Tigers Release César Hernández
The Tigers announced that infielder César Hernández has been granted his release. He had been in camp on a minor league deal but had an opt-out opportunity this past weekend.
Hernández, 33 in May, spent many years as a solid infielder for the Phillies, mostly as a second baseman. In four straight years from 2015 to 2018, he walked at a rate of 8.8% or higher and stole at least 15 bases. His power also gradually ticked up in that time, going from a single long ball in 2015 to 15 homers in 2018.
He’s been a bit less consistent in recent years as he’s gone into journeyman mode. He split 2021 between Cleveland and the White Sox, hitting 21 home runs but still finishing with a tepid .232/.308/.386 batting line and 90 wRC+. With the Nationals last year, he hit just a single home run and batted .248/.311/.318 for a wRC+ of 79.
He had to settle for a minor league deal this year, joining a Tigers club with some infield uncertainty. Javier Báez was going to be the shortstop despite a disappointing 2022 campaign. Spencer Torkelson also struggled last year but seemed likely to get another shot to at first. Jonathan Schoop was lined up to play second base after a strange 2022 where he was awful at the plate but great in the field, though he could also move over to first if Torkelson’s struggles continued. Jeimer Candelario was non-tendered but Nick Maton was acquired from the Phillies to take over at third.
Hernández could have been behind those guys in a bench role, as he’s played second, third and short in his career, as well as some outfield work. However, they also have Ryan Kreidler and Zack Short on the roster, and acquired Zach McKinstry from the Cubs just yesterday. Tyler Nevin will start the season on the injured list but will jump into this mix once healthy.
The minor league deal that Hernández signed with Detroit would come with a base salary of $1.5MM if he had made the team, but it seems the Tigers would rather pocket that money and fill out their bench with those other options. He was one of several veterans that had automatic opt-outs in their respective contracts, with the first opportunity being this past weekend. Whether he triggered that opt-out or not, it seems he wasn’t going to crack the roster in Detroit and will now be free to pursue opportunities with all 30 clubs.
Red Sox Reassign Jorge Alfaro To Minors, Option Bobby Dalbec
The Red Sox announced to reporters, including Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe, that catcher Jorge Alfaro has been reassigned to minor league camp while infielder Bobby Dalbec has been optioned. That seemingly paves the way for catcher Connor Wong and infielder Yu Chang to make the club in reserve roles.
Alfaro, 30 in June, signed a minor league deal with the Sox in the offseason and seemed to have a legitimate chance to make the roster. Reese McGuire and Wong are the only two catchers currently on the club’s roster and the latter suffered a hamstring strain early in camp that seemed to open a path for Alfaro. However, Wong has since recovered and will be with the team on Opening Day.
It had been reported this offseason that Alfaro’s deal has an upward mobility clause, which meant that the Sox would have to contact the other 29 teams to see if any of them wanted to give him a roster spot, in the event he didn’t get one from Boston. As Abraham notes, he didn’t get an opportunity elsewhere and will seemingly head to Triple-A Worcester to start the season. He’ll give the club some experienced catching depth for the start of the season, though he has further opt-out opportunities on June 1 and July 1.
As for Dalbec, 28 in June, he debuted with a tremendous showing in 2020 but has dropped off since. He hit eight home runs in just 20 games in the shortened season, though with a concerning 42.4% strikeout rate. Those punchouts have continued to be an issue, as he’s posted rates above 33% in each of the past two seasons. His batting line last year ended up at .215/.283/.369 for a wRC+ of 80. The strong debut of Triston Casas last year has knocked Dalbec off the first base gig at Fenway and he’ll now head down to the minors to try to get in a good groove.
Chris Cotillo of MassLive reports that Dalbec will move all around the infield for the WooSox, perhaps allowing him to return to the big leagues in a utility role somewhere down the line. Dalbec has played all four infield spots in the majors but mostly at first, followed by some decent time at third and very brief spells in the middle. The club is on firmer ground at the corner, especially with Rafael Devers at third. Casas is inexperienced but will have first base locked down for years to come if he hits major league pitching. But the departure of Xander Bogaerts and the injury to Trevor Story leave the club with Enrique Hernández and Christian Arroyo as their main duo up the middle. Hernández has played a decent amount of shortstop but as a utility guy and not on an everyday basis, while Arroyo has mostly served as a backup to this point in his career. If Dalbec can become a serviceable defender up the middle, that would improve his chances of finding a path back to the club.
