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Nationals Reinstate Hunter Harvey, Transfer Jackson Tetreault To 60-Day IL

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The Nationals have announced that they reinstated right-hander Hunter Harvey from the 60-day injured list. To create room on the active roster, fellow righty Joan Adon was optioned to Triple-A Rochester. To open a spot on the 40-man roster, righty Jackson Tetreault was transferred to the 60-day IL.

Harvey was a first round pick of the Orioles in 2013 but has had his career trajectory repeatedly derailed by injuries. He pitched a few innings out of Baltimore’s bullpen in each of the 2019-21 seasons, but they gave up on him this offseason and put him on waivers. He was claimed by the Giants, who put him on waivers again, this time landing with the Nats. He pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings this year before landing on the injured list in April.

He will reach arbitration this winter but will still have three years of control remaining. For a rebuilding club like the Nats, they can see if Harvey can make good on the promise that once made him a first round draft pick and Baseball America’s #68 prospect in the league in 2015.

As for Tetreault, he will now be ineligible to return until 60 days from his initial IL placement, which was on July 4. He’s dealing with a stress fracture to the scapula, or shoulder blade, of his throwing arm. Given the seriousness of that injury, it wasn’t likely he’d return in the next couple of months, making this transfer largely a formality.

Jessica Camerato of MLB.com reported Harvey’s presence before the official announcement.

Athletics Select Dermis Garcia

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The Athletics are calling up first baseman Dermis Garcia, according to a team announcement. Garcia is not currently on the club’s 40-man roster, but a vacancy was created with yesterday’s trade that sent Christian Bethancourt to the Rays. Whenever Garcia gets into a game, it will be his major league debut.

Garcia, 24, was once a high-profile international signing, joining the Yankees in 2014 with a $3.2MM bonus. In 2015, Baseball America ranked him one of the top 30 Yankee farmhands, comparing him to Miguel Sano, with both players having spent time with the same trainer. Although he was a shortstop at the time of his signing, evaluators expected him to move off the position and become a bat-first prospect, something that has largely come true, with Garcia first shifting to third base and then first base.

Garcia hit for tremendous power during his time in the Yankees’ system, though that also came with piles of strikeouts. He’s never had a strikeout rate lower than 27.7% at any minor league stop in his career. For reference, the MLB average this season is 22.2%. Despite those Ks, Garcia still managed to be productive with his power and walks. He stayed on BA’s list of top Yankee farmhands from 2015 to 2018.

Last year, Garcia reached Double-A, hitting 31 homers and walking 11.7% of the time, but also striking out in 37.9% of his plate appearances. His final line on the year was .210/.307/.486 for a wRC+ of 111. He reached minor league free agency and signed with the A’s in March on a minor league deal. He’s spent the year with the Triple-A Las Vegas Aviators, getting into 54 games so far. He seems to have improved his plate discipline but sacrificed some power in the process. He has an 11.4% walk rate on the year with a 29.2% strikeout rate, but just eight homers in the famously hitter-friendly environment of the Pacific Coast League. His slash line is .251/.338/.444 for a 92 wRC+.

Despite spending all those years in the Yankee system, he’s still just 24 years old. The A’s have Seth Brown as their regular first baseman, though he’s also capable of playing some outfield. The Bethancourt trade also removed one first base/DH option from the team, creating an opening for the club to give Garcia a shot.

Martín Gallegos of MLB.com announced his promotion before the official team announcement.

Orioles Select Rico Garcia

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The Orioles announced some roster moves prior to today’s game, selecting the contract of right-hander Rico Garcia to their roster. To make room for Garcia on the active roster, lefty Bruce Zimmermann was optioned to Triple-A. To create a spot on the 40-man roster, righty Travis Lakins Sr. was transferred to the 60-day injured list. Additionally, righty Marcos Diplan, who was designated for assignment last week, has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A.

Garcia, 28, has 19 innings of MLB experience under his belt, including three with the Orioles earlier this year. He was selected as a COVID-19 “substitute” when the club travelled to Toronto and placed Anthony Santander and Keegan Akin on the restricted list due to their unvaccinated status. As Garcia was given substitute status, he was removed from the roster after the Toronto series without being exposed to waivers.

