outright assignment while retaining his whole salary. Unless the Mariners work out a trade in the next week, he will almost certainly wind up on the open market.
2:10pm: The Mariners announced that right-hander Trevor Gott has been reinstated from the injured list with fellow righty Chris Flexen designated for assignment in a corresponding move.
Flexen losing his roster spot is totally unsurprising given his results this season but it’s a shocking turn of events compared to where things stood just a few months ago. After a successful stint in the KBO in 2020, Flexen returned to North America by signing a two-year deal with the Mariners, with an option for 2023 as well.
The guaranteed portion of that agreement went quite well, with Flexen tossing 317 1/3 innings over 2021 and 2022 with a 3.66 ERA. His 16.5% strikeout rate in that time wasn’t especially strong, but his 6.8% walk rate showed strong control. He also did a good job keeping the ball from going over the fence, as his 8.8% home run per fly ball rate was third-best in the league among pitchers with at least 300 innings pitcher. His pitcher-friendly ballpark may have had an impact but his 3.75 road ERA was only slightly higher than his 3.57 mark at T-Mobile Park.
The 2023 option on his contract could be vested at $8MM if Flexen tossed 300 innings over the first two years, which he did. With the M’s having five other rotation options in Luis Castillo, George Kirby, Robbie Ray, Logan Gilbert and Marco Gonzales, that led to Flexen getting interest in trade talks over the offseason.
The Mariners ultimately held onto Flexen for some extra rotation depth, which seemed like a wise move when Ray quickly landed on the injured list and eventually required Tommy John surgery. Unfortunately, Flexen couldn’t step up and take the open rotation spot, getting torched for a 10.38 ERA in four starts before getting bumped back to the bullpen.
His next five outings were scoreless but he’s allowed at least one earned run in his past seven appearances. Whatever skill or luck he previously deployed to prevent home runs has eluded him this year, as he’s already given up 11 long balls, leading to a 21.6% HR/FB rate that’s more than double his clip from the previous two campaigns. Overall, he has a 7.71 ERA on the year in 42 innings, which has bumped him off Seattle’s roster.
The Mariners will now have a week to trade Flexen or pass him through waivers. He garnered interest over the winter and some of those clubs could now circle back, especially with so many pitching injuries throughout the league, though Flexen’s poor results this season will obviously tamp down whatever trade value he previously had. With approximately $4.1MM still remaining on his contract, the M’s would surely have to swallow some or all of that in order to facilitate a deal.
As for the waiver route, that will be an interesting factor here. Normally, players with more than three years of service time can reject an outright assignment in favor of electing free agency, but they require five years of service to do so while retaining their salary. Assuming those normal rules apply and Flexen goes on to clear waivers, he obviously wouldn’t leave that money on the table and would therefore stick in the Mariners’ organization as depth. However, players coming from stints in other countries like Japan, Korea or Cuba often have language in their contracts that allows them to circumvent the normal service time rules. For instance, MLBTR confirmed this winter that Flexen would become a free agent after 2023 even though he would be well shy of six years’ of service time. Whether the M’s can potentially keep Flexen as depth or not will have an impact on how much they are willing to trade him.