For now, the backup infield job will fall to Chang, who is out of options. He has struggled to hit in his major league time thus far but continues to intrigue teams due to his defensive versatility. He bounced around from the Guardians to the Pirates, Rays and Red Sox last year, eventually getting non-tendered by Boston but returning later in the offseason. He hit just .208/.289/.315 between those four clubs but is coming off a strong showing in the World Baseball Classic. He hit .438 while representing Chinese Taipei and won the Most Valuable Player award in Pool A. Adalberto Mondesi will also be in the mix for a backup infield role at some point, though he’s slated to begin the year on the injured list as he’s still recovering from last year’s ACL tear.
Orioles Acquire Danny Coulombe
7:31pm: The Orioles announced that they’ve acquired Coulombe from the Twins in exchange for cash.
2:45pm: The Orioles are acquiring left-hander Danny Coulombe from the Twins, per Darren Wolfson of SKOR North Radio and Dan Connolly of The Athletic. Coulombe was with the Twins on a minor league deal but can opt out if given a roster spot from another club, which the Orioles are willing to do. Baltimore’s 40-man roster is currently full and they will have to make a corresponding move to accommodate Coulombe whenever this move is made official.
Coulombe, 33, has 194 MLB games under his belt, dating back to the 2014 season. He has a 3.92 ERA in that time, along with a 22.1% strikeout rate, 9.9% walk rate and 52.5% ground ball rate. Like most lefties, Coulombe is more effective with the platoon advantage. Left-handed hitters have batted .236/.302/.335 against him while righties have hit .246/.333/.431. The southpaw is having a nice showing here in spring, throwing nine innings without allowing an earned run, striking out 13 against four walks.
It was recently reported that the O’s optioned DL Hall and plan to stretch him out as a starter in the minors. That leaves the club with Cionel Pérez, Keegan Akin and Nick Vespi as their options on the 40-man roster for lefty relief. Akin and Vespi both have options, while Pérez and Coulombe do not. Vespi has already been optioned to the minors and it’s possible Akin now joins him with this move, though the club could also simply keep three lefties on the Opening Day roster.
Cubs Outright Rowan Wick, Option Christopher Morel
The Cubs announced Monday that right-hander Rowan Wick went unclaimed on waivers and has been assigned outright to Triple-A Iowa. The team also optioned infielder/outfielder Christopher Morel to Iowa. Non-roster veterans Mike Tauchman and Roenis Elias, meanwhile, have been reassigned to minor league camp. They won’t make the roster out of spring training. Manager David Ross also confirmed earlier in the day that right-hander Javier Assad has made the team’s Opening Day bullpen (Twitter link via Jordan Bastian of MLB.com).
Wick, 30, has enough service time to reject the outright assignment, but doing so would mean forfeiting the $1.55MM salary to which he agreed earlier in the offseason when he avoided arbitration. As such, he’s all but certain to accept the assignment and remain in the organization without occupying a spot on the 40-man roster.
Wick has spent the past four seasons with the Cubs, pitching to a combined 3.66 ERA with a 25.2% strikeout rate, 10.7% walk rate and 44.2% ground-ball rate. His results have dipped over the past two years, however, with his ERA clocking in at 4.24 during that time. Last year’s 23.5% strikeout rate was the lowest of his four seasons with the Cubs.
The Cubs had enough faith in Wick to sign him to that $1.55MM deal, and that salary now quite likely helped them pass him through waivers. Since avoiding arbitration with Wick, they’ve signed Brad Boxberger and Michael Fulmer in addition to claiming hard-throwing righty Julian Merryweather off waivers. With a strong showing in Iowa, Wick would figure to put himself back in the mix for a big league spot pretty quickly, given his track record, but he’ll open the year in the minors and off the 40-man roster.
As for Morel, he’ll head to Iowa to receive regular at-bats rather than work in a part-time role on the big league roster. The 23-year-old hit .235/.308/.433 while playing third base, second base, shortstop, left field and center field in his MLB debut last summer. That came on the heels of a huge .306/.380/.565 batting line in Double-A. However, Morel still has only nine Triple-A games to his name, and strikeouts were an issue for him both in last year’s debut (32.2%) and even more so during spring training in 2023 (42.1%). Even though he fanned 24 times in 57 Cactus League plate appearances, he still posted a .269/.333/.577 batting line, but that type of production isn’t sustainable with such pronounced swing-and-miss issues.