Garcia also appeared in the big leagues with the Rockies in 2019 and Giants in 2020, generating a career ERA of 6.63 so far in that small sample of scattered work. He missed all of 2021 recovering from Tommy John surgery and signed a minor league deal with the O’s in the offseason. He’s had a solid showing in Triple-A this year, throwing 18 innings with an even ERA of 3.00, along with a 25.3% strikeout rate, 10.7% walk rate and 31.1% ground ball rate.

As for Lakins, this transfer will mean he’s ineligible to return until 60 days from his initial IL placement for elbow inflammation, which was on May 20. Those 60 days are almost up and there’s no news on his prognosis, making this move a mere formality.

Diplan has been outrighted by the Orioles twice before and returned to the club both times. He has the right to reject this assignment and elect free agency, though it seems possible he’ll stick with the O’s like he did in those previous instances.

Angels Place Michael Lorenzen On IL With Shoulder Strain

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TODAY: Manager Phil Nevin told reporters (including MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger) that the MRI didn’t reveal any structural damage to Lorenzen’s shoulder.  The plan is for Lorenzen to start a throwing program after he finishes getting treatment.

JULY 7: The Angels announced that they have placed starter Michael Lorenzen on the 15-day injured list due to a right shoulder strain. The move is retroactive to July 4. Right-hander Jose Marte has been recalled to take his spot on the active roster.

Lorenzen, 30, had spent his entire career with the Reds until reaching free agency last year. Cincy had used him primarily as a relief pitcher, though Lorenzen went into the open market hoping for an opportunity to join a starting rotation. The Angels stepped up and gave him that chance, signing him to a one-year, $6.75MM deal. So far, he’s made 13 starts and thrown 71 innings. In that time, he has an 18.1% strikeout rate, 9.9% walk rate and 51.9% ground ball rate. All told, he has a 4.94 ERA, though advanced metrics are a little more bullish, with Lorenzen having a 4.57 SIERA and 4.46 FIP.

Those numbers probably belie how effective Lorenzen has been, as his last three starts have been awful, perhaps due to this shoulder ailment starting to crop up. Those three turns resulted in 16 earned runs, causing those numbers to shoot upwards. Up until that point, he had a 3.69 ERA, 4.46 SIERA and 3.82 FIP.

The Angels haven’t provided a timeline for Lorenzen’s absence but more information should be forthcoming in the days ahead. Britt Ghiroli of The Athletic was among those to relay that Lorenzen is headed for the MRI machine soon. But regardless of the length of his absence, this situation has the potential for significant ramifications. For the Angels, they are losing a solid member of their starting rotation at a key time. The club is 38-45, seven games back of the Blue Jays for the final AL Wild Card spot, with five teams in between them. The August 2 trade deadline is now just over three weeks away, meaning the club will have to make some tough decisions about how to approach it.

Though the club would surely love to climb back into the race, they will now have to do so without Lorenzen. If they are unable to get hot in the next few weeks, they will have to give consideration to flipping players with short windows of control. With the demand for starting pitching seeming to be outpacing the supply, any serviceable starting pitcher will be highly sought after. The Angels have both Noah Syndergaard and Lorenzen on one-year deals, making them logical candidates to be moved in the coming weeks, though this injury could perhaps scuttle the chances of a Lorenzen deal. Even if he is able to return to health and rejoin the team before the deadline, the injury concern will likely reduce the return that the Angels are able to demand in any deal.

Mets Release Chasen Shreve

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The Mets announced that left-hander Chasen Shreve was released.  Shreve was designated for assignment earlier this week, to make room for Max Scherzer’s activation off the injured list.

Shreve signed a minor league deal with the Mets shortly after the lockout, returning to Queens after spending 2020 with the Mets and then the 2021 season with the Pirates.  While Shreve was eligible for arbitration last winter, the Pirates essentially gave him an early non-tender by outrighting him off the 40-man roster after the season, and Shreve then opted for free agency.

After making New York’s Opening Day roster, Shreve locked in a $1.5MM salary for himself, but his performance over 26 1/3 innings had plenty of ups and downs.  As recently as June 10, Shreve had a respectable 3.86 ERA, but then allowed 10 runs over his next 5 1/3 innings of work.  In total, the southpaw has a 6.49 ERA for the season, with an above-average 25.4% strikeout rate but plenty of subpar Statcast numbers in other major categories.  Shreve’s old problems with the home run ball have also resurfaced, as he has given up six homers in his 26 1/3 IP.

The Mets are responsible for paying the remainder of Shreve’s guaranteed salary, so any new team will owe him only the prorated portion of a minimum salary.  With teams constantly on the lookout for (especially left-handed) bullpen help, Shreve seems likely to catch on somewhere, particularly since his 2022 performance is something of an outlier.  Over 181 1/3 relief innings from 2017-21, Shreve had a solid 3.72 ERA, despite some unimpressive walk totals.

Mariners Announce Six Roster Moves

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Mariners manager Scott Servais told reporters (including MLB.com’s Daniel Kramer) about a series of roster moves prior to tonight’s game with the Blue Jays, including catcher Luis Torrens being activated from the 10-day injured list.  Torrens joins minor league callups Matt Brash and Matt Festa as new faces on Seattle’s roster, while right-hander Ken Giles was placed on the 15-day IL due to shoulder inflammation, catcher Andrew Knapp was designated for assignment, and right-hander Erik Swanson was placed on the paternity list.

Left shoulder inflammation sent Torrens to the IL back on June 27, so he’ll return after missing only just beyond the 10-day minimum.  The Mariners were hoping Torrens’ good numbers in 2021 meant he was ready to take a step forward as a part-time DH and catcher this season, but he has struggled to a .222/.280/.241 slash line over 118 plate appearances.  Cal Raleigh has started to emerge as a solid regular starter behind the plate, and Tom Murphy is gone for the season due to shoulder surgery, so there would seemingly be room for Torrens to remain as the backup catcher for the remainder of the year.

Seattle selected Knapp’s contract when Torrens hit the injured list, and Knapp has appeared in two games in a Mariners uniform.  Due to Knapp’s service time and the fact that he has been outrighted off a 40-man roster in the past, he has the freedom to elect free agency rather than accept an outright assignment to the Mariners’ Triple-A affiliate — Knapp already chose free agency when the Pirates DFA’ed him in May, which paved the way for Knapp to sign with the Mariners.  It remains to be seen if Knapp will become a free agent again, or if he’ll choose to remain at Triple-A Tacoma (assuming he clears DFA waivers) as a depth option.

After missing all of 2021 due to Tommy John surgery, Giles then suffered a strained tendon in his right middle finger that delayed his M’s debut until June 21.  The veteran reliever has allowed no runs and only one hit over 4 1/3 innings of work, albeit with four walks in that small sample size.  Unfortunately for Giles, he’ll now be sidelined again with this latest injury.

Brash and Festa will look to fill the holes in Seattle’s bullpen, and Brash is making his return to the big leagues in a new relief role.  Beginning the year as a starting pitcher, the former top-100 prospect posted a 7.65 ERA over five starts and 20 innings, recording almost as many walks (17) as strikeouts (19).  The Mariners made the aggressive decision to promote Brash to the majors without any time spent at Triple-A, so Brash got his first taste of the top minor league level when the M’s demoted him in May and then converted him to relief pitching.

The results have thus far been impressive.  Over his last 17 innings, Brash has posted a 1.59 ERA, a whopping 37.9% strikeout rate, and only a 7.57% walk rate.  The hard-throwing Brash has the stuff to be a dominant reliever on paper, should he keep his past control problems in check.

Red Sox Place Connor Seabold, Christian Arroyo On Injured List

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The Red Sox announced a series of moves, including the placement of right-hander Connor Seabold on the 15-day injured list and utilityman Christian Arroyo on the 10-day IL.  Right-hander Phillips Valdez and infielder Jeter Downs were called up from Triple-A in corresponding moves.  As reported earlier today, Boston also selected the contract of Kaleb Ort, while designating Michael Feliz for assignment.