The decision to option Morel doesn’t take away from the fact that the Cubs are still hoping he’ll be a major contributor for them over the long term. However, for the time being, the focus will be on reining in his strikeout tendencies in order to better take advantage of his impressive combination of plus raw power and plus speed.
Jared Walsh, Max Stassi To Start Season On Injured List; Angels To Select Jake Lamb
Angels first baseman Jared Walsh and catcher Max Stassi will begin the 2023 season on the injured list, tweets Sam Blum of The Athletic. Walsh is currently being plagued by headaches and insomnia, while Stassi is dealing with a hip injury. With that pair of IL stints, the Halos will carry top catching prospect Logan O’Hoppe and veteran corner infielder Jake Lamb on the Opening Day roster. Lamb, who’s in camp on a non-roster deal, will need to have his contract selected.
Walsh’s trip to the injured list is an unfortunate development for the Halos, given the resurgent showing he turned in this spring after undergoing thoracic outlet surgery in 2022. The 29-year-old Walsh’s 2021 breakout sent him to the All-Star Game, and he finished out that season with a hearty .277/.340/.509 batting line and 29 homers. He hit just .215/.269/.374 in 2022 before landing on the injured list and undergoing surgery, but through 14 spring games in 2023 Walsh looked like his old self: .400/.512/.686 with a pair of homers and four doubles in 43 plate appearances. He’ll meet with a specialist to determine the root of his current issues.
With Walsh out, the veteran Lamb could step into the large half of a first base platoon. He’s had a monster spring, batting .324/.419/.595 with a pair of homers, four doubles and a 9-to-5 K/BB ratio in 43 plate appearances. Lamb hit 59 home runs as the D-backs’ regular third baseman back in 2016-17 but has since had his career derailed by shoulder injuries. He’s batted just .198/.310/.394 in 606 plate appearances since 2018 shoulder surgery. That said, Lamb is a .251/.339/.455 hitter against right-handed pitching.
There’s no timetable provided for Stassi’s return, but his trip to the IL paves the way for O’Hoppe, one of the sport’s top catching prospects, to open the season as the Angels’ primary starter. It also at least temporarily resolves the Angels’ dilemma with regard to catcher/first baseman Matt Thaiss, who’s out of minor league options. Thaiss will now slot in as the backup to O’Hoppe early on, and his experience at first base will also be a factor with Walsh sidelined.
O’Hoppe, 23, made his big league debut with the Angels late in the 2022 season but received just 16 plate appearances in five games. Acquired from the Phillies in the deadline deal that sent center fielder Brandon Marsh the other way, O’Hoppe posted a combined .283/.416/.544 batting line in 447 plate appearances between the Double-A affiliates for his two organizations.
With this Opening Day assignment, he’ll skip the Triple-A level entirely. He’s looked ready for the challenge in Cactus League play, batting .281/.361/.438 with a homer and a pair of doubles. O’Hoppe’s 13 strikeouts in 36 plate appearances are a red flag, but he’ll get the chance to prove he’s ready to step up as the organization’s long-term option behind the plate right now. Baseball America currently ranks O’Hoppe as the game’s No. 42 overall prospect.
Turning to the rest of the Halos’ roster, there’s further clarity being gained. While the Halos are still deciding who’ll round out the final spot in their six-man rotation, they’ve decided on carrying righty Andrew Wantz in the bullpen and, perhaps more interestingly, will run with offseason trade acquisition Gio Urshela as their Opening Day shortstop.
It’s long been expected that Urshela would see some time at shortstop in Anaheim, and he’ll get the nod over Luis Rengifo and David Fletcher. It bears mentioning that the Angels will face a lefty starter (Kyle Muller) on Opening Day, so getting Urshela’s right-handed bat into the lineup is particularly sensible. Whether he holds the shortstop job on an everyday basis will be seen, but he’s made a strong case for as much playing time as possible this spring, batting .382/.417/.471 with a double, a triple and just two strikeouts in 36 trips to the plate.
David Peterson Wins Mets’ Final Rotation Spot; Tylor Megill Optioned To Triple-A
Left-hander David Peterson has won the final spot in the Mets’ rotation over righty Tylor Megill, as first reported Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Megill has been optioned to Triple-A, the team announced this afternoon. He’ll work out of the rotation there (as Abbey Mastracco of the New York Daily News reported earlier in the day).