Seabold has an extensor strain in his right forearm, which forced him out of last night’s game with the Yankees in the third inning.  While extensor strains aren’t always a precursor to Tommy John surgery, any forearm-related injury is naturally a concern, and Seabold will undergo further examination before a recovery timeline is known.

With the injury bug taking a big bit out of the Sox rotation, Seabold was called up in late June and has made three starts.  The results haven’t been pretty, as he has an 11.91 ERA over 11 1/3 innings — Seabold sandwiched a respectable one-run performance against the White Sox between a pair of seven-run blowouts to the Blue Jays and Yankees.

Chris Sale is slated to be activated from the IL on Tuesday, and the veteran southpaw will join a makeshift rotation of Nick Pivetta, Kutter Crawford, Josh Winckowski and top prospect Brayan Bello.  However, the Red Sox have more than an entire rotation’s worth of arms on the injured list, as Seabold joins Sale, Garrett Whitlock, Nathan Eovaldi, Michael Wacha, Rich Hill, and James Paxton.  Eovaldi is tentatively set to return next weekend, but the Sox might have to wait until after the All-Star break to get any semblance of a healthy starting five.

The team will also lose bench depth, as the versatile Arroyo will miss time due to a left groin strain.  Arroyo’s placement opens the door for Downs’ latest opportunity at the MLB level, as the star prospect made his big league debut with a single game earlier this season.

Downs has been on fire in the 14 Triple-A games since his return, as his offense has hugely improved since cutting down on his leg lift during his swing.  (Hat tip to Alex Speier of the Boston Globe.)  His role on Boston’s active roster will be of some interest, as Downs has almost exclusively played shortstop this season, with only a single game at third base.  Rafael Devers is currently battling a bad back, and with Downs now up, this could hint that the Sox are considering a precautionary IL placement for Devers.  However, it is also possible Downs might get only another cup-of-coffee stint if Devers’ back heals up after a weekend off.

Giants Designate Jake McGee, Reinstate Luis Gonzalez, Place Zack Littell On 15-Day IL

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The Giants announced a quartet of roster moves, including the news that veteran left-hander Jake McGee has been designated for assignment.  Right-hander Zack Littell was also placed on the 15-day injured list due to a left oblique strain, while outfielder Luis Gonzalez was reinstated from the 10-day IL and righty Yunior Marte was called up from Triple-A.

McGee signed with San Francisco in the 2020-21 offseason, inking a two-year deal worth $5MM in guaranteed money — $2MM in 2021, $2.5MM this season, and a $500K buyout of a 2023 club option worth $4.5MM if exercised.  That contract paid immediate dividends for the Giants in 2021, as McGee posted a 2.72 ERA, 24.3% strikeout rate, and an elite 4.2% walk rate over 59 2/3 innings.  With 31 saves, McGee was the Giants’ primary closer, though Tyler Rogers and (later in the season when McGee was sidelined with an oblique injury) Camilo Doval also stepped in for some ninth-inning situations.

Unfortunately for McGee, his second season in the Bay Area hasn’t been nearly as smooth.  His strikeout rate has plummeted to a career-worst 11.5%, and he has a 7.17 ERA over 21 1/3 innings (also missing two weeks on the IL due to back tightness).  With Doval taking over as closer, McGee hasn’t been able to perform effectively in a set-up role, and right-handed batters have been crushing McGee’s offerings.

The Giants had clearly seen enough, and could now be on the hook for the remainder of McGee’s salary (roughly $1.12MM) if he isn’t claimed off the DFA wire or acquired in a trade.  If McGee clears waivers and is released, then another team would owe only the prorated minimum salary for his services, with the Giants responsible for the rest of his guaranteed salary.

Despite McGee’s struggles this year, his past track record could generate some interest on the trade front.  The left-hander has been a quality performer for the majority of his 13 MLB seasons, and after it seemed he was winding down after a couple of tough years with the Rockies in 2018-19, he rebounded in 2020 to contribute to the Dodgers’ world championship team.  McGee is still very effective against left-handed batters, so an interested team could try to use him in as much situational work as possible (given the three-batter rule), or perhaps a new club might feel a change of scenery in general will get McGee back on track.