The 27-year-old Peterson fired a dozen scoreless frames this season and remarkably allowed just one hit, although he also issued a troubling eight free passes. He overcame that shaky command both with the lack of hits and by punching out 13 of the 45 hitters he faced (28.9%). Megill, meanwhile, allowed 10 runs (seven earned) on 14 hits and 13 walks with a dozen strikeouts in 17 innings during Grapefruit League play.
A former first-round pick, Peterson has seen action in parts of three seasons with the Mets and generally fared well, logging a 4.26 ERA while fanning nearly a quarter of his opponents through 222 MLB frames. His career 10.7% walk rate is too high, but Peterson’s slider is a true bat-missing offering (47.9% whiff rate in 2022, per Statcast) and his changeup has been good enough to help keep right-handed opponents off balance. On many teams, he’d be locked into a rotation spot in the first place, but the deep-pocketed Mets spent extensively this offseason to fill out a rotation that saw Jacob deGrom, Chris Bassitt and Taijuan Walker depart as free agents.
Unfortunately, one of the arms signed to replace that outgoing trio was lefty Jose Quintana, who’ll miss upwards of half the season while recovering from a bone graft procedure to address a benign lesion on his ribcage. Peterson is a much better sixth starter option than many teams can afford, and given that he posted a 3.83 ERA in 105 2/3 frames last year, he could well parlay this opportunity into a more permanent rotation spot. Carlos Carrasco is a free agent at season’s end, and Max Scherzer has an opt-out in his contract.
Like Peterson, Megill is 27 years old and is a better depth option than many teams boast. The right-hander made 18 starts in 2021 and posted a 4.52 ERA with more impressive strikeout and walk rates (26.1% and 7.1%, respectively). He made six starts early in the 2022 season as well, logging a pristine 2.43 ERA with a huge 36-to-8 K/BB ratio in 33 1/3 innings of work while flashing an upper-90s heater that had added significant velocity since the 2021 season.
Unfortunately for both Megill and the Mets, a biceps injury shelved him into June, and he quickly returned to the injured list due to a shoulder strain. He wound up finishing the season with an ugly 5.13 ERA, though his early work is a reminder of the raw quality of his arsenal. Megill has stymied right-handed opponents to the tune of a .202/.247/.331 batting line in his career, but lefties have torched him for a .307/.368/.368 clip. He’ll continue working to find some answers against lefties while working out of the rotation in Syracuse. He’s likely the next man up if the Mets need another starter early in the season.
Orioles Release Nomar Mazara, Franchy Cordero
The Orioles announced several roster moves today, including that infielder/outfielder Franchy Cordero and outfielder Nomar Mazara have been released. Also, infielder Ryan O’Hearn was reassigned to the minor leagues. Both Cordero and Mazara opted out of their deals, general manager Mike Elias tells Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. Elias expressed optimism about the club re-signing Cordero.
The Orioles spent much of the offseason attempting to stockpile non-roster players that hit from the left side. Lewin Díaz was twice claimed off waivers and then subsequently designated for assignment, eventually clearing waivers the second time around. O’Hearn was claimed off waivers from the Royals but then later passed through by the O’s. The club also signed Mazara, Cordero and Josh Lester to minor league deals. It seems neither Cordero nor Mazara were getting roster spots for Opening Day, leading to them opting out of their deals and returning to free agency, though the O’s will still have those other players around for the left-handed non-roster depth they craved.
Cordero, 28, has appeared in 227 MLB games between the Padres, Royals and Red Sox. He’s hit 21 home runs in that time but also struck out in 34.8% of his plate appearances. His .221/.290/.386 batting line amounts to a wRC+ of 83, indicating he’s been 17% below league average. He’s had a tremendous spring, however, hitting .413/.426/.674 in 18 games.
Mazara, 28 next month, was once a highly-touted prospect, appearing on Baseball America’s Top 100 in 2015 and 2016. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to live up to that pedigree thus far. His .256/.315/.414 batting line in 684 MLB games amounts to a wRC+ of 89. Unlike Cordero, he wasn’t impressing much this spring, with a batting line of .231/.286/.308.
Both players are now free to pursue opportunities with all 30 clubs. They will both likely receive interest, given Cordero’s hot spring and Mazara’s former prospect pedigree. As Elias mentioned, the club feels good about their ability to retain Cordero, so it’s possible he returns on another minor league deal before long.
Tigers Acquire Zach McKinstry From Cubs
The Cubs have informed reporters, including Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic, that they have traded infielder Zach McKinstry to the Tigers for right-hander Carlos Guzman. In order to make room on their 40-man roster for McKinstry, the Tigers have recalled Freddy Pacheco and placed him on the 60-day injured list, per Jason Beck of MLB.com.
McKinstry, 27, came to the Cubs in a 2022 trade that sent right-hander Chris Martin to the Dodgers. Chicago gave him plenty of reps down the stretch last year, but he responded with a tepid .206/.272/.361 batting line in 171 trips to the plate following the swap. Those numbers generally align with McKinstry’s career totals in Los Angeles; overall, he’s a career .208/.269/.384 hitter in 364 plate appearances at the MLB level.
In Triple-A, it’s been another story. McKinstry owns a .323/.401/.550 batting line in 489 plate appearances while appearing at every position other than first base, catcher and pitcher. He’ll give the Tigers a lefty-swinging bench option who can be plugged in just about anywhere. McKinstry doesn’t have minor league options remaining, so it looks as though he’ll make Detroit’s Opening Day roster.
In return, the Cubs will pick up a 24-year-old righty who split the 2022 season between High-A and Double-A (albeit just an inning and a third at the higher of the two). Guzman worked to a combined 4.11 ERA, striking out 20.6% of his opponents against a 7.8% walk rate with a 42.8% ground-ball rate. The 6’1″, 185-pound righty originally signed as a 16-year-old out of Venezuela back in 2015 and generally hasn’t ranked among the Tigers’ best prospects over the years. Guzman was Rule 5 eligible this past December but went unselected.
That said, Guzman has a 3.80 ERA across 317 minor league innings with strikeout and walk rates that are only slightly worse than average. He’ll give the Cubs an arm they can plug into their Double-A rotation and hope to mold into a potential option at the back of their rotation or perhaps as a middle or long reliever in the coming years.
Rangers Release Sandy León
The Rangers announced that catcher Sandy León has been released from his minor league contract.
León, 34, was an Article XX(B) free agent and thus had the ability to opt out of his minor league deal this past weekend if not given a roster spot. It’s unknown if he did indeed trigger his opt-out, but the end result is the same as he’s now back on the open market and free to sign with any club.
The veteran has appeared in each of the past 11 seasons, earning a reputation as a strong defensive catcher. In his career, he’s racked up 34 Defensive Runs Saved and a 12.9 grade from the FanGraphs framing metric. He hasn’t been able to provide too much offense in that time, outside of an incredible 2016 season. His career batting line is .210/.278/.314 for a wRC+ of 58. Despite that tepid performance at the plate, the defense is strong enough to continue to get him opportunities around the league.
Despite that strong reputation, the Rangers don’t have much need on the roster for him. They have Jonah Heim and Mitch Garver lined up to handle the catching duties in the big leagues, with Sam Huff also on the 40-man and likely to be in Triple-A. But León should be able to get himself a job elsewhere, given his skills and the constant need for catching around the league. The A’s are currently dealing with an injury to Manny Piña while the Diamondbacks are set to proceed without Carson Kelly for a while after he fractured his forearm. Those are just a couple of examples that highlight how depth is important at the position given the likelihood of injuries. León and his reps can now talk with all the teams in the league and find the best fit.
Nationals To Sign Chad Pinder To Minor League Deal
The Nationals are signing utility man Chad Pinder to a minor league deal, reports Robert Murray of FanSided.
Pinder, who turns 31 on Wednesday, had been in camp with the Reds on a minor league deal until recently. However, as an Article XX(B) free agent, he had the ability to opt-out of that deal this past weekend and return to free agency. But the Reds released him on Friday, allowing him to get an early start on that return to the open market, which has already resulted in a new deal.
Up until these minor league deals, Pinder had spent his entire career with the Athletics, serving as a super utility player. For his career, he’s hit .242/.294/.417 for a wRC+ of 96, indicating he’s been just a bit below league average in that time. But he paired that tepid offense with the ability to help the A’s out all over the diamond, playing every position except catcher.
Given that flexibility, it’s understandable that rebuilding clubs like the Reds and Nationals would be interested in him. Both clubs have many positions on their respective rosters where they are trying out unproven younger players to see who will be a part of the next competitive club, or perhaps become a trade chip. Pinder can give the Nats a bit of cover all over the diamond should any player struggle, get injured or get traded.