Littell is another reliever who was excellent in 2021 (2.92 ERA over 61 2/3 IP) but has had some bumps in 2022, posting a 5.04 ERA over 30 1/3 frames.  A 3.32 SIERA indicates that Littell has been a little unfortunate this year, hurt in particular by a spike in his home run rate.  Littell also spent 10 days on the COVID-related injury list, and was optioned to Triple-A in late June before being recalled just two days ago.  That means the 26-year-old will at least bank Major League service time while on the IL, and depending on the severity of his strain, Littell could be in for a fairly lengthy absence.

Gonzalez has been out of action since June 23 due to a lower back strain, and he’ll now look to resume what has been a semi-breakout year.  The 26-year-old has hit .302/.361/.447 with three home runs over 180 plate appearances, getting regular work against right-handed pitchers even in a San Francisco lineup that is already heavy in left-handed hitting outfielders.

Padres Place Craig Stammen On 15-Day IL, Dinelson Lamet Recalled

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The Padres placed right-hander Craig Stammen on the 15-day injured list due to right shoulder inflammation.  (The placement is retroactive to July 6.)  Righty Dinelson Lamet has been called up from Triple-A to take Stammen’s place on the active roster.

A fixture in San Diego’s bullpen for the last six seasons, Stammen is having another good year, with a 3.34 ERA/3.25 SIERA over 32 1/3 innings.  The home run ball has been a bit more of an issue for Stammen this season, yet the 38-year-old is still generating plenty of outs thanks to a lot of soft contact, a 51.5% grounder rate, and his typically excellent control.  Stammen’s 3.6% walk rate is in the 97th percentile of all pitchers, and he has been in at least the 91st percentile in each of the last five seasons.

With Steven Wilson, Robert Suarez, and now Stammen all on the 15-day IL, the Padres have lost some key arms from what has been a very solid relief corps.  None of the injuries are thought to be overly serious at this point, and Wilson and Suarez are already throwing bullpen sessions.

However, there is an opportunity for Lamet to re-establish himself as a player to watch.  A fourth-place finisher in NL Cy Young Award balloting in 2020, Lamet has struggled to stay healthy, and now may be ticketed for bullpen work in an attempt to avoid further IL trips.  Working only as a reliever this season, Lamet has a 9.72 ERA over 8 1/3 innings in the big leagues, but he has looked sharper in minor league action.

Given the close proximity to the trade deadline, Lamet’s recall might also be the Padres’ way of showcasing the righty to potential trade suitors.  San Diego was known to be discussing Lamet with other teams earlier this year, perhaps as a way of giving the Padres a bit of extra luxury-tax breathing room.

Yankees Outright Ryan Weber

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TODAY: The Yankees outrighted Weber to Triple-A

JULY 6: The Yankees announced Wednesday that right-hander Ryan Weber has been designated for assignment. His spot on the roster will go to righty Miguel Castro, who’s been reinstated from the paternity list.

Weber, 31, appeared in just one game in his latest Yankees stint, tossing a scoreless inning of relief on just 11 pitches. He’s totaled 4 2/3 innings of one-run ball with the Yankees this season, spending the remainder of the season with their Triple-A affiliate in Scranton. This is the second time Weber has been designated for assignment this season. He cleared waivers, elected free agency and quickly re-signed with the Yankees the first time around. It wouldn’t be a surprise at all to see the same sequence play out once again, as it’s fairly common for journeyman pitchers of Weber’s nature. (See also: Drew Hutchison in Detroit this season)

The Yankees are the seventh Major League team for which Weber has pitched since debuting with the Braves back in 2015. He’s logged big league time each season since that debut but has never appeared in more than 14 games and has maxed out at 43 Major League innings in any given season. Through 171 2/3 innings as a Major Leaguer, Weber has a 5.19 ERA with a well below-average 14.8% strikeout rate but an excellent 5.3% walk rate and a strong 52.9% grounder rate.

The Yankees will have a week to trade Weber, attempt to pass him through waivers or release him.